Hoshanot [Poetic Prayers] for a Planet in Danger

Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, 10/6/2004

[There are notes after these poetic prayers to explain the history, meaning, and practice of the Hoshanot, but please before absorbing that information let yourself dance with the poetic words by Reb Zalman. Then absorb the background information, and after that, read the Hoshanot again, with the background information supporting them. — AW]

Hosha'na for the sake of
the Aura of life
the Beams of Light
the Clearness of Light
the Dynamics of Light
the Effulgence of Light
the diFfraction of light
the Glory of light
the Haloes of light
the Illumination of light
the Joys of sight

For the second day (Wednesday)

Hosha'na for the sake of
the Karma of the separation of sky and water
the Luminosity of the sky
the Majesty of the sky
the Nourishment that comes in rain from the sky
the Orient and Occident in the sky
the Purple sunset sky
the Quality of purity of the sky
the Range of the sky
the Stretch of the firmament of the sky
the Treasures of rain that pour from the sky

For the third day (Thursday)

Hosha'na for the sake of
the Ubiquity of the plant
the Variety of the plant
the Wellness of the plant
the Xanthia gum tree
the Yucca plant
the Zucchinis and Zinnia
the Aspen tree
the Berry bushe
the Chlorophyl made by the leave
the Date palm

For the fourth day (Friday)

Hosha'na for the sake of
the Earth and planet
the Faraway star
the Galaxies in space
the Horizons of the sky
the Infinity of space
the Joyous music of the sphere
the Komets and Asteroid
the Location of Latitude and Longitude on the map
the Moons around the planet
the Nodes of the Zodiac

For the fifth day (Saturday)

Hosha'na for the sake of
Owls and Other Oviparious life
Perches and Plovers
Quail and Quohaug
Robins and Red Snapper
Seagulls and Swordfish
Turtles and Turtledove
Univalve
Varieties of Plankton
Waterfowl and Whale
Yellowtails and other Tuna

For the sixth day (Sunday)

Hosha'na for the sake of
Zebus and Zebra
Aardvarks and Armadillo
Bears and Babie
Children and Chimpanzee
Deer
Elks and Moose
Fawns and Familie
Giraffes and Gorilla
Homo Sapiens and Hominid
Instinctual and Intelligent life

For the seventh day (Monday)

Hosha'na for the sake of our
Letting Earth Rest
Letting Earth heal
Letting Earth recover
Leaving Earth in Peace
Letting People find their center
Letting people enjoy rest and freedom
Letting children romp
Living the Shabbat in Mindfulne
Loving others and ourselve
Letting Being do all the Doing

[In Hebrew, "Hosha na" means ""Please save us!" The phrase came to mean particular prayers for salvation; the plural is "Hoshanot." From it stems the English word "Hosanna."

[These prayers for the saving of the earth are to be recited on the various days of Sukkot, the seven-day Jewish harvest festival. Each is recited while carrying the Torah Scroll in a procession or dance — in Hebrew, "hakafah." ]

[The Hoshanot climax on the seventh day, Hoshana Rabbah ("the Great Save-us"), when all of them are chanted in seven dances/ processions with the Torah Scroll. On that same day, willow branches are beaten on the earth. Willows grow by rivers because they need a great deal of rain, and the rainy season in the Land of Israel comes only after Sukkot. If it is long delayed, the land and the people are in serious trouble.

[These Hoshanot in English by Reb Zalman follow the model of the traditional Hebrew Hoshanot, which are aimed at the protection and healing of the earth from locusts, drought, etc. These English versions do so not only in the line-by-line meaning, but also by celebrating, day by day, the aspects of the universe that (according to the first chapter of Genesis) were created on each of the original seven days. They also draw on the alphabetical pattern of the traditional Hebrew Hoshanot.

[In 1998, these Hoshanot were chanted, along with the traditional ones in Hebrew, in a public celebration of Hoshana Rabbah on the banks of the Hudson River at Beacon, NY, sponsored by The Shalom Center and Elat Chayyim retreat center. To the traditional prayers that the earth be protected from drought and locusts we added prayers to save the river from the PCB's that General Electric had poured into the Hudson, and was refusing to clean up.

[The celebration drew about 300 Jews from along the Hudson River from Kingston NY to the West Side of Manhattan, and also a number of Catholic nuns from convents on the river, one Iroquois elder who said he read a notice about the event in the newspaper and felt he should take part, and the folk-singer Pete Seeger, who lived in Beacon. - Editor's note by Rabbi Arthur Waskow]