A Tale of Rosh Hashana

It is told of the pious Rabbi Aaron of Karlin (18^th century) that once he was the Chazan during the Shacharit (morning prayers) of Rosh Hashana. When he began to sing ‘HaMelech’ (‘the King’, a special feature of the Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur Shacharit prayers), he started to weep and weep so bitterly that he could not continue. When he eventually recovered, his students asked what had happened. Rabbi Aaron replied that he was suddenly reminded of the story of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai, who furtively escaped from Jerusalem shortly before the destruction of the Temple to try and save the Jewish people from the wrath of the Roman general Vespasian. When he appeared before Vespasian, the Rabbi surprisingly exclaimed, ‘Shalom Aleichem, peace upon you, O king’. Vespasian, who was one of the sharper tools in the box, retorted, ‘If I am a king, why have you not come to me until now?’ (see Babylonian Talmud Masechet Gittin 56a-b for the whole story including how a messenger arrives on cue to tell Vespasian that the is new emperor!).

Rabbi Aaron looked intently at his students. ‘I suddenly realised’, he said, ‘that when I began to sing HaMelech, my heart grew sad within me as G-d is the King. Why have I not come to him until now?’

Rabbi Aaron’s comments are striking. Why does he use recall the example of Vespasian, a marauding Roman general, to describe his emotions at this time? What message is he conveying?

We can learn lessons from everything around us, even from people that are hostile to us. Rabbi Aaron understood that Vespasian’s point applied to him as well. Each year at Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, it is a point worth pondering. If the great Rabbi Aaron could ask it, so should we. It is a question in the greatest sense of the word, challenging us to look at ourselves in totality. Rosh Hashana is a time for our personal audit. Are there things we should have done this year but have not, for ourselves, for the Jewish people and for the world around us? Rosh Hashana is a time when wherever we have been geographically, emotionally or ideologically, we return to our source and to our roots that nourish us.

These thoughts underlie the lengthy prayers for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. Despite their length, they are amongst my favourite prayers of the year. They help me to answer Rabbi Aaron’s question, providing the words to probe the meaning of the question when I lack such words.

So too do the blasts of the Shofar. The symbolism of the strong straight notes alongside the broken and staccato notes helps us to ponder these questions. It also helps us approach G-d through the most basic sounds when words are too difficult for us.

I hope that the tale of Rabbi Aaron will help us all to experience a meaningful Yamim No’ra’im (Days of awe – Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur). May we be blessed with a wonderful year ahead?