ראש השנה ומשמעותו

There are four new years:The first of Nisan is the new year for kings and for festivals. The first of Elul is the new year for the tithe of beasts. Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Shimon say: the first of Tishri. The first of Tishri is the new year for years, for shmitta and jubilee years, for planting and for [tithe of] vegetables. The first of Shevat is the new year for trees, according to the words of Bet Shammai. Bet Hillel says: on the fifteenth of that month.

There are six months [at the beginning of which] messengers go out.On Nisan because of Pesah; On Av because of the fast. On Elul because of Rosh Hashanah. On Tishri because of the setting of the festivals. On Kislev because of Hanukah. And on Adar because of Purim. When the Temple stood, they used also to go out to report Iyar because of Pesah Katan (Pesah Sheni).

’This month shall be unto you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.

And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have a holy convocation: ye shall do no manner of servile work; it is a day of blowing the horn unto you.

It is taught in a baraita that the tanna’im disagreed about this point: Rabbi Eliezer says: In Tishrei the world was created; in Tishrei the Patriarchs were born; in Tishrei the Patriarchs died; on Passover Isaac was born; on Rosh HaShana Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah were remembered by God and conceived; on Rosh HaShana Joseph came out from prison; on Rosh HaShana our forefathers’ slavery in Egypt ceased; in Nisan the Jewish people were redeemed from Egypt; and in Tishrei in the future the Jewish people will be redeemed in the final redemption with the coming of the Messiah.

At four set times the world is judged:On Pesah in respect to the produce. On Shavuot in respect to the fruit of the tree. On Rosh Hashanah all the people of the world pass before Him like a division of soldier [a numerus], as it says, “He who fashions the hearts of them all, who discerns all their doings” (Psalms 33:15). And on Sukkot they are judged in respect of rain.

1 "On the seventh month on the first of the month" (Leviticus 23:24): This is [the understanding of] that which is written (Psalms 119:89), "Forever, O Lord, does Your word stand in the Heavens." It was taught in the name of Rabbi Eliezer, "The world was created on the twenty-fifth of Elul." And that of Rav comes out like that which Rabbi Eliezer taught. As we recite with the shofar blows of Rav, "This day is the beginning of Your works, a memorial for the first day, 'For it is a statute for Israel, etc.' (Psalms 81:5); and about the provinces it is said, which for the sword and which for peace, which for hunger and which for satiation; and for the creatures - on it are they remembered, to remember them for life or for death." It comes out that you say on Rosh Hashanah (the first of Tishrei in the first year) in the first hour, [man's creation] rose in thought; in the second, [God] consulted with the angels; in the third, He gathered his dirt; in the fourth, He kneaded it; in the fifth, He weaved it; in the sixth, He made it a form; in the seventh, He blew breath into it; in the eighth, He placed him into the Garden [of Eden]; in the ninth, he was commanded [about the fruit]; in the tenth, he transgressed; in the eleventh, he was judged; in the twelfth, he was pardoned. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Adam, "This is a sign for your children: In the same way that you stood in front of Me in judgement on this day and were pardoned, so too in the future will your children stand in front of Me in judgement on this day and be pardoned in front of Me." When? "On the seventh month on the first of the month" 2 Rabbi Nachman opened [his discourse]: "And you, have no fear, My servant Yaakov" (Jeremiah 30:10) is speaking about Yaakov, as it is written (Genesis 28:12), "He had a dream; a stairway was set on the ground [...]." Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman said, "These [angels that Yaakov saw in the dream] are the ministering angels of the nations of the world." For Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman said, "It teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, showed Yaakov our father, the ministering angel of Babylonia ascend seventy rungs; of Medea, thirty-five rungs; of Greece, one hundred and eighty rungs; and of Edom [he saw] ascend and did not know how many. At that time, Yaakov our father feared. He said, 'Is it possible that this one has no descent?' The Holy One, blessed be He, said, '"And you, have no fear, My servant Yaakov"; even if he comes up and sits with Me, I will bring him down from there.' This is [the understanding of] that which is written (Obadiah 1:4), 'Should you nest as high as the eagle, should your eyrie be lodged among the stars; even from there I will pull you down.'" Rabbi Berakhiah, Rabbi Chelbo and Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai said in the name of Rabbi Meir, "It teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, showed Yaakov the ministering angel of Babylonia ascend and descend; of Medea ascend and descend; of Greece ascend and descend; of Edom ascend and descend. The Holy One, blessed be He said to Yaakov, 'You should also ascend.' At that time, Yaakov our father feared and said, 'Lest, God forbid, just like there was a descent for these, for me too [will there be one].' The Holy One, blessed be He said to him, '"And you, have no fear." If you ascend, you will not ever have a descent.' [But] he did not trust, and did not ascend." Rabbi Berakhiah, Rabbi Chelbo said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai [that] Rabbi Meir expounded, "'Nonetheless, they went on sinning and had no faith in His wonders' (Psalms 78:32). This [refers to] our father Yaakov who did not trust and did not ascend. The Holy One, blessed be He, said, 'If you had trusted and ascended, you would not have descended again. But now that you did not trust and did not ascend, your children will in the future be subjugated in this world with taxes, crop-taxes, penalties and poll-taxes to these four empires. At that time, Yaakov feared. He said in front of the Holy One, blessed be He, 'Master of the world, is it possible it is forever?' He said to him, 'Be not dismayed, Israel, for I will deliver you from far away' (Jeremiah 30:11)." It is like you say (Isaiah 39:3), "They have come to me [...], from Babylon.” "Your folk from their land of captivity" (Jeremiah 30:10), from Gaul, and Spain and its fellows; "and Yaakov shall return," from Babylonia; "and have calm," from Medea; "and quiet," from Greece; "with none troubling," from Edom. "For I will finish all the nations among which I have dispersed you" (Jeremiah 30:11) - the nations of the world that finish their fields, I will finish; but Israel who does not finish their fields - as you say (Leviticus 23:22), "you shall not finish the corner of your field" - "I will not finish; but I will chastise you in measure" - to chastise you with afflictions in this world in order to cleanse you for the future to come. When? In the seventh month. 3. Rabbi Yehuda son of Rabbi Nachman opened and said, "God ascends in acclamation (lit. in truah), The Lord in the call of the shofar" (Psalms 47:6). In the moment when the Holy Blessing One sits on the Throne of Judgement, God ascends with judgement. What happens? God ascends with acclimation, at the time when Israel takes their shofarot and sounds them before the Holy Blessing One, God stands up from the Throne of Judgement and sits on the Throne of Mercy, as it says, "Adonai in the call of the shofar," And they are filled with mercy and God has mercy on them, and switches their treatment from the attribute of judgement to the attribute of mercy. When? In the seventh month... 4 Rabbi Yoshayah opened [his discourse]: "Happy is the people who know the joyful blow; O Lord, they walk in the light of Your presence" (Psalms 89:16). Rabbi Abahu explained the Scripture [here] to be about the five elders that convene to make the year a leap year. What does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He leaves His court above and descends and contracts His Divine Presence among them below. The ministering angels [then] say, "Where is the mighty One, where is the mighty One? Where is God, where is God - the One about whom it is written (Psalms 89:8), 'God who is lauded in the council of great holy ones,' leaves His court and contracts His Divine Presence among them below?" Why so much? So that if they err in a matter of law, the Holy One, blessed be He, enlightens their faces [to correct it]. This is [the understanding] of "they walk in the light of Your presence." Rabbi Yoshayah said, "It is written, 'Happy is the people who know the joyful blow.' And do the nations of the world not know how to blow? How many horns, and bugles and trumpets do they have? And you said, 'Happy is the people who know the joyful blow?' Rather it is that they know how to sway their Creator with the blow; and He stands up from His Throne of judgement and [moves] to the Throne of mercy and is filled up with mercy upon them. Then He reverses His attribute of judgement to the attribute of mercy. When? In the seventh month. 5 Rabbi Berakhiah opened [his discourse] in the name of Rabbi Yirmiyah: "The path of life leads upward for an intelligent man" (Proverbs 15:24) - the path of life is nothing but Torah, as you say (Proverbs 3:18), "She is a tree of life for those who grasp her." Another interpretation of "The path of life leads upward for an intelligent man" - the path of life is nothing but afflictions, as you say (Proverbs 6:23), "and the path of life is the rebuke that disciplines." "Leads upwards for an intelligent man" - for one who looks at the commandments of the Torah. What is written above the matter? "You shall not finish the corner of your field" (Leviticus 23:22). 6 Rabbi Berakhiah opened [his discourse]: "Blow the horn (shofar) on the new moon, [on the covered (moon) for our festival day]." (Psalms 81:4). And is it not that all the new moons only become months when they are covered; and all the months are only covered for our festival day; and is Nissan not a month that is covered and has a festival of its own? Rather which month has a new moon that is covered and has a festival, and its festival is on the day [of the new moon]? You only find this in the month of Tishrei. On this month, rejuvenate your deeds with the shofar; on this month, improve (shapru) your deeds. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, "If you have improved your deeds, I will surely do like this shofar for you: Just like this shofar takes in [air] on this [side] and releases [it] on that [side], so too will I stand up from the throne of justice and sit on the throne of mercy and reverse the trait of justice for you into the trait of mercy." When? In the seventh month.