During the month of Elul and just before the Day of Atonement, Jews wake up before dawn to recite special prayers called Selichot which means “forgiveness”. The prayers are a special list of sins and transgressions have been written down in alphabetical order to help jog the memory. In reciting, Jews express regret for committing all varieties of misdeeds over the last year. The purpose of saying sorry is to change one's behavior in the coming year. Having enumerated their sins in alphabetical order, Jews proceed to utter praise to God – again in alphabetical order!
One of the most famous Elul hymns is called Adon HaSelichot. It contains 22 different attributes of God from aleph through tav.(A-Z) Here is the first stanza:
אֲדוֹן הַסְּלִיחוֹת - א (Adon HaSelichot) “Master of pardons”
בּוֹחֵן לְבָבוֹת - ב (Bohen Levavot) “Examines hearts”
גּוֹלֶה עֲמוּקוֹת - ג (Goleh Amukot) “Uncovers depths”
דּוֹבֵר צְדָקוֹת - ד (Dover Tzedakot) “Utters justices”
Do you want to connect with the traditions of the Jewish people in the authentic language of the Jewish people? Don’t waste any more time. Now is the time to learn Hebrew! We have a special offer! Enroll in our Biblical Hebrew course during the month of October, and you will be entered into our drawing for two roundtrip tickets to Israel!
