Count for this day in the evening of the date shown above.
Counting the Omer began the second night of Passover, which was on April 9, 2020. The last day of counting is May 27, 2020.
You can learn more about the practice and history of counting the Omer here.
day 47 of the Omer: qualities of focus
The seventh week of the Omer is focused on Divine Presence (Malkhut/Shekhina).
The fifth day of the week is focused on Splendor and Humility (Hod).
The forty-seventh day is about Splendor, Humility, and Divine Presence in our lives.
the blessing for counting the Omer
It’s traditional to say a blessing each evening, followed by reciting which day it is in the Omer journey. Here’s the blessing in English, feminized Hebrew, and the traditional masculine Hebrew. Use whichever Hebrew and/or English versions work for you!
English version of the blessing
Blessed are you, Eternal One-ness, Source and Breath of All Life, that has made us holy with your mitzvot, and compels us to count the Omer.
If you prefer feminine God language in Hebrew:
בְּרוּכָה אַתְּ יָהּ אֱלֹהֵינוּ רוּחַ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בִּמְצַוְּתָהּ וְצִוָּנוּ עַל סְפִירַת הָעֹמֶר
B’rukhah at Yah Eloheynu khay ha’olamim asher kideshatnu bemitzvoteha vetzivatnu al sefirat ha’omer.
If you prefer masculine God language, or just like the traditional way of saying the blessing:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אֲדֹנָי אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ עַל סְפִירַת הָעֹמֶר
Baruch ata adonai, eloheynu melech ha-olam, asher kidshanu b’mitzvotav vitzivanu al sefirat ha-omer.
here’s today’s count, in Hebrew (transliterated), and English.
Ha-yom shivah v’arba-im yom, shehem shishah shavuot v’chamishah yamim la-omer.
Today is forty-seven days, which marks six weeks and five days of the Omer.
Let me know if you have any questions. I’ve never done this before via blog post, and need your help to make sure everything works.
prefer Hebrew script?
If you prefer to read the blessing and count using Hebrew text, check out this app.
Or look in your favorite siddur (prayer book). It can often be found at the end of the evening service.
today’s poetic meditation
I’m posting a poetic meditation for each day to enhance the journey. Each meditation is focused on the kabbalistic qualities (sefirot) associated with the day.
The kabbalists often used the image of gates to describe the portals of consciousness represented by the sefirot, and that’s reflected in the ending to each of the meditations.
The kabbalists also often referenced the Tree of Life, upon which the sefirot are represented by the trunk and branches.
Some people like to read the meditations when they say the blessing at night. Others like to contemplate them in the morning to provide spiritual nourishment for the day’s activities.
Experiment, and see what works for you!
Hod b’Malkhut: splendor, humility and Shekhina’s divine presence
We speak of the still small voice of God, the one that Jacob heard loud and clear from within the quiet splendor of his dream, and when he awoke to the miracle of morning, he looked around and responded, “God was in this place and I, I did not know…”
A spectacular sunset, a mountain rising up before us, waves crashing against the rocks: sometimes the world overflows with splendor and we are stunned into silence.
Sometimes the world seems so quiet, we need to listen with extraordinary effort to notice the beauty that is there.
Sometimes the glitter of life is easy to mistake for splendor, and we lose sight of humility.
We may live in a world filled with the noise of cars and buzzing lights, still we can ask, “Where is the Divine Presence, here right now?”
This is the irony of Hod, splendor in the simplest things, and being humbled into the profound silence at the center of the storm.
Imagine yourself transported there, with all your senses open, to witness the center of the storm, and hearing there in the stillness, the beginning of a whispered inkling of what comes next.
This is the 47th gate.
Copyright Shifrah Tobacman, 2012.
prefer to hold a book in your hand?
You might be interested in Rabbi Shifrah’s collection Omer/Teshuvah: 49 Poetic Meditations for Counting the Omer or Turning Toward a New Year. Write to rabbishifrah@gmail.com to get a copy!
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