Shofar

Shofar was made in ancient times and is now made only from natural horn. The rams, goats, antelopes, gazelles, hollow inside the horns were used and are used, never or almost never (due to allusions to the golden calf ) bull or cow horns. Therefore, the shapes and lengths of the shofar can be very different. A shofar can be short with a simple bend, as is customary for Ashkenazi , or it can be long and twisted. The latter variety originated in the Jewish community of Yemen . In some countries and communities, it is customary to process the horn heavily, heat it with steam to give it the desired shape; in others, on the contrary, it is customary to minimize processing and not change forms. ^[4] The shofar’s tip is cut off or drilled. The blower in the shofar uses this hole to extract sound. There are known cases when the tip of the horn was shaped like a simple tube mouthpiece . ^[5] In ancient Armenia, a similar instrument, but made of copper, and which had a direct form, was called Շեփոր “Shephor” or Փող “Phogh”. In modern musical terminology, these two synonyms mean the trumpet.

In ancient times, the shofar was used as a signal tool for convening people and announcing important events, as well as during the war . The use of this instrument dates back to the magical rites of the pre-Jewish era. The sounds of the shofar (more precisely, its variety, referred to as "yobel", "jubilee trumpet" ^[5] ), according to Tanach , brought down the walls of Jericho , from where the expression "Jericho trumpet" came from. Shofar is a natural tool. In addition to the fundamental tone, only the first and second overtones that make up the fifth can be extracted from it. The timbre of a shofar depends strongly on its shape and size. The short “Ashkenazi” shofar gives a high, crying sound. Large and long shofars give a richer sound, which can be low, hoarse and solemn. ^[four]

The following types of shofar sounds are distinguished:

• “Tkia” (“trumpeting”) - begins on the lower note and goes to the upper note with an increase in sonority.
• “Shvarim” (“tremolo”) is a quick alternation of the lower and upper notes.

  Three short sounds, reminiscent of a sigh, as a sign of awareness of their mistakes.

• “Trua” (“anxiety”) is a series of jerky sounds on the bottom note ending on the top.

  Nine short and sharp sounds that convey sadness and longing.

• “Tkia gdola” (“big trumpeting”) - lasts longer on the top note and is always final.

It symbolizes a call to an awakening of conscience and to a return to God.

Four shofar sounds

The four main sounds of trumpeting can be combined in a series (sequence) with their own names: ^[6]

• "Tashrat" : "tkia", "shvarim", "trua", "tkia gdola";
• Tashat : tkia, shvarim, tkia gdola;
• "Tarat" : "tkia", "trua", "tkia gdola".

The shofar sounds on Rosh Hashanah are interpreted as a call to repentance. According to traditional interpretations, the sounds of the shofar also symbolize:

• Coronation of the Creator of the World;
• Awakening of awe before the Creator;
• A reminder of the Sacrifice of Isaac ;
• A reminder of the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai ;
• A reminder of the arrival of Mashiach ;
• In addition, according to popular beliefs, they should confuse Satan , who on this day of the trial acts as a prosecutor. ^[7]

According to Halacha , the shofar is trumpeted during the synagogue service on Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (Judgment Day, Day of Atonement). On Rosh Hashanah, custom requires a hundredfold blowing. During the synagogue service, trumpeting is performed three times: each time as “Tashrat” (3 times), “Tashat” (3 times), “Tarat” (3 times), and then again “Tashrat”, “Tashat”, “Tarat” to achieve hundreds of sounds. ^[6]

Later, the custom arose to blow the shofar daily for the entire month of Elul preceding the New Year.

In anticipation of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the shofar is trumpeted not only in the synagogue, but also in crowded places of Jews, for example, in Jewish schools. In Israel, the shofar can be heard in such unexpected places as near a train station or near a shopping center. This is done in order to call the entire people of Israel to repentance.

• Midrash ^[8] claims that the shofar from the left horn of a sheep sacrificed by Abraham sounded on Mount Sinai, and the shofar from the right horn will be trumpeted when the scattered tribes of Israel come together.

• The Prophet Isaiah prophesied:

• In the Talmud ^[9] allowed to make a shofar from the horns of rams, wild and domestic goats, antelopes and gazelles, but it is still recommended to use the ram’s horn, which is associated with the sacrifice of Isaac . These days in the synagogues the corresponding chapter of the Torah is read.

According to the Torah, when an angel held onto Abraham's hand, carried with a knife over Isaac, God ordered Abraham to sacrifice a ram instead of his son. Thus, the ram became a symbol of repentance.

However, it is forbidden to use the horns of cows, because Satan can remind the Almighty of the sin of the golden calf and, thus, turn God away from the forgiveness of current sins. ^[ten]

The Significance of the Shofar in Kabbalah

In Kabbalah, shofar means the disclosure of secret wisdom to the masses, which is a preliminary and indispensable condition for complete deliverance. Quote from Baal HaSulam 's article “Shofar Mashiach”:

“The dissemination of this wisdom (Kabbalah) among the masses is called“ Shofar “, like a shofar - a ram’s horn, the sound of which spreads over long distances. In the same way, the echo of this wisdom will be spread all over the world until even the peoples hear and recognize that there is the wisdom of the Creator in the midst of Israel. "

In Messianic Judaism, the symbolism of the shofar is also traced in the New Testament books of the Bible. It is believed that it is the sound of the shofar that is meant by the “last trumpet” at the end of the days, which the Apostle Paul mentions several times:

In this opinion, the shofar as the pipe of the Messiah and the pipe of the last days is mentioned in 1 Thess. 4:16 , Matt. 24:31 ; angels blow into it in Rev. 8: 7 onwards. ^{[11] [12]} Similar views can be found among Protestants . ^{[13] [14]}

• Rosh Hashanah
• Yom Kippur

• Shofar // Jewish Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron . - SPb. , 1908-1913.
• Shofar - an article from the Electronic Jewish Encyclopedia
• E.V. Khazdan. Shofar: a view of modern Russian science. // Wisdom-righteousness-holiness in the Slavic and Jewish cultural traditions. M., 2011 https://www.academia.edu/7683905/Schofar_view of_modern_Russian_science._Shofar_View_of_the_Contemporary_Science_in_Russia