The symmetry of the count (7 x 7) suggests perfection and completion. The period of the omer ends after counting seven weeks, or seven times seven days from Passover to Shavuot. The formulaic blessing is: "Blessed are You, LORD our God, Master of the Universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to count the omer: Tonight is the xx night of the Omer." The sages interpret, "You shall count for yourselves" ( סְפַרְתֶּם לָכֶם) to mean that each person should count each day of the omer out loud (usually at the conclusion of the daily evening prayer service). In general, however, the period between Passover and Shavuot is simply called "the Omer," and the key ritual activity is sefirah ("counting"), since the primary obligation is the counting of days leading up to the festival of Shavuot. For the Sadducees (and the later Karaites), the count begins following the weekly Sabbath after Passover and ends on Erev Shavuot (this implies that Shavuot always occurs on a Sunday, though the date is not set on the Jewish calendar). Only crops that have been first dedicated to God are considered kosher for use.įor Pharisaical Judaism, the " Counting the Omer" ( סְפִירַת הָעוֹמֶר) begins on the second day of Passover (the 16th of Nisan) and continues 49 days until Erev Shavuot (this implies that Shavuot always falls on Sivan 6 on the fixed Jewish calendar). Prior to the offering of such "new grain," only produce from earlier harvests may be eaten (called yashan). This is called the "waving of the omer," or omer ha-tenufah ( עמֶר הַתְּנוּפָה). The Torah commands that an omer of new grain (called chadash) must be "waved" before the altar on each of the 49 days between Passover and Shavuot ( Lev. The word "omer" ( עמֶר) generally refers to a measure of grain. Then you shall present a grain offering of new grain to the LORD" ( Lev. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath.
#DAYS OF THE OMER FULL#
"You shall count seven full weeks from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf (omer) of the wave offering. And more! Come up with your own.Sefirat HaOmer - Should We Count the Omer?.What is the purpose of freedom? What will you do with this gift? How will you answer the call?.What do you need to do to prepare to receive the divine in your life? What in you needs clarifying?.Where have you stopped along your own path in this life? Reflect on your own journey. It is said that each of these 49 days represents the 49 stops the Hebrews made while wandering in the Desert for 40 years.How do you feel these divine attributes in your daily life? Where do you notice them?.
The Mystical Meanings | Some Psycho-Spiritual Meanings and ThemesĬounting the Omer, like all Jewish Holidays, has a myriad of themes to connect to on a psycho-spiritual level. Please reach out to us by email if you'd like to learn more! During the the 7 cycles of 7, go through each sephirah one by one, and examine how the other divine aspects interact with the main one of the week. It is said that each sephirah contains within it all the other sephirot. the lower 7 are aspects that we experience on an intimate level each day and have more immediacy in our daily lives. The ten sephirot, also called the tree of life, represent ten different aspects of the divine. As we count each night from the second night of Passover to the night before Shavuot 49 nights pass, seven sets of seven days. For the kabbalists, this period of time between the liberation of our people (Passover) and the receiving of divine revelation (Shavuot) was ideal for self-work, a period of time to ready ourselves to receive divinity anew each year.
This counting was so important that it was commanded in the Torah (Leviticus 23:15-16).Īs time passed and we were forced from the land we were so connected to our practice and purpose around this counting shifted and evolved along with us. 49 days fall between when barley is ready for harvest and when wheat is ready. Passover is the holiday of the Barley Harvest, Shavuot is the holiday of the wheat harvest. A Little History | So what is the Omer and why do we count it?Ĭounting the Omer is a tradition that goes back to our agricultural roots.
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