Hymn for the Third Meal

Isaac Luria

ca. 1565

Prepare the feast

of perfect faith,

the delight of the Holy King.

Prepare the feast of the King.

This is the feast

of the Lesser Presence;

the Ancient Eminence and Field of Apples

assemble with Him for the feast.

Sons of the Palace—

you who yearn

to behold the radiance

of the Lesser Presence—

be seated here

at this Sabbath table,

adorned and crowned

with the Name of the King.

Exult in your being

part of this gathering

among the guardian

angels’ wings,

and rejoice now

within this hour

of favor which knows

not what anger brings.

Draw near me here—

see my power,

without the judgments

of judgment’s terror.

Those without

may not enter,

for they are dogs

of rancor and gall.

I hereby call

to the Ancient of Days

to summon His will

to drive them away—

for when His favor

in this room is shown,

the husks are rendered

null and void.

He drives them into

holes in the ground,

conceals them deep

in caverns of stone.

And so it is

now and till twilight—

within the Impatient

One’s delight.

Completed is the feast

of perfect faith

of the seeds of the children of Israel.

Translated by Peter Cole.

We’re sorry. The Posen Library’s licensing agreements prevent this text from being printed or downloaded.

Credits

Isaac Luria, “Hymn for the Third Meal,” from The Poetry of Kabbalah, ed. and trans. Peter Cole, co-ed. Aminadav Dykman (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012), pp. 157–59. Used with permission of Yale University Press.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.

Hymn for the Third Meal

Credits

You may also like

Language:

Places:

Subjects:

You may also like

Hymn for the Third Meal

Credits

You may also like

Language:

Places:

Subjects:

Related Guide

Related Guide

You may also like