(10) All my bones shall say, “God, who is like You?”
-Stand
-Face Jerusalem
-Take three steps back and three steps forward.
-Keep feet together
-Say the words out loud but not loud enough for anyone else to hear
-Bow from the knees at the beginning and end of the first paragraph
-Bow at the beginning and end of the Modim paragraph
-Take three steps back, bow left, right and forwards, and three steps forward at the end
-In the repetition we bow left, right and forwards in the kedushah
-Then we rise up on our toes
-We also bow at the beginning of Modim (but most don't stand)
Rav Hamnuna said: How many significant laws can be derived from these verses of the prayer of Hannah? As it says: “And Hannah spoke in her heart, only her lips moved and her voice could not be heard, so Eli thought her to be drunk” (I Samuel 1:13). From here: “And Hannah spoke in her heart,” - one who prays must focus their heart. And from here: “Only her lips moved,” - one who prays must enunciate with their lips. From here: “And her voice could not be heard,” one is forbidden to raise one's voice in the prayer. From here: “So Eli thought her to be drunk,” a drunk person is forbidden to pray.
אמר רבי תנחום אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי כנגד שמונה עשרה חוליות שבשדרה ואמר רבי תנחום אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי המתפלל צריך שיכרע עד שיתפקקו כל חוליות שבשדרה עולא אמר עד כדי שיראה איסר כנגד לבו רבי חנינא אמר כיון שנענע ראשו שוב אינו צריך אמר רבא והוא דמצער נפשיה ומחזי כמאן דכרע
Rabbi Tanchum said that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: The 18 blessings of the Amidah correspond to the 18 vertebrae of the spine. And he said: One who prays must bow until all the vertebrae in the spine are loosened. Ulla said: Until one can see a small coin [issar], on the ground before them opposite their heart. Rabbi Chanina said: There is room for leniency; once the person moves their head forward, they need not bow any further. Rava said: But that applies only if they are exerting themselves when doing so, so they appear like one who is bowing.
These are the blessings in the Amida prayer in which a person bows: In the first blessing, the blessing of the Patriarchs, one bows at the beginning and the end; in the blessing of thanksgiving, one bows at the beginning and the end; and if one seeks to bow at the end of each and every blessing and at the beginning of each and every blessing, they teach them not to bow.
כהן גדול בסוף כל ברכה וברכה והמלך תחלת כל ברכה וברכה וסוף כל ברכה וברכה
A High Priest bows at the end of each and every blessing; and a king bows at the beginning of each and every blessing and at the end of each and every blessing.
One who is praying needs to bend until all the vertebrae in their spine stick out. One should not bow from the hips with head remaining straight, rather one should also bow one's head like a reed. One should not bow so [far down] until their mouth is opposite the belt of their trousers. If they are old or sick and cannot bow until [all the vertebrae in the spine] stick out, once they lower their head, that's enough since it is clear that they want to bow but it is too painful. When one bows, it should be quickly and in one [motion]. When straightening up, one should straighten slowly, head up first and afterwards the body, so it does not look like it's a burden.
(א) כיוון איבריו בשעת תפלה. ובו ד סעיפים:
יכוין רגליו זה אצל זה בכוון כאלו אינם אלא אחד להדמות למלאכים דכתיב בהן ורגליהם רגל ישרה כלומר רגליהם נראים כרגל אחד: (וי"א כשעומד להתפלל ילך לפניו ג' פסיעות דרך קירוב והגשה לדבר שצריך לעשות) (רוקח):
(1) One should direct their feet next to each other as though they are one, in order to imitate the angels, as it says: “their feet were straight feet” (Ezekiel 1:7), which is to say their feet appeared as one foot. Rema: Some say when a person stands to pray they should take three steps forward in the way of coming close and approaching a matter that must be done.
(ב) צריך שיכוף ראשו מעט שיהיו עיניו למטה לארץ ויחשוב כאלו עומד בבית המקדש ובלבו יכוין למעלה לשמים:
(2) One should lower your head a little so that your eyes will be down to the ground and you should imagine yourself as if standing in the Temple and in your heart direct yourself upward towards the heavens.
(ג) מניח ידיו על לבו כפותין (פי' כקשורין) הימנית על השמאלית ועומד כעבד לפני רבו באימה ביראה ובפחד ולא יניח ידיו על חלציו מפני שהוא דרך יוהרא: (וע"ל ריש סימן צ"ז):
(3) One should place one's hands over one's heart, as if bound (i.e. as if connected), the right [hand] over the left, and stand like a servant before one's teacher with terror, awe, and fear. And one should not place one's hands on one's hips, because that is the way of haughtiness.
The souls of Israel are derived from the Holy Lamp [of God]...When a Jew utters one word of Torah, the light [in his soul] is kindled…and he sways to and fro like the flame of a candle.
As we have seen, the first paragraph of the Amidah, known as the Avot (Ancestors), is one of the two most important parts of morning and evening services, and the central feature of the afternoon service. It comes with its own bit of prayer-choreography. Thus, the great teacher Rav (3rd century Babylonia) says in the Talmud that when we recite this blessing we should bow at Baruch (Blessed) and return to the upright position when we say God’s name. Traditionally, the practice is to bend the knees at Baruch, bend your body at the waist at attah (You) and stand upright at Adonai (The Eternal).
No doubt, the original reason for this was based on the idea of prayer as a presentation of our petitions before a sovereign. Just as traditional kings required obeisance and bowing from their subjects, so too should the “Ruler beyond all Rulers, the Holy Blessed One.” And this is itself a suitable meditation for reciting the Avot.
But there are others. My favorite comes from the recorded sayings of the Hasidic rabbi, Hayyim of Kossov (1795-1844). His remarks are based on the story of Rebecca at the well (Genesis 24). According to the story, Abraham sends his servant (always called Eliezer in Jewish tradition) back to his family in Haran to find a wife for his son, Isaac. The servant arrives and finds the young women of the town heading for the well to draw water for the evening. He prays that the girl who agrees to give him water, and volunteers to water his camels too, should be the one God intends for Isaac. As he is praying, Rebecca appears and fulfills the required criteria. The servant is overjoyed, returns with her to her family, and arranges the marriage with them. The tale seems very patriarchal by our standards, certainly, but our attention is on Rebecca, rather than Abraham’s servant.
R. Hayyim focuses on the description of Rebecca drawing the water (though he does take the verses out of order), and we must bear in mind that we are probably talking about a well with steps leading down to the water level. The girls and women would have walked down the steps with their empty pitchers, filled them at the bottom, and then carried them up to the surface, before giving water to those who needed it, people, and cattle, or carrying it back home. For Hayyim of Kossov, this sequence of events is analogous to what we are doing when we bow at the first paragraph of the Amidah, where going down is analogous to going inward. Here is what he says:
“She let down her water pitcher” (Genesis 24:18) – this refers to those who bow at Baruch (Blessed).
“She filled her water pitcher and came back up” (v.16) – this refers to those who straighten up at the Name [of God].
“I will draw water for your camels (GeMaLecha) also” (v.19) – [refers to] those who act kindly (GoMeL hesed) towards everyone.
When we bow at Baruch, we are descending into a spiritual well, as it were, the “Source of Living Waters” (Jeremiah 2:13); when we straighten up at Adonai, we are returning to the surface, refreshed and full of the spiritual nourishment that comes from God’s love, from the God Whom the Avot-prayer calls gomel hasadim tovim (“The One Who is generous in love and kindness”). Then, filled with God’s love, we have an obligation to behave kindly to others, exactly as our Mother Rebecca does. Our “pitcher” has been filled, but it can take no more, unless we share what we have with others to make room in it. We receive that we may give.
It begins by mimicking the angelic call to readiness, referencing the prophet Isaiah’s vision of God. In it, he describes angels (called seraphs) attending to God who is sitting on a magnificent throne: vekara zeh el zeh v’amar (“each one called out to the other and said”) Isaiah 6:1-2. In that moment — bowing first to the left, then to the right, then straight ahead — we too are seeking one another out, making sure we’re all on the same page and ready for this sacred task and this sacred moment.
Once we have done so, we rise up, reaching toward the heavenly realm, propelling ourselves upward on our toes as we recite: Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts, whose glory fills the entirety of the earth. Isaiah 6:3
In this moment, singing in angelic unison, we are meant to be part of something greater than ourselves. We are meant to be part of something that even the most creative human minds could not imagine.
Truthfully, though, I find the experience a bit unnatural. We aren’t angels. The stance we take for the Kedushah — legs together to mimic the angels whom tradition teaches stand on one fused leg — is not a comfortable one, but rather one which requires focus to stay balanced. And perhaps that’s the point. We stand at attention, challenging ourselves to reach toward a realm that is inaccessible to us in order to remember who and what we truly are.
Eventually, gravity has to take over. We come back down on our heels, we separate our feet and find our balance. We return to our human form. I’m reminded in this moment of my fallibility, and my need to be tethered to the earth. I’m not an angel, nor should I be. I have a job to do here.
Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz writes, “If God had wanted man to become an angel and to do everything as such, He would simply have created more angels. But His wish was to create man.”
Even as we take a moment to behave like the angels, as we do all that we can to leap up and off this earth into the divine realm, we are pulled back down to earth where we belong. As the Kedushah prompts us to reach toward the divine, our job is to embody godliness on earth through our actions and relationships. While the Kedushah is perhaps the most sacred moment of the service, I find that its true power comes when we land back on our heels, separate our feet, and realize what a gift it is to be human.
מודִים אֲנַחְנוּ לָךְ. שָׁאַתָּה הוּא ה' אֱלקֵינוּ וֵאלקֵי אֲבותֵינוּ לְעולָם וָעֶד. צוּר חַיֵּינוּ. מָגֵן יִשְׁעֵנוּ אַתָּה הוּא לְדור וָדור: נודֶה לְּךָ וּנְסַפֵּר תְּהִלָּתֶךָ עַל חַיֵּינוּ הַמְּסוּרִים בְּיָדֶךָ. וְעַל נִשְׁמותֵינוּ הַפְּקוּדות לָךְ. וְעַל נִסֶּיךָ שֶׁבְּכָל יום עִמָּנוּ. וְעַל נִפְלְאותֶיךָ וְטובותֶיךָ שֶׁבְּכָל עֵת. עֶרֶב וָבקֶר וְצָהֳרָיִם: הַטּוב כִּי לא כָלוּ רַחֲמֶיךָ. וְהַמְרַחֵם כִּי לא תַמּוּ חֲסָדֶיךָ. מֵעולָם קִוִּינוּ לָךְ:
וְעַל כֻּלָּם יִתְבָּרַךְ וְיִתְרומַם שִׁמְךָ מַלְכֵּנוּ תָּמִיד לְעולָם וָעֶד:וְכל הַחַיִּים יודוּךָ סֶּלָה וִיהַלְלוּ אֶת שִׁמְךָ בֶּאֱמֶת. הָאֵל יְשׁוּעָתֵנוּ וְעֶזְרָתֵנוּ סֶלָה. בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה', הַטּוב שִׁמְךָ וּלְךָ נָאֶה לְהודות:
[Bow at "Modim - grateful":]
We are grateful before you
because You are God,
our Divine Power and the Divine Power of our ancestors,
now and always.
Our rock, the rock of our lives
You are the shield of our salvation
from generation to generation.
We thank you and recount your praises
for our lives which are bound up in Your hands
and for our souls which are accounted by you
and for your miracles which are amongst us every day
for the wonders and goodnesses which are present in every hour
evening, morning and afternoon.
[You are] Goodness, for your mercy has no limit
You are Mercy, for your open-kindness has no end
We hope in you always.
For everything
may Your name be blessed and elevated,
our sovereign ruler,
throughout eternity.
May all life itself acknowledge you!
Then they will truly praise and bless Your great name forever, Divine Power,
our salvation and assistance - Selah!
the Power of Goodness.
[Bend your knees at "Baruch - blessed" and bow at "God":]
Blessed are You, God, whose name is Goodness, and whom it is a pleasure to thank.
מודים דרבנן: מודִים אֲנַחְנוּ לָךְ. שָׁאַתָּה הוּא ה' אֱלקֵינוּ וֵאלקֵי אֲבותֵינוּ. אֱלקֵי כָל בָּשר. יוצְרֵנוּ יוצֵר בְּרֵאשִׁית. בְּרָכות וְהודָאות לְשִׁמְךָ הַגָּדול וְהַקָּדושׁ. עַל שֶׁהֶחֱיִיתָנוּ וְקִיַּמְתָּנוּ. כֵּן תְּחַיֵּנוּ וּתְקַיְּמֵנוּ. וְתֶאֱסוף גָּלֻיּותֵינוּ לְחַצְרות קָדְשֶׁךָ. לִשְׁמור חֻקֶּיךָ. וְלַעֲשות רְצונֶךָ. וּלְעָבְדְךָ בְּלֵבָב שָׁלֵם. עַל שֶׁאֲנַחְנוּ מודִים לָךְ. בָּרוּךְ אֵל הַהודָאות:
We give thanks unto You, for You are the Eternal our God and the God of our ancestors, the God of all flesh, our Creator and the Creator of all things in the beginning. Blessings and thanksgivings be to Your great and holy name, because You have kept us in life and preserved us: so may You continue to keep us in life and to preserve us. Gather our exiles to Your holy courts to observe Your laws, to do Your will, and to serve You with a perfect heart; seeing that we give You thanks. Blessed are You God of thanksgivings.
When Rav Sheshet bowed he bowed like a reed. When he stood upright he stood upright like a snake.
דתניא... שדרו של אדם לאחר שבע שנים נעשה נחש והני מילי דלא כרע במודים
It is taught:... a person’s spine, seven years after death, metamorphoses into a snake. And this matter applies only where that person did not bow during the blessing of thanksgiving.