It might be more true than you think.

The Zohar" target="_blank" rel="noopener" class="source-link">Tikkunei_Zohar" target="_blank" rel="noopener" class="source-link">Tikkunei Zohar, a profound and expansive companion to the Zohar, unlocks some truly beautiful, and sometimes challenging, secrets of Kabbalah. In the passage from Tikkunei Zohar 114, we find a deep dive into the relationship between the divine, the people of Israel, and the very act of reciting the Shema.

The passage opens with a poetic image: "And for Her – evening and morning – twice, they call to Higher Israel Her Husband, and they witness of Her that She has not exchanged Him – Her and children – for ‘another’." Who is this "Her"? In Kabbalistic thought, "She" often refers to the Shekhinah, the divine feminine presence, the immanent aspect of God that dwells among us. "Her Husband" is the divine masculine, the transcendent aspect. The people of Israel, through their prayers, are acting as witnesses, affirming the unwavering connection between the Shekhinah and the divine. It's a twice-daily affirmation of loyalty, a powerful declaration that "She" – representing the Jewish people and the divine presence within – has remained true to "Him."

And this leads us to the Shema, that bedrock of Jewish prayer: "Hear O Israel, YHVH is our God, YHVH is One." (Deut. 6:4). In Hebrew, Sh'ma Yisrael, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad.

But the Tikkunei Zohar doesn’t just stop at the surface. It delves into the very letters of the words themselves. "Sh'ma" (Hear), "Echad" (One). The letters of these words, we're told, form other words: Shem (Name), Ach (Brother), and Eid (Witness).

Think about that for a moment. The very act of proclaiming God's oneness, the very act of hearing and understanding this truth, creates a protective brotherhood. "Brother," ach, protects "Her" – the Shekhinah, the Jewish people. Why? Because, as Proverbs 17:17 tells us, "...a brother is born for adversity."

And that protection isn't just a passive thing. It's active, it's present. "You are a ‘concealment’—seter for me," the passage quotes from Psalms 32:7. God is our protection, our refuge. Deuteronomy 28:6 adds, "Blessed are you in your coming..." There’s a blessing in our very arrival, in our presence, in our steadfastness.

The passage goes on to connect this to Judah: "Judah – you, your brothers will acknowledge..." (Gen. 49:8). Within the name Judah – YeHUDaH in Hebrew – is the divine name YQVQ (a variation of YHVH, the Tetragrammaton), and the letter Dalet (ד). The Dalet, the fourth letter of the Hebrew alphabet, is associated with humility and poverty, but also with strength and resilience. Through Judah, through this combination of the divine name and the Dalet, "She" – the Shekhinah – is preserved.

So, what does it all mean? On one level, it’s a complex Kabbalistic interpretation of scripture. But on a deeper level, it’s a reminder that our prayers, our declarations of faith, aren't just empty words. They are acts of creation, acts of protection, acts of connection. They weave us into the very fabric of the divine, linking us to something ancient, powerful, and enduring. When we recite the Shema, we are not just proclaiming God's oneness, but reaffirming our commitment, strengthening the bonds of brotherhood, and actively participating in the preservation of the divine presence in the world.

It's a powerful thought, isn’t it? That the simple act of saying a prayer can have such profound and far-reaching consequences. Maybe next time you recite the Shema, you'll hear it with new ears, feel it with a deeper heart, and understand it with a more awakened soul.