Chanah’s Prayer. Key to Prayers Answered

The High Holidays are such a special time. We begin with renewal and new beginnings; On Rosh Hashanah we declare G-d king over the world. As the head of the year, the energy created On Rosh Hashanah sustains us through the year. It is said, “man’s livelihood” is established on this holiday. It’s fair to say, everything that happens in this 2 day bracket has great significance since our year is influenced by it. 

An aura of majesty fills the air these 2 days. At shul, we get the sense we are anointing a live king. Hence, the service feels so alive; everyone is exuding the same energy of newness. We pray, we beseech and we experience love. A love so vibrant it’s ecstatic because we are aware G-d gives us life, energy and sustains us daily. It becomes easy to capture eternal moments during Rosh Hashanah as rabbi Simon Jacobson calls them because our connection between the infinite is strong. We experience love and closeness with our soul and with G-d. 

Capturing Eternal Moments

Rosh Hashanah starts our year and our relationship with G-d. On the first day, we read the story of Chanah in the haftarah. I always get taken back by this story. It’s beauty, its meaning and its message to us. What I love about the prayer of Chanah is that it’s a story we take with us beyond Rosh Hashanah. We can recall her story and say her prayers as  part of our daily prayer to remind us of the closeness we felt, we can recall the eternal moment. Chanah’s story speaks of a miracle. On the practical, it instructs us how to pray and what to do when those prayers are answered. Because what we do when the prayers are answered is the key to those prayers being answered. 

Chanah’s Story of Prayer

The story of Chanah is a beautiful tale of an intimate connection, pain, desire and prayer. It tells us of a pact between a simple girl and the infinite creator. Chana is a barren woman who desires to have a child. Her husband is also married to penina who has bore him 7 children. Chana one day went to the sanctuary and prayed her heart to G-d for a son. She vowed that she would dedicate his life to serve G-d. Eli the priest accused her of being “drunk” with desire that she would approach the king for a personal blessing, a measly selfish request. Chana corrects him. 

This correction I find empowering that it comes from a woman. Chanah corrects the high priest saying that she is not intoxicated with selfish desire, she is praying from her heart. Chana prays for a righteous son, whom she will dedicate to serve the king. She will raise her child with purpose and a clear mission. How is this selfish? A human being to be of service to the king and its people.

This way of interpreting the story of Chana entails a strong message; our prayers and desires need to have a purpose behind it. What we’re praying for needs to be not for ourselves but to be able to serve the king better, our requests are for the purpose of having a larger impact outside of ourselves. 

Prayer With a Purpose

Prayers get answered when we are in the mental space and physical state of being of service, we learn this through Chanah’s prayer. We can ask our father our king for everything we desire, first we ask ourselves what’s the purpose in me having this? If it’s for the greater good and to be able to serve with joy, we persuade G-d to grant us our request through prayer. 

As the year begins and after being entrenched in the festivities of sukkot, we are left with new energy generated from the High Holidays. We are left with eternal moments we can use as tools, our daily prayers, to cause change to our day to day. Chanah teaches us how our prayers can be elevated and reach a deeper intimate connection. Prayers not only give us solace but truly bridge the physical and spiritual, they open communication between us and our father in heaven. Prayer is a connection. May we merit to have our prayers answered. I leave you with tefillah channah from the Orot Sepharic siddur. 

Prayer Of Chanah

And Chanah prayed and said,

My heart exults in the Lord;

my horn is exalted in the Lord.

My mouth is wide open against my enemies,

For I rejoice in your salvation.

 There is none holy like the Lord:

for there is none besides you;

And there is no rock like our God.

Do not continue to speak arrogantly,

Nor shall ridicule come from your mouths,

for the Lord is an all-knowing G-d,

And all of man’s deeds are accounted by him. 

The bow of the mighty is broken,

And the stumbling are girded with strength.

Those satiated from bread hire themselves out,

And the hungry rest.

While a barren woman gives birth to seven,

[a mother] of many may become wretched.

The Lord brings death and gives life,

Lowers to the grave and lifts [back] up.

The Lord impoverishes and enriches,

he lowers and raises up.

He raises the poor man from the dust;

And uplifts the pauper from the trash heap,

to seat them together with noblemen,

and He presents them with a seat of honor.

For the supports of the earth are the Lord’s,

and upon them he placed the world.

The footsteps of His pious ones,

He shall watch over,

whereas the wicked will be stilled in darkness,

for it is not with strength that man overpowers. 

 Lord -those who oppose him will be broken

– He shall thunder against them in the heavens; 

The Lord judges[all men] to the ends of the earth.

He will give strength to his king

And uplift

The horn of his anointed one.

His miracles, how great[are they]!

And his wonders, how powerful!

His Kingdom is an everlasting kingdom

And his rule is for every generation.

We, Your people

The sheep of Your pasture,

Shall be thankful to you forever;

For each and every generation

We shall relate Your praises.

Evening, morning and afternoon

I pray and plead, and he hears my voice. 

When the morning stars sing praises together

All the angels shout for joy.
I shall not fear myriads of people

Who have besieged me.

I shall look towards the Lord.

I shall place my hope

In the God of my salvation,

And my God will hear me. 

Do not rejoice on account of me,

You who are my enemy,

For though I have fallen, I shall rise;

For when I dwell in darkness

The Lord is a light unto me.

For it is you, my Lord,

That I have placed my hope,

[because] You answer, Lord, my God.

My foot stood on the straight path,

And amongst the multitudes

Will I bless the Lord.