What do shofar sounds mean

To the Kabbalists, it was all about breath. Humankind began when the Creator blew a breath of life into Adam and Eve. All the required shofar blasts- called Tekiah, Shevarim, and Teruah - can only be made by forcing air through the wind instrument, literally breathing into it. Since March, how many have struggled to breathe on ventilators? And, the valiant women and men fighting the conflagrations have to deal with smoke filling their lungs, compromising their ability to breathe.

This year let the shofar inspires us to seriously ponder each breath we are granted, about how it is a gift each time we inhale and exhale. Each of us is given a finite number of breaths over our lifetime. What will we do with our lives to make life better for all people in need, to make our earth a place where everyone can breathe a little easier, free from any obstruction. May the ancient sounds of the shofar, caused by the strong flow of oxygen, serve as an aural and awesome reminder to resolve to do the right thing with every breath we take.

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Reminiscent of the Coronation of a King The sound of the shofar is analogous to the trumpet-blasts that announce the coronation of a king. On Rosh Hashanah, God created the world and assumed the role of its Sovereign, and in the sounding of the shofar we acknowledge Him as our King. Rosh Hashanah is the first of the 10 Days of Penitence , and the shofar is sounded to stir our conscience, to confront our past errors and return to God, who is ever ready to welcome the penitent.

It thus reminds us of our destiny — to be a people of Torah, to pursue its study and to practice its commandments. They would sound the shofar in nine staccato, almost bleating sounds.

They named this teruah, which means alarm sound. After the destruction of the Temple, these two different Jewish communities found themselves in the same place and had to figure out which way to sound the shofar for the holidays. To keep the people together and help bridge the new community, the Head Rabbi decided that a set of each sound version be blown, and, for good measure, a third set incorporating both broken sounds together also be sounded.

This became the tradition that is still in practice today. This story was adapted from the following source: Greenberg, Irving. When tekiah sounds, it brings everyone to attention. Your browser does not support the audio element. The next type of sound made with the shofar is called shevarim. The three, broken blows of shevarim , sound like crying.

Some scholars believe that shevarim is our tears of sadness, or joy, at another year passing. The third type of sound made by the shofar blower is called truah , and involes nine or more rapid fire, or staccato, blows.

Think of this sound as an alarm clock that you can't hit snooze on. Truah is the wake up call to the new year.