Hazkarat Neshamot (), commonly known by its opening word Yizkor (), is an

Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

memorial prayer service for the dead. It is an important occasion for many Jews, even those who do not attend synagogue regularly. In most Ashkenazi communities, it is held after the

Torah reading Torah reading (; ') is a Jewish religious tradition that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the scroll (or scrolls) from the Torah ark, chanting the ap ...

four times a year: on

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

, on the final day of

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday and one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Biblical Egypt, Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God in ...

, on the second day of

Shavuot (, from ), or (, in some Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi usage), is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday, one of the biblically ordained Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan; in the 21st century, it may ...

, and on

Shemini Atzeret Shemini Atzeret (—"Eighth ayof Assembly") is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday. It is celebrated on the 22nd day of the Hebrew calendar, Hebrew month of Tishrei, usually coinciding with late September or early October. It directly follows ...

. In

Sephardic Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

custom there is no Yizkor prayer, but the '' hashkavot'' serve a similar role in the service.

Origin

The earliest source of Yizkor is the

Midrash Tanchuma Midrash Tanhuma (), also known as Yelammedenu, is the name given to a homiletic midrash on the entire Torah, and it is known in several different versions or collections. Tanhuma bar Abba is not the author of the text but instead is a figure to wh ...

, which mentions the custom of remembering the deceased and pledging charity on their behalf on Yom Kippur. According to the

Sifre Sifre (; ''siphrēy'', ''Sifre, Sifrei'', also, ''Sifre debe Rab'' or ''Sifre Rabbah'') refers to either of two works of '' Midrash halakha'', or classical Jewish legal biblical exegesis, based on the biblical books of Numbers and Deuteronomy. ...

, reciting Yizkor on Yom Kippur achieves atonement for those who have died. The service was popularized amid the

persecution of Jews The persecution of Jews has been a major event in Jewish history prompting shifting waves of refugees and the formation of diaspora communities. As early as 605 BC, Jews who lived in the Neo-Babylonian Empire were persecuted and deported. Antis ...

during the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

Customs

It is customary for those with both parents alive to leave the main sanctuary during the Yizkor service, out of respect or superstition. It is usually not attended within the first year of

mourning Mourning is the emotional expression in response to a major life event causing grief, especially loss. It typically occurs as a result of someone's death, especially a loved one. The word is used to describe a complex of behaviors in which t ...

, until the first ''

yahrzeit Yahrzeit (, plural , ) is the anniversary of a death in Judaism. It is traditionally commemorated by reciting the Kaddish in synagogue and by lighting a long-burning candle. Name The word ''Yahrzeit'' is a borrowing from the Yiddish (), ul ...

/ meldado'' has passed. The Yizkor prayers are intended to be recited in a synagogue with a

minyan In Judaism, a ''minyan'' ( ''mīnyān'' , Literal translation, lit. (noun) ''count, number''; pl. ''mīnyānīm'' ) is the quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain Mitzvah, religious obligations. In more traditional streams of Judaism ...

; if one is unable to be with a minyan, one can recite it without one. Still, this practice is a custom and historically not regarded to be obligatory. In some congregations, Yizkor begins with responsive verses and may also include Psalm 91. In addition to personal Yizkor prayers, there are also often collective prayers for

martyrs A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

and for victims of the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

, and an appeal for charity. The service concludes with the prayer '' El male raḥamim''.

Yahrzeit candle A yahrzeit candle, also spelled yahrtzeit candle or called a memorial candle, (, ''ner neshama'', meaning "soul candle"; , meaning "anniversary candle") is a type of candle that is lit in memory of the dead in Judaism. Name The word "''ya ...

s are commonly lit on the days when Yizkor is recited.

References

External links

Text of Yizkor
at

Sefaria Sefaria is an online open source, free content, digital library of Jewish texts. It was founded in 2011 by former Google project manager Brett Lockspeiser and journalist-author Joshua Foer. Promoted as a "living library of Jewish texts", Sefaria ...

{{Jewish prayers Ashkenazi Jewish culture Bereavement in Judaism Jewish prayer and ritual texts Hebrew words and phrases in Jewish prayers and blessings Passover Shavuot Shemini Atzeret Yom Kippur

Origin

Customs

Further reading

References

External links