The belief in the indivisibility and uniqueness of God is the cornerstone of Judaism. This
affirmation of the oneness of God is declared in the recitation of the Sh’ma.
The Jerusalem Talmud maintains that all of the Ten Commandments could directly or
indirectly be inferred from the three chapters of the Sh’ma recitation. For example, “I am
the Lord your God” comes from “Hear, 0 Israel.” “You shall have no other gods” comes
from “The Lord is One.” “You shall not take the name of the Lord in vain” comes from
“You shall love the Lord,” etc. It should be noted that a sentence is inserted between
“Hear, 0 Israel” and the beginning of the first paragraph, “And you shall love…” This
declaration, “Blessed be His glorious and sovereign name forever and ever,” which is
recited inaudibly, except on Yom Kippur, is not to be found in the entire Tanach. Yet it is
incorporated into the most fundamental of all Scriptural readings.
The Talmud relates the story that when Jacob was on his deathbed he wanted to reveal
the time of the final redemption to his children. As he began to reveal the secret time, the
presence of the Shekhinah, holy spirit of God, absented himself from him. Attributing
this to a possible unworthiness in one or more of his sons, he asked them if they had been
unfaithful to the ways of the Almighty. When asked, they all replied, “Hear, 0 Israel
(addressing themselves to Jacob, whose name was also Israel) The Lord our God, the
Lord is One.” Thereupon, Jacob joyously answered! “Blessed be His Glorious and
sovereign Name forever and ever.” Therefore, when we recite the Sh’ma Yisrael,” we
also say “Blessed be!” etc.
Why is this verse recited inaudibly? I will present two different types of reasons: one for
the spiritual in nature and one for the cognitive. According to Kabbalists, the mystics of
Judaism, the angels offer their prayer of adoration to God in the words, “Blessed be His
Glorious and Sovereign Name forever and ever.” When Moses scaled the heavens to
receive the Law from the hands of God, he heard this verse repeated by the angels, time
and time again. When he returned to his people with the tablets he boldly confessed that
while the Tablets were given to him by God, be surreptitiously appropriated the
benediction of the angels and brought it down to Earth. Since this smacked of mischief,
we recite it silently out of humility.
There is a strict injunction that we are not permitted to add or subtract even one
word from the text of the Torah. When we recite the Sh’ma, we are reading portions
found in the Torah proper. However, the sentence “Blessed be His…” is not found in the
Torah. Including this verse in the Sh’ma might be construed as the addition of
an unauthorized verse. We therefore recite this sentence in a whisper to indicate that it is
not of Scriptural origin.
It should be clear that the first verse of the Sh’ma recitation, “Hear, 0 Israel” is the
foundation of our entire religion. As such, its declaration requires the deepest
concentration. The Sh’ma should not be repeated in a perfunctory, casual manner, which
could diminish its significance, but passionately in a genuine outpouring of emotion and
acceptance. To aid in the Kavanah (religious concentration) of the reading of the Sh’ma,
talking is strictly prohibited, accept under the most dire circumstances, from the time that
Bar’chu’ (the call to prayer) is said at Maariv and Baruch She’amar in Shacharit until
after the completion of the Silent Amidah. This increased concentration is considered to
be so important that even the response of “Baruch Hu Uvaruch Sh’mo” is not said during
this portion of the service at the mention of God’s name. Only the affirmation “Amen,” at
the conclusion of the blessings, is permitted.