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Krias Shema

קריאת שמע

The reading of the Shema (Krias Shema)

The twice-daily “Hear, O Israel”: accepting the yoke of His kingship and contemplating that Havayah is one, all being nothing before Him, bringing the love of “VeAhavta” and drawing the encompassing light into the worlds.

The word שמע alone is often just the verb “hear,” and some passages read it as contemplation (see hisbonenus). ק״ש usually means the morning and evening Shema with its blessings; ק״ש שעל המטה is the bedtime Shema.

Where it’s explained

  1. Likkutei Torah, Shelach 5, ¶4The Shema is read twice daily because it sets out the contemplation: one clothed in a body and busy with physical things all day can arouse love only through it. Each day it strengthens the G‑dly fire and raises the natural fire into holiness, and a person’s years are measured by the readings this takes.ולכן קורין ק״ש פעמים בכל יום שבה מבואר ענין ההתבוננות
  2. Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 8, ¶10Every mitzvah draws the light that encompasses worlds (sovev) into the light that fills them (memalei), but the Shema is the main and general drawing-down, the meaning of “Havayah is one.” So the Shema also says “and you shall speak of them”: this drawing-down reaches the mitzvos through Torah study.ועיקר כללות המשכה זו היינו מצות ק״ש כמש״ל שזהו פי׳ הוי׳ אחד כו׳
  3. Likkutei Torah, Pekudei 2, ¶24Following Pri Etz Chaim: the first verse, at “Havayah our G‑d,” is the union of Abba and Imma, where love is not yet felt, for there is only the bittul of Chochmah, nothing besides Him and no one who loves. From “VeAhavta” on, the light is drawn into Z”A, whose attributes begin with love.אבל בפסוק ראשון שהיחוד הוא באו״א אין אור האהבה מורגשת שם עדיין מאחר שהיחוד שם בבחי׳ הביטול דחכמה
  4. Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 36, ¶2“Yisrael” is the G‑dly spark scattered among the soul’s intellect, emotions, thought, speech and action; “Shema” means gathering, that it gather up to its root. One reaches the boundless love of “VeAhavta” through Pesukei DeZimrah and the Shema’s blessings; the Shema is said with “great noise” over bittul, and the Amidah follows in a whisper.ושמע מלשון אסיפה וקיבוץ שיתקבץ למעלה לשרשו
  5. Torah Ohr, Parshas Zachor 1, ¶26From the “back” of holiness a person is given a path to the inward revelation of Havayah; so the Shema is called accepting the yoke of the kingdom of heaven, “yoke” precisely, for it is iskafya, subduing the other side.ולכן נק׳ ק״ש קבלת עול מלכות שמים עול דוקא שהוא בחי׳ אתכפיי׳

Stated differently

Which words of the Shema are the lower unity (yichuda tataah): the verse “VeAhavta” or “Baruch Shem”

Likkutei Torah, Pekudei 1, ¶55ובפסוק ואהבת בכל לבבך כו׳ הענין הוא בבחי׳ אהבה הנמשכת מהשכל והטעם (ועמ״ש מזה בד״ה בכ״ה בכסלו) והוא ענין יחודא תתאה

The first verse is the higher unity of yud-heh, “the hidden things”; the verse “VeAhavta,” love drawn from understanding and reason, is the lower unity. Pesukei DeZimrah come first so that one can reach the higher unity of the first verse.

Likkutei Torah, Shabbos Shuvah 3, ¶22ואח״כ יחודא תתאה בשכמל״ו שנראה ונתגלה בחי׳ יש אך היש בטל לאין

First the higher unity in “Havayah our G‑d, Havayah is one,” all being as nothing before Him; then the lower unity in “Baruch Shem,” where a yesh appears, but the yesh is nullified for the revelation of His kingship.

Main sources

Likkutei Torah, Shelach 5, ¶4Likkutei Torah, Vaeschanan 8, ¶10Likkutei Torah, Pekudei 1, ¶55Likkutei Torah, Pekudei 2, ¶24Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 36, ¶2

Where it appears

In 451 paragraphs of 191 maamarim.

Written with AI from the paragraphs of Torah Ohr and Likkutei Torah, each entry checked by a second AI reader and every Hebrew quote checked by code; not yet reviewed by a person. Our English: CC BY-NC 4.0.

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