eSefarad Noticias del Mundo Sefaradi
One of the essential Mitsvot of Yom Kippur is the recitation of the Viduy. Viduy means “confession”, and it is the main step of Teshuba, “repentance”. The process of Teshuba, indeed, consists of three stages:
1. Admission of our faults (hakarat hachet);
2. Verbal confession (Viduy);
3. The resolve to abandon our wrong actions and habits (‘azibat hachet).
According to Maimonides, we fulfill the Mitsva of Teshuba when we recite the Viduy. The Viduy records a list of transgressions and flaws. Reading the Viduy helps us to identify the wrong acts that we might have done and forgotten or that we might have unconsciously suppressed from our memory. The most famous version of this confession prayer is the Viduy HaGadol (extended confession) written by Rabbenu Nissim Rosh Yeshibat Babel. The Sephardic custom is to say that Viduy during Yom Kippur (‘arbit or shaharit, lo ta’ase; musaf , ‘ase).
We should not read the Viduy mentally. Instead, we must articulate every word, whispering to ourselves the transgressions mentioned in the text. Why? Because the Viduy is the culmination of the mental process of taking charge of our actions. Like the concept of catharsis, and similar to the famous 12 Steps Rehab Programs, only when we are capable of verbally articulating our problems and admitting our vices we have finally recognized them, and only then are we able to change. Once we confess, we are confident that HaShem will accept our apologies, forgive us, and helps us to improve.
We say the Viduy in the plural, mentioning transgressions that we know we have not committed. This teaches us that our moral responsibilities go beyond our personal accountability. In other words, when we see a friend, a family member, or anyone else over whom we exert influence acting wrongly, we should privately and politely rebuke them. And if we don’t, it is considered as if we share some responsibility for their wrongdoings.
The original Viduy is written in Hebrew. Now, if we read the Hebrew version of the Viduy and don’t understand what we are saying, how would admission, regret, and remorse, all these critical steps for Teshuba, take place? That is why, unlike other prayers, it is imperative to understand the words of the Viduy. Therefore, it is not only permitted but necessary to read the Viduy in a language one understands.
The Viduy I’m presenting today is based on the short text used in the Sephardic Selihot. My translation is a non-literal and expanded rendition of the Viduy, trying to adapt its language and ideas to the mindset of the contemporary reader.
I recommend reading this text on Yom Kippur, not instead but alongside the other confession prayers. With the hope that it will help us understand the main ideas of the Viduy and inspire us to repent and obtain HaShem’s forgiveness.
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A VIDUY IN ENGLISH
CHATATI HODI’AKHA
“I make my transgression known to You, HaShem. And I do not deny my sins. For I say: it is appropriate that I confess my sins to HaShem, and You will forgive my transgression.”
ANA HASHEM ELOKENU
Please, HaShem our God and the God of our Fathers, let our prayer come before You, and do not hide, our King, from our supplication. For we are not so insolent, nor so obstinate, as to say before You, HaShem, our God, God of our forefathers, that “we are righteous and we have never transgressed”. Rather, we admit that we have transgressed, committed iniquity, and sinned; we, as well as our fathers and family members.
ASHAMNU: We have sinned knowingly, fully aware that we were doing something wrong.
AKHALNU MA-AKHALOT ASUROT: We have eaten forbidden foods.
BAGADNU: We have betrayed our covenant with You. You trusted us with Your Tora, and we have not honored our promise to keep Your Tora, study it, and fully observe it.
BITALNU TALMUD TORATEKHA: We have wasted our free time in vanities, frivolities, and nonsense instead of studying the words of Your Tora, which bring us closer to You.
GAZALNU: We have robbed. We have taken, kept, used, and spent what does not belong to us.
GANAVNU: We have stolen valuables and material goods. We have stolen time from our employers. We have stolen from many people in many different ways.
GA-INU: We have been arrogant. We have acted disrespectfully with our friends, family members, and colleagues.
DIBARNU DOFI VELASHON HARA’: We have spoken gossip and said negative things -Lashon haRa- about other people. We have spread rumors about others. Words that, if they were said about us, would surely make us feel embarrassed and hurt.
DIBARNU EHAD BAPE VE-EHAD BALEB: We acted cynically and were hypocrites. We have spoken one way with our mouth while feeling (or intending) another way in our hearts.
HE’EVINU: We have acted in corrupt ways. With injustice and iniquity.
HIRHARNU HIRHURIM RA’IM BAYOM…: We directed our minds to promiscuous thoughts during the day and consequently brought upon ourselves impurity at night.
VEHIRSHA’NU: We have behaved wrongly and caused others to imitate our bad behavior.
VI’ADNU ‘ATSMENU LIDBAR ‘ABERA: We have gathered with friends and acquittances for sinful purposes. We attended inappropriate places or indecent gatherings.
ZADNU: We have sinned deliberately, with premeditation.
ZANINU ACHAR LIBENU…: We let ourselves follow our hearts and eyes seeking forbidden behaviors.
CHAMASNU: We have extorted and exploited other people. We took things that did not belong to us.
CHAMADNU: We have been jealous of others. Instead of being happy and grateful for the blessings that You, HaShem, granted us, we focused on what others have and we coveted.
TAFALNU SHEQER UMIRMA: We made deceitful stories to conceal our lies and iniquity. We deceived our friends and our customers to gain money dishonestly.
YA’ATSNU ‘ETSOT RA’OT: We have given bad advice countless times to friends and strangers, advising them to do what was good for us rather than what was good for them. We betrayed the trust of those who needed our advice, giving biased guidance, and prioritizing our benefit and interest over our integrity.
KIZABNU: We have lied to friends and family members.
KA’ASNU: We overreacted. We lost our temper, which is a sin that our Rabbis compared with idol worshiping because of its irrationality and destructiveness. We lost our patience with our children and our spouse and got angry at them unfairly.
LATSNU: We have acted frivolously—doing wrong things that we later regret. We have lost the sense of our mortality and the shortness of our life. We wasted precious time in foolishness and days and hours that we will never recover back.
LOTSATSNU: We have mocked and ridiculed others. We have bullied others. We have embarrassed friends and relatives in public. We have called other people embarrassing nicknames.
MARADNU: We have acted rebelliously toward You. We knew what the right thing to do in Your eyes was, and yet we acted differently out of arrogance and vanity.
MARINU DEBAREKHA: We have disobeyed Your words. We did not care to study, learn and understand what You commanded us.
NI’ATSNU: We have infuriated You by repeatedly and deliberately committing the same transgressions that we had resolved to amend and asked You to forgive.
NI-AFNU: We have been unfaithful to our spouse. We have acted inappropriately with the spouses of our friends and colleagues.
NISHBA’NU LASHAV VELASHEQER: We have sworn in vain and falsely.
NADARNU VELO SHILAMNU: We promised, and we have failed to fulfill our promises. We have not honored our word. We have pledged to charity and Tsedaqa, and we did not honor our commitment.
SARARNU: We have abandoned the path of righteousness. We conducted ourselves in defiant ways.
SORERIM UMORIM HAYNU: We have been disrespectful and rebellious to elders, Tora scholars, and to our teachers.
‘AVINU: We have committed injustice. We have been insensitive to the suffering of others. We ignored the needs of the poor, the sentiments of the orphans, and the feelings of the widows.
‘ABARNU AL MITSVOT ‘ASE…: We have failed in performing Your commandments. We have transgressed Your prohibitions. We have violated those commandments that deserve the highest punishment (Karet).
‘ABARNU AL HILUL HASHEM: We have desecrated Your Holy Name. We took advantage of our religious reputation to gain the trust of people that we later deceived. Our wrongful behavior, our misdeeds, and dishonesty have caused others –Jews and gentiles– to think that those were the ways of YOUR Tora. We provoked resentment toward Your Word, Your Law, and Your Name.
PASHA’NU: We have sinned willfully, defying openly and without shame Your commandments and Your will.
PAGAMNU BE-OT BERIT QODESH: We have desecrated the sign of our pact, the Berit Mila, by committing sexual offenses and engaging in promiscuous behavior.
TSARARNU: We have oppressed other human beings, Jews and Gentiles. We have mistreated and abused our employees, helpers, and those who work for us. We have humiliated and hurt those who deserve our patience, respect, and kindness.
TSI’ARNU AB VA-EM: We have caused suffering to our parents by disobeying them, disrespecting them, not honoring them, and not taking good care of them.
QISHINU ‘OREF: We have been stubborn, narrow-minded, and obstinate. We did not change our minds or opinions, even when we knew we were wrong. We acted arrogantly by not asking forgiveness from our friends and relatives when we offended them. We did not listen to reason and common sense. We did not reconsider our wrong opinions and wrong values.
QILQALNU TSINOROT HASHEFA‘: We have prevented ourselves from receiving Your blessings by destroying the channels and conduits by which You bestow upon us Your abundance. We have chosen to take everything You gave us for granted.
RASHA’NU: We have been wicked. Our wickedness has hurt and caused pain to our friends, children, family members, and loved ones.
RA’IM LASHAMAYIM…: We have acted wickedly against You and our peers. We acted according to our limited judgment, ignoring the infinite wisdom contained in Your Tora.
SHICHATNU: We have corrupted ourselves. We have learned how to deceive and perfected the art of lying. And at the end, deception became part of our personalities.
SHIQARNU: We have spoken falsely and deceitfully.
SHIHATNU ZERA QODESH…: We have wasted our holy seed. We did not keep our eyes clean and pure. We have looked deliberately at inappropriate images, causing the seeds of life to be wasted.
TI’AVNU: We have committed abominations. We have performed the actions that You abhor, and You taught us to reject: injustice, oppression, deception.
TA’INU VETI’ATA’NU: We have taken the wrong paths. We have caused other people to join us in our wrong ways. We have pushed others to commit the same sins we have committed in order to make us feel less uncomfortable and less lonely in our depravity. We have given the wrong example to our sons and daughters, who naturally observe, learn from, and imitate what we do. We have failed to teach our children –the souls that You have entrusted in our hands– to follow Your paths and avoid what is wrong in Your eyes.
VESARNU…: We have turned away from Your commandments and from Your Laws. And ultimately, we realized our rebelliousness had not served us any good. You are Just and Righteous in Your judgment and in Your verdict. And we admit that whatever misfortune is befalling us, it is the fruit of our own doing. You have taught us to seek righteousness, but we ignored You, and we have brought wickedness upon ourselves.
SEE HERE A PRINTABLE PDF VERSION OF THIS VIDUY
Rab Yosef Bitton
Fuente: halaja.org
