[Avodah] Of Elul, L'David, and Golems

[Micha Berger]

On Thu, Aug 22, 2013 at 02:26:01PM -0400, Prof. Levine wrote:
> See http://new.ohr.edu/this_week/insights_into_halacha/4886

But it should be noted that in none of the sources prior to Chemdas
Yamim was the particular practice of saying LeDavid twice a day as part
of davening every day of Elul.

The oft-sited Keser Shem Tov recommends a whole tet of tefillos, with
the 13 Middos haRachamim, like selichos, to be said after Shemoneh Esrei
in Shacharis Mon and Thu. Among those tefillos is LeDavid. That's very
different than what we do today, and I think considering it an earlier
source without that caveat is a stretch.

I would think the Chida (Moreh beEtzba #37) is a closer fit. He tells
us to say it every day in Shacharis after Shemoneh Esrei. But the
Chida makes a point of saying that if not every day, at least between
RC Ellul and HR. That's closest, at least for Shacharis. Especially
for the Ukainian version of the minhag, where it's right after Tachanan
(which can be viewed as part of the greater Tefillah with Shemoneh Esrei)
rather than along with Shir shel Yom. But also not twice a day. The
problem is that R' Chaim Yosef David Azulai was all of 8 when Chemdas
Yamim was first published. He isn't likely an earlier source, for all
his brilliance.

And no one questions the linkage between pereq 27 and the season, it's
in Vayiqra Rabba ("ori" = RH, "yish'i" = YK, and then later "besukko")
and the Minhagei Yisrael Torah counts the 13 sheimos in the pereq and
notes their parallel to the 13 Middos. One doesn't need qabbalah --
real or Sabbatean -- to connect the two.

So the fact that earlier Elul minhagim exist that include saying LeDavid
doesn't really prove much WRT the origin of this version of the minhag.
OTOH, it does show that regardless of source, it's unlikely this
particular practice has a Sabbatean thumbprint on it.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             Brains to the lazy
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