Blessing priest hands

Gravestone in the Jewish cemetery in Linz am Rhein

Gravestone in the Jewish cemetery in Ahrweiler

Blessing priestly hands as a symbol on tombstones of Jewish cemeteries indicate the descent from the Aaronid priestly family of the Kohanim . These were responsible for the offering of the sacrifices in the temple and spoke the blessing over the people . During this blessing, which has been preserved in the synagogue to this day , the Kohen raises his hands in the characteristic finger position: the thumb, ring and little fingers are spread apart from the index finger with the middle finger. The gesture is interpreted as a replica of the letter Sin of the Hebrew alphabet, which is said to represent the first letter of the word (El) Shaddai (the Almighty).

The image of the blessing hands can be found on the graves of members of the priestly family. Since membership of the priestly tribe is inherited through the male line, the symbol is rarely found in women.

Others

For friends of the Star Trek television series , the Jewish priestly blessing , also known as the Vulcan salute , was introduced by the Jewish-raised Leonard Nimoy .

See also

• Aaronic blessing
• Cohen
• Symbols of Judaism

Web links

Commons : Priestly Hands Blessing  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Description of the priestly hands at the Salomon Ludwig Steinheim Institute

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Joel S. Kaminsky, Joel N. Lohr: The Torah: A Beginner's Guide . Oneworld Publications, 2011, ISBN 978-1-78074-094-2 ( https://books.google.com/books?id= hYwjYCfS3b4C [accessed May 27, 2016]).