So dear this punim
With her kaleidoscope of emotions
So dear this body
With its wholehearted embrace
So dear this neshamahSoul
With its butterfly-self emergence
So dear this daughter
As she prepares to immerse.
Receive her, O waters
With drops of hen
Receive her, O waves
With ripples of hesedLit. Kindness It is said in Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) that the world stands on three things: Torah (learning), Avodah (worship), and Gemilut Hasidim (acts of kindness).
Receive her, O currents
With flow of rakhamim
Receive her, O mikvehThe ritual bath. The waters of the mikveh symbolically purify – they are seen as waters of rebirth. A convert immerses in the mikveh as part of conversion. Many Orthodox married women go to the mikveh following their period and before resuming sexual relations. Couples go to the mikveh before being married. Many, including some men, immerse before Yom Kippur; some go every Friday before Shabbat.
As she prepares for huppahMarriage canopy symbolizing the couple's new home..
Enfold her with berakhahA blessing
As she joins her ahuv
Enfold her with tikvah
As she follows her path
Enfold her with shalom
As she grasps his hand
Enfold them with ahavah
As they seek their life.
