(An explanation for the lyrics can be found below.)
| Yom Teruah, a day of shouting unto G-d {x4} | ||
| Please remember us | We have gone astray | We are ready to return |
| Please remember us | We have lost our way | It’s for you that we yearn |
| The bow is drawn | The archer aims | |
| The arrow flies | to hit it’s mark | |
| We will return | The time is right | |
| Never too late | for a brand new start | |
| Yom Teruah, a day of shouting unto G-d {x2} | ||
| Please remember us | On this holy day, | we are shouting out our concern |
| Please remember us | Skies are turning grey | Please don’t leave us here to churn |
| Please turn to us | as we turn to you | |
| Show us how | to be a Jew | |
| Please turn to us | as we turn to you | |
| Guide us how | to be a Jew | |
| Yom Teruah, a day of shouting unto G-d {x2} | ||
| Please remember us | We have lost our way | We have just begun to learn |
| Please remember us | We have gone astray | We are ready to return |
| Into the wind, | the ship has turned | |
| The sail swells, | changing course | |
| We all turn, | and return, | |
| to the one | Eternal Source | |
| Yom Teruah, a day of shouting unto G-d {x8} |
To fully understand the song, we need to know a few things about Yom Teruah*, as well as about archery, sailing, and the Jewish concept of ‘sin.’
Since Jewish law provides the proper way, or path, to live, then “sin” involves straying from that path. And so, in Judaism, there is no concept of “sin” per se; rather, there is the principle of going awry and needing to return. To this end, the closest Hebrew equivalent to “sin” is “het,” which literally means “going astray.” “Going astray” is also a term used in archery, to indicate that the arrow has missed its mark – a perfect analogy to the Jewish precept. We are like the archer, aiming before we shoot, yet not always hitting the target. Our goal should be to aim as carefully as possible to hit the marks we set for ourselves.
Sailing ships cannot travel directly into the wind, because that is not how sails work, but often need to go that way. Movement is achieved by turning into the wind, and soon the sail fills, moving into the new direction. As a ship must turn to move in a new direction, so must people turn toward the path of righteousness, if they are to make changes in their lives.
In the Torah, Jews are commanded twice to have a Yom Teruah, a “Day of Shouting,” on the first day of the seventh month. (Leviticus 23:23-25; Numbers 29:1-6).** While the purpose for other Jewish Holy Days is explained in the Torah, the purpose for Yom Teruah is not explained. We are given a hint about its purpose, however, through its name. “Teruah” means to make a loud noise, usually by shouting. We are further given a clue when we read, in Leviticus 23:24, that we are to make a remembering shout, or in Hebrew, a “Zichron Teruah.”
The song reminds us that we are shouting for G-d’s attention, crying out to G-d that we have strayed and gotten lost, yet we wish to return, and we need G-d’s help in doing so. We shout to G-d to remember us, teach us, guide us, and not to allow us to stay lost and swirling around in our confusion.
* Yom Teruah has morphed over the centuries into “Rosh Hashana.” If you wish to learn more about this metamorphoses please visit: How Yom Teruah Became Rosh Hashanah (Link leaves this website)
** Specifically, in Leviticus 23:24 it instructs that “you shall have a day of rest, a holy assembly of remembrance and shouting.” In Numbers 29:1 it states: “you shall have a holy convocation: you shall do no manner of servile work; it is a day of blowing the horn unto you.”
