This time let me gracefully thank Hashem. (29:35)
Gratitude is an inherently Jewish characteristic. The Chidushei HaRim asserts that we are called Yehudim
after Yehudah, because we give thanks to the Almighty.
We wake up in the morning, and the first thing that we recite, our very first prayer of the day, is
Modeh Ani lefanecha melech chai v’kayam
shehechezarta bi nishmasi b’chemlah rabbah emunasecha, “Thank you, living andeternal king, for mercifully returning my soul within me. Great is your faithfulness.”
The Jew begins his day with hodaah, giving thanks. I recently read a short vignette about this very special, meaningful prayer.
There was a convention of neurologists from all over the globe who gathered to discuss a variety of neurological
issues. One
of the primary topics was the phenomenon of people fainting upon rising
from bed. One of the speakers, a female neurologist, delivered
results from the
latest findings that this fainting is caused by the sharp transfer of positions from lying down to standing up. She
calculated that it takes approximately twelve seconds for the blood to flow from the
feet to the head, and when a person stands up upon
awakening, the blood is thrown
too quickly to the brain, creating a fainting spell. Her suggestion was simple: upon waking up, one
should sit on the bed for twelve seconds, count to twelve and then stand up. This approach
will prevent dizziness and fainting. This
seems like a simple solution
to a pressing problem. Indeed, everybody applauded her solution.
Another professor,
who happened to be a Torah-observant Jew, asked for permission to address the assemblage. He said, “We
Jews have a tradition that dates back thousands of years. We recite a prayer of thanksgiving
to the Almighty every morning upon waking
up. We offer our gratitude for having
merited to wake up healthy and whole. The prayer is called Modeh ani. It is recited
while one is still
on the bed and sitting up. The prayer consists of twelve words,
and – if you concentrate and say it slowly-- it takes exactly twelve seconds
to say.”
When we begin the day recognizing our greatest Benefactor,
we go through the day with an altogether different
outlook: one of deep-rooted gratitude to Hashem for all that He does for us. Hodaah has another meaning: to give eminence or majesty,
hod. In Sefer Tehillim 18:11,
David Hamelech says, Vayede al kanfei ruach, “He flew high on the wings of the wind.” In another pasuk in
Tanach, the word “hodaah”
is used to mean “lifting
up” or “carrying”. Thus, the same word which is used to thank is also usedto give eminence, to elevate. Horav Avigdor Miller, zl, derives a fundamental principle from here.
When we have cause to thank, pay gratitude to a benefactor, we become dutibound to study his eminence, to elevate him and to recognize his virtues. This is
all part of gratitude. When we recognize the need to thank Hashem, we, in turn,
apply ourselves to acknowledging His eminence.