Prayer is an integral part of many religions and spiritual practices. It allows people to communicate with a higher power, typically God, and express gratitude, ask for guidance, or request help or intervention. While prayer often involves spoken words, the act of praying through numbers, also known as gematria, has ancient roots and remains relevant today. Gematria assigns numerical values to letters, words or phrases, based on esoteric spiritual traditions. By calculating the numerical values of words and phrases, believers find hidden meanings and connections that reveal deeper truths about prayer.
What is Gematria?
Gematria originated in the ancient world and is found in early Jewish, Christian, Greek and other cultures. The Hebrew word gematria comes from the Greek word geometria meaning “geometry.” Gematria connects the abstract spiritual world with the concrete physical world through numbers.
In Hebrew gematria, each letter of the Hebrew alphabet is assigned a number. The first letter aleph is 1, the second letter bet is 2, and so on. Words and phrases attain a numerical value by adding together the numbers of all the letters. Certain numbers take on spiritual significance based on the numerical values of important names, words or phrases.
For example, the Hebrew name David has the numerical value of 14. The number 18 is very important because it is the numerical value of the word chai, meaning “life.”
Origins of Gematria
– Ancient Babylon – Earliest known use of gematria dates back to the ancient Babylonians who associated numbers with celestial objects and gods.
– Ancient Greece – Pythagoras and other Greek philosophers practiced gematria, connecting numbers to abstract concepts.
– Jewish Mysticism – Kabbalists extensively used gematria to find hidden meanings in the Hebrew Scriptures.
– Early Christianity – Gematria appears in the New Testament and was used by early Church fathers.
– Islam – Abjad numerals were used to calculate the numerical values of Arabic words and phrases.
– Numerology – Modern numerology has roots in gematria.
So the use of numbers to represent words and unveil secret meanings has very ancient origins and appeared in many cultures. It continues to be used in Judaism, Christianity, occult practices like numerology, and more.
Gematria in Jewish Prayer
Gematria is an integral part of Jewish mysticism and prayer. Words and phrases from the Torah, Hebrew Bible, and Jewish prayers attain spiritual significance based on their numerical values. Below are some examples:
The Shema Prayer
The Shema prayer is one of the most important in Judaism. It proclaims the unity of God, from Deuteronomy 6:4. In Hebrew, the first verse of the Shema prayer is:
Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad
This phrase has a gematria value of 1118:
– Shema (שמע) – 410
– Yisrael (ישראל) – 541
– Adonai (אדני) – 65
– Eloheinu (אלהינו) – 102
– Total = 1118
1118 is a spiritually significant number in Jewish gematria, reflecting the uniqueness and unity of God. Praying the Shema connects the person praying with this divine mystery.
The Ana B’Koach Prayer
The ancient Ana B’Koach prayer invokes the 42-letter name of God. It was composed by the kabbalist Rabbi Nehunia ben Hakana. The prayer has 49 letters, organized into 7 lines of 7 letters. The total gematria value is 1775. Ana B’Koach is recited to invoke divine protection, healing and blessings.
Psalm 145 – Ashrei
Psalm 145 is called Ashrei in Hebrew. It is beloved in Jewish liturgy and has the gematria value of 1012. Praying Ashrei is said to provide protection and beneficence. The psalm is recited three times daily in traditional Jewish services.
Yishtabach – Psalm 150
The closing hymn of praise in the daily morning prayers is Psalm 150, known as Yishtabach in Hebrew. This psalm of declaring God’s glory through music and praise has a gematria of 1748.
So prayers like the Shema, Ana B’Koach, Ashrei and Yishtabach hold deep spiritual meaning in Judaism. Their recitation connects the person praying to the divine, based on the mystical gematria values calculated according to kabbalistic methods.
Significant Numbers in Jewish Prayer
Certain numbers like 13, 26 and 42 have special significance in Jewish gematria. Here are some of the important numbers that feature prominently in prayers:
13 – God’s Attributes of Mercy
In Jewish tradition, God’s 13 attributes of mercy offer divine pardon, redemption and compassion. These attributes are recited frequently during prayers, especially on the High Holy Days.
26 – God’s Name
The four-letter name of God in Hebrew, known as the Tetragrammaton, has a gematria value of 26. This is one of the most sacred names of God. It appears numerous times in the Hebrew Bible.
42 – The 42 Letter Name of God
Kabbalists composed a 42-letter name of God by extracting letters from a biblical verse. This name invokes God’s mercy and protection. The Ana B’Koach prayer contains this 42-letter name.
72 – The 72 Letter Name of God
This mystical name comes from three verses in the Book of Exodus. Kabbalists believe meditating on this 72-letter name provides knowledge, wisdom and prophecy.
Tzadikim – Righteous Ones
Important tzadikim or righteous leaders in Jewish history, like the Lubavitcher Rebbe, gain significance based on their gematria. Praying for or to these tzadikim can help their influence benefit the person praying.
So numbers like 13, 26, 42 and 72 bearing the names of God numerically play an important role in Jewish prayers. The gematria values of righteous tzadikim also influence some Jewish prayers.
Using Gematria to Analyze Prayer
Gematria provides a system to analyze the numerical values of words and phrases in Hebrew prayers. Here are some techniques used:
Calculating Simple Gematria Values
The basic gematria value of a word or phrase is calculated by adding together the value of each Hebrew letter. This simple value is often analyzed for spiritual meaning.
Looking for Meaningful Numerical Connections
Do the gematria values connect the prayer to other meaningful words, names or phrases from the Torah, Tanakh or Jewish tradition? For example, connecting to one of God’s names or attributes.
Identifying Patterns and Symmetry
Kabbalists look for symmetrical number patterns as clues. This includes palindromic numbers which read the same forward and backward. Patterns suggest divine intent and design in the words.
Numerical Acrostics and Anagrams
Prayers sometimes hide acrostics or anagrams spelled out by the numerical values of initial or final letters in a set of words or phrases. These reveal deeper meanings.
Interpreting Meaning from Total Values
The total gematria value of an entire prayer or sacred text provides insight based on symbolic numbers in Jewish tradition. For example, multiples of 26 relate to the Tetragrammaton.
So gematria analysis involves calculating values, identifying meaningful patterns, looking for hidden clues like acrostics, and interpreting symbolic numbers. This unveils secret messages built into the text by divine design.
Kabbalistic Secrets Revealed Through Gematria
Kabbalists extensively use gematria to analyze Hebrew prayers and texts from the Tanakh to reveal mystical secrets. Some examples:
Creation in Genesis
The gematria values in the Genesis creation account reveal a sacred timeline and structure containing divine clues. The number of words, letters and verses connect the account to God’s names and attributes of mercy.
Exodus from Egypt
Key events in the Exodus like the Ten Plagues have connections to the 42-letter name of God. The parting of the Red Sea also matches the gematria value of God’s attributes. This shows divine providence guiding the Exodus.
The Temple
Dimensions and measurements of the desert Tabernacle and First Temple in Jerusalem have gematria values relating to God’s names, sacred numbers, and times of day associated with the Temple service.
Prophecies of Redemption
Bible verses speaking of future redemption of Israel have gematria hints revealing the year it will occur and the key figures involved. This includes the coming of the Messiah.
So for Kabbalists, gematria reveals the hidden hand of God orchestrating events, designing sacred spaces, and embedding prophetic signs in Torah texts. Prayer with gematria helps unlock these divine secrets.
Gematria Provides Deeper Meaning in Jewish Prayer
For Jewish mystics and kabbalists, gematria provides deep meaning in prayer by uncovering what lies beneath the surface of sacred texts. The simple act of assigning numbers to Hebrew letters and words reveals intricate connections, symmetry and patterns giving insights into God’s attributes, names and divine plan.
Beyond just calculating numbers, gematria allows believers to connect in a mystical way with the infinite, eternal divine reality. By unveiling the hidden meanings embedded in Scripture, gematria shows how prayer texts embody timeless divine truths dating back to creation itself.
Whether seeking mystical knowledge, perceiving prophetic signs, finding clues to redemption, or just praising God’s greatness, gematria offers Jewish prayer new dimensions of connection with the divine. So while prayer uses ordinary words, the system of gematria transforms prayer into a key unlocking life’s deepest mysteries.
The Prayer in Numbers Reflects Divine Order
At first glance, translating letters into numbers to analyze prayer texts may seem arbitrary or esoteric. However, gematria is based on the premise that at the foundation of creation, exists a divine order and intelligence that structured reality.
This perfect intelligence expressed itself through both the visible universe and divine communication to humanity, including the Hebrew Bible and Jewish prayer. By revealing the hidden patterns of letters and numbers underlying prayer, gematria provides a glimpse into the very same divine wisdom that sustains all creation.
Gematria affirms a perfect unity connecting humanity, language, the natural world and their common divine source. As Jewish mystical tradition teaches: God, Torah and Israel are one. This absolute monotheism finds expression in the sublime beauty of numbers reflected in sacred prayer.
Conclusion
Gematria allows prayer to transcend mere recitation and enter the realm of mystery and hidden knowledge. By uncovering the numbers veiled within Hebrew letters and words, kabbalists discover mystical connections tying their prayers to the fabric of creation itself.
This numerical prayer unveils God’s attributes, sacred names and prophetic clues embedded in Scripture by divine design. Whether to invoke mercy, gain wisdom, or come closer to the divine essence, prayer through gematria allows access to knowledge of life’s deepest truths.
At its core, prayer relies on faith and love of the divine. Gematria provides added mystical dimensions to traditional prayer and worship. By linking human thought, speech and prayer to the primordial building blocks of creation, gematria helps prayer bridge the divide to the infinite unity that is God.