Siman 61

One must recite Keriat Shema with intention, with awe, with fear, with trembling, and with quaking. For behold, a king of flesh and blood, when he sends his words to a province and they read his words—everyone hears his words with awe and with fear. How much more so before the King of kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He. And every day it should be in his eyes as new, like a matter he has not yet heard, for the fondness is exceedingly great. And he should intend at the time he recites Shema to accept upon himself the Kingdom of Heaven, to surrender his body and his soul in self-sacrifice for the sanctification of the Name. And this is "and with all your soul"—even if He takes your soul (Bach). And he should imagine to himself: even if they were to inflict great suffering upon him—it would be considered as nothing in his eyes because of his love for Him, may He be blessed, like Rabbi Akiva, whose flesh they combed with iron combs and he recited Keriat Shema. And how many supreme holy ones at the time of their killing and their burning cried out with a voice: "Shema Yisrael!" (And it is written in the Responsa of Maharam of Rothenburg, siman 517: Since a person has resolved in his mind to surrender his soul upon the recitation of the "Shema," any death they inflict upon him he does not feel at all. And the proof... and another proof from the Sefer Heikhalot... and know that it is so, for you have no person in the world who, if he were to touch fire, would not cry out... and we see holy ones who do not cry out at all. Thus far his words.)

"Which I command you today, upon your heart" – and "today" refers back to the preceding word, meaning: "command you today" – that every day they should be in your eyes as new, as if I commanded you today. And it does not refer to what follows, to say "today upon your heart," which would imply "today" – and not tomorrow. Rather, one must pause for a moment between "today" and "upon your heart." And so the cantillation marks indicate, as "today" is marked with a tipcha, which is among the disjunctive marks. And just as one must pause between "today" and "upon your heart," so too at the beginning of "And it shall come to pass if you surely hearken" one must pause between "today" and "to love" for the reason that has been explained.

The custom in all the dispersions of Israel is to say "Shema Yisrael" in a loud voice, in order to arouse intention. And they say it with fervor. And they are accustomed to place their hands over their faces during the recitation of the verse "Shema Yisrael." And there is a proof for this in the Gemara (13b) which says this regarding our holy teacher, see there. And this is so that he should not look at another thing which prevents him from concentrating. And they place the right hand over the face. And on the aleph of "Echad" one should be very brief. And on the chet one must lengthen a bit, in order that he crown the Holy One, Blessed be He, in the heavens and on the earth. And to this the hump on the roof of the chet alludes, meaning: He is living in the heights of the world (Menachot 29b). And there are seven heavens and with the earth they are eight, and it is alluded to in the chet. And on the dalet one should lengthen more, for the duration that he thinks that the Holy One, Blessed be He, is unique in His world, and rules in the four directions of the world. And he should not lengthen more than this duration. And he should be careful to emphasize the dalet well, so that it does not appear like a resh, Heaven forbid. And he should be careful that the dalet is said with a nach, and not like those where it appears according to their speech as if with a sheva. And some are accustomed to incline the head according to the thought: upward and downward and to the four directions. And for one for whom this is a confusion of thought – he should not do so.

Certainly there are awesome intentions in the verse "Shema Yisrael," but in its plain meaning it is as Rashi explained: "Shema Yisrael, the Lord our God," meaning: He is our God now. "The Lord is one" – in the future He will be the one Lord, as it is said: "For then I will turn to the peoples a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord" (Zephaniah 3:9). And it is said: "On that day the Lord shall be one and His name one" (Zechariah 14:9). And this is our entire hope, that then His blessed name will be magnified and sanctified. Therefore, immediately after this verse we say: "Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever." Meaning: that then the glory of His kingdom will be revealed openly. Therefore we say it in a whisper, because now it is not revealed due to our sins, except on Yom Kippur when we are like angels and say it in a loud voice. But throughout the year the world is not worthy to say it in a loud voice. And in Pesachim (56a) our sages, of blessed memory, said that therefore we say it in a whisper, because Moses did not say it but Jacob said it, see there. (And in my humble opinion this is also the intention, for in the days of Jacob they were all righteous and said it in a loud voice. Not so in the days of Moses, when they made the calf and other sins. Examine this and you will find it simple.)

This is the wording of the Rambam in the first chapter, law 4: One who recites Shema, when he finishes the first verse, says in a whisper, "Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever." ...And why do we recite thus? It is a tradition in our hands that at the time when Jacob our father gathered his sons in Egypt before his death, he commanded them and exhorted them regarding the unity of the Name, and regarding the way of Hashem in which Abraham and Isaac walked. And he asked them and said to them: "My sons! Perhaps there is among you a defect, someone who does not stand with me in the unity of the Name...?" They all answered and said: "Hear O Israel...", as if to say: Hear from us, our father Israel, Hashem is our God, Hashem is One! The elder opened [his mouth] and said: "Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever." Therefore, all Israel followed the custom to say the praise with which the elder praised after this verse. Thus far his words.

And know that there is one who wrote in this wording: If one did not say "Baruch shem kevod malkhuto le'olam va'ed" – we do not make him return (Bach, Shiltei Gibborim). And the Levush wrote that even if he said it, but did not say it with kavvanah – he must return. Thus far his words (Magen Avraham, subsection 11). And it seems to me that they do not disagree at all. For certainly if he did not say it and began the parashah of "Ve'ahavta" – we do not make him return, since it is not mentioned in the Torah. And even if he wishes to say it between one chapter and another – it has no relevance there, as is understood. And the Levush says that if he said it but did not say it with kavvanah, and has not yet begun "Ve'ahavta" – he must return once more to say it with kavvanah. And so it seems to me is the primary halakhah. (And it is a wonder that I did not find this in the Levush at all, see there.)

One must pause in the verse "Shema Yisrael" between "Yisrael" and "Hashem," and between "Eloheinu" and the second "Hashem," so that it will be heard that Hashem who is our Eloheinu is Hashem Echad, as I wrote in section 4. Without a pause, it would not have this meaning, obviously. And one must clearly enunciate the yod of "Yisrael," so that it is not swallowed entirely and does not appear like an aleph. So too the yod of "Vehayu," that it should not appear like an aleph: "Veha'u." And he should also enunciate the mem of "Shema" so that the ayin is felt. And one must pause slightly between "Echad" and "Baruch shem...", for the essence of the acceptance of the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven is in "Shema," and because in "Baruch shem..." there is also the acceptance of the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven from ourselves. Therefore, one must pause slightly between "le'olam va'ed" and "Ve'ahavta," for even though "Ve'ahavta" is also the kingdom of Heaven, this is through a commandment, whereas "Shema" and "Baruch shem" are from ourselves as we are awakened to this (Taz subsection 6).

One must provide a space between "vachara" and "af," so that it does not sound like "vecharaf." And so too, one must provide a space in every word that ends with the letter of the beginning of the word that follows it, namely: "bechol levavcha," "al levavcha," "bechol levavchem," "esev besadecha," "va'avadtem mehera," "al levavchem," "hakanaf petil," "etchem me'eretz." And so too, every alef that follows a mem requires a pause, such as: "velimadtem otam," "ukshartem otam," "veshamtem et," "ure'item oto," "uzchartem et," "va'asitem et" — so that the alef is not swallowed entirely. And one must emphasize the zayin of "tizkeru," so that it does not sound like "tishkeru," Heaven forbid, or "tishkaru," which would be like servants who serve the Master on condition of receiving a reward. And so too, one must emphasize the zayin of "uzchartem." And so too, one must be precise with the letter ayin in the recitation of Shema, for according to our pronunciation the ayin and the alef are equal, and in the recitation of Shema one must be precise to distinguish them one from the other. And so too, between a left-dotted shin and a soft tav. Therefore, in the word "va'asitem" one must be very precise to articulate the ayin, and to distinguish between the shin and the tav. And so too, the samekh should not be similar to a soft tav. And so too, with a soft bet one must articulate so that it does not appear like a soft pe, such as: "ve'ahavta," "levavcha," "uvechol," and many like these. And he should articulate the ayin of "asher nishba."

And so too one must be careful with the dagesh and rafe in the letters Bet, Kaf, Peh, and Tav, that he should not soften the dagesh nor emphasize the rafe. And so too regarding the shevas, there are those that are nach and those that are na. For at the end of a word it is always a sheva nach, and so too in the middle of a word after a short vowel. And at the beginning of a word it is always a sheva na, and so too in the middle of a word after a long vowel. And two consecutive shevas: the first is nach and the second is na. And there are several rules in the science of grammar, and therefore he should be careful not to say a nach for a na, nor a na for a nach. And every talmid chacham needs to have some knowledge of grammar. For in truth, even in Pesukei D'Zimrah and in prayer one must be precise to say the words according to their law. And so too one who reads in the Torah, in the Prophets, and in the Writings must be careful in all these, except that due to our sins, in all matters we are not accustomed to this. However, in the reading of Shema one certainly must be very precise, to say the letters and the words according to grammar and according to their law. And so our sages, of blessed memory, said in Berakhot (15b): Anyone who reads the Shema and is precise with its letters – Gehenna is cooled for him; for because he warms himself to be precise – therefore they cool for him the very hot Gehenna.

And one must recite Keriat Shema with the cantillation marks just as one reads from the Torah, but it is not the custom in these lands. The reason appears to be because many people, when they read with the cantillation marks, will become confused and will not understand the meaning of the words, for the melody, for one who is not accustomed to it, ruins the kavanah. Nevertheless, those who are meticulous are stringent in this, provided that they also intend the meaning of the words. And when he says "And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand" – he should touch the tefillin of the hand. And when he says "And they shall be for totafot between your eyes" – he should touch those of the head. And some kiss the hand, but it is not essential. And some are accustomed to recite Keriat Shema in a loud voice, and some recite in a whisper, and everything is according to his nature. For there are those who have more kavanah in a loud voice, and there are those who have more kavanah in a whisper. But "Shema Yisrael" everyone says in a loud voice. And such is the simple custom, and one should not change it. And when he reaches the parashah of tzitzit – he should take the tzitzit also in the right hand and kiss them several times out of love for the mitzvah.

In Keriat Shema there are 245 words. And in order to complete 248 corresponding to the organs of a person – the sheliach tzibbur finishes "the Lord your God is true," and repeats and says aloud "the Lord your God is true." And with this every person fulfills the requirement, since he hears from the sheliach tzibbur these three words. And if the individual wants to say them as well with the sheliach tzibbur – one does not prevent him. And one should not ask: since in Keriat Shema there are 245 words, and with the word "true" it is 246, and if so when he repeats and says "the Lord your God is true" – it is 249 words. For it can be said that the second "true" is not of the count, as it stands upon "and certain and established." And also one should not ask: how can he say "true" two times? Is it not that anyone who says "true true" – they silence him, for in the Gemara (14b) they were particular about this. For this is only when he says them without an interruption of other words. But with an interruption – we have no concern with it. However, there are some of the great authorities who truly hold that the first time he does not finish "true," only "I am the Lord your God." And afterward he says "the Lord your God is true." And according to this it is exactly 248 words, and he does not say "true" two times (and this is the opinion of the Rema mi-Fano in the book Asarah Maamarot). And so some are accustomed.

Our teachers, the authors of the Shulchan Aruch, wrote that if one recites in private—he should intend in the fifteen vavs in "Emet VeYatziv" which total ninety. And they correspond to the three names of Havayah, as each name totals twenty-six and its four letters total thirty. And there is another reason for the matter: that fifteen vavs total ninety, and the recitation is counted as one—behold ninety-one, like the numerical value of the Name in its recitation and its writing, and it is as if he said: "Hashem Adonai Emet." And there are those who wrote that anyone who recites Shema in private should say "El Melekh Ne'eman, Shema Yisrael…". For these three words complete the count of 248, and it is in place of the "Amen" that must be answered after "Who chooses His people Israel with love," and so we practice. In any case, when he recites with the congregation he should not say "El Melekh Ne'eman," but rather say "Amen" after the shaliach tzibbur when he concludes the blessing. And so we practice and it is correct. Thus far their words. And there are some of the great authorities who hesitated greatly regarding the interruption of "El Melekh Ne'eman" even in private (Magen Avraham, subsection 4, in the name of the Maharshal). And we do not practice saying this. And there are those who even in private repeat and say "Hashem Eloheikhem Emet," and I do not know upon what they relied for this. And it is better to repeat these three words: "etkhem me'eretz mitzrayim," which do not contain the Name. And I have seen people practicing so.

It is forbidden to say "Shema Shema" two times, as it appears like two authorities, Heaven forbid, whether one says the word two times, "Shema Shema," or whether one repeats the verse two times. According to the explanation of Rashi (33b), repeating the verse is more severe, and we silence him. Repeating the word is only disgraceful, and we do not silence him. According to the Tosafot, it is the opposite: that for repeating a word we silence him, and for repeating a verse it is disgraceful, see there. Therefore, as a matter of law, in both cases we silence him. Therefore, even to read the parasha two times is not proper. Only regarding the Shema on one's bed is it permitted to read the entire parasha and return and read it again, since his intention is only to fall into sleep from within the reading of Shema. There is one who says that even in this case one should be careful not to say the first verse two times, and therefore he should begin the second time from "V'ahavta."

Therefore, those who say "Shema Yisrael" during the morning watch in Selichot and after the Ne'ilah prayer should be careful not to say Shema twice. For even in a congregation it is forbidden, unlike the one who is lenient regarding a congregation (see Magen Avraham subsection 9 who disputed the Bach on this). Nevertheless, if one did not recite the verse of "Shema Yisrael" with kavanah, he should return and recite it in a whisper, since he does so for the sake of kavanah (Taz subsection 3). And that which they say "Baruch shem kevod malkhuto le'olam va'ed" three times, and seven times "Hashem hu ha-Elokim"—there is no concern in this. On the contrary, it is a proper custom, to show that in the seven heavens "Hashem hu ha-Elokim." And in the verse we find "Hashem hu ha-Elokim" twice, regarding Eliyahu when he defeated the prophets of Baal. And it is not similar to "Shema Yisrael" which is the essence of accepting the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven, and it is forbidden to double it as it appears like two authorities, Heaven forbid. And some say that one must also be careful not to answer "Amen" twice to a berakhah. And some disagree, for in the verse it is written: "And the woman shall say Amen, Amen." And David said: "Amen and Amen" (and see Magen Avraham subsection 10). And from the Rambam chapter 2 it is clarified that it is not specifically regarding "Shema," for the same law applies to all words and all verses—it is forbidden to say them two times. See there carefully.