Israel Ben Moses Najara - Zemirot Yisrael

Zemirot Yisrael

The Zemirot Yisrael, originally entitled Zemirot Yisrael Najara, was first published at Safed (1587) and contained 108 piyyuṭim and hymns. Many additional songs were printed in the second edition (Venice, 1599). This edition contains also the Meme Yisrael and the Mesaḥeḳet ha-Tebel, and is divided into three parts:

1. Olot Tamid, containing 225 piyyuṭim for the week-days
2. Olot Shabbat, containing 54 piyyuṭim for the Sabbaths of the whole year
3. Olot Ḥodesh, containing 160 piyyuṭim and dirges for the high holy days, Purim, the Ninth of Ab, and occasional ceremonies. It was published a third time at Belgrade (1837), but with the omission of many songs and of the two works just mentioned. Extracts from the Zemirot Yisrael were published under the title of Tefillot Nora'ot (Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1712).

Many of Najara's piyyuṭim and hymns have been taken into the rituals and maḥzorim in use among the Jews in different countries, especially in Italy and Palestine. Benjamin II (Mas'e Yisra'el, p. 15) states that the Jews of Aleppo sing on Sabbath eve many beautiful hymns and recite many prayers, most of which are by Najara. The best known of his Aramaic hymns is the one beginning Yah Ribbon 'Olam, recited on Sabbath by the Jews of all countries and printed in all the rituals. The She'erit Yisra'el contains sixty poems and is, according to its heading, the second part of the Zemirot Yisrael; it is found in the bet ha-midrash of the German community in Amsterdam. From it Dukes published one poem in Orient, Lit. (iv. 526; comp. 540). M. Sachs attempted to render some of Najara's piyyuṭim into German (Busch, Jahrbücher, 1847, pp. 236–238). After the ruins of the house inhabited by R. Judah he-Ḥasid at Jerusalem were cleared away in 1836, some writings of Israel Najara of the year 1579 were found; these writings are now (as of 1906) preserved in the archives of the synagogue of Jerusalem.