Birkat Hachamah ba'Kotel

This morning was an event that happens once every 28 years. According to the Talmud, once every 28 years the sun returns to its 'creation point', namely the exact location it was placed by God at the creation of the universe. There is a special prayer that is said for this which thanks God for creation and for the sun (birkat ha'chamah means "the sun blessing", chamah is a term used for the sun in the Mishnah and Talmud). This year is thought to be particularly special because this rare event is taking place on erev Pesach (Passover eve). There are sources that say that this has only happened two other times in history, one was the Exodus from Egypt and one was Purim, so many people believe that the timing of birkat hachamah this year indicates the coming of great things.

As for me, I do not necessarily believe that the sun returns to its creation point every 28 years. In spite of that, the chance to say this blessing is a relatively rare occurace, especially because of its timing relative to Pesach, and perhaps a unique opportunity for me to experience this in Jerusalem. So I got up early this morning to go to the Kotel (Western Wall), not only because I thought it would be cool to say this blessing at the Kotel, but also because I thought it would be an interesting scene. I arrived at about 7:30am, and actually missed the crowd at its largest, which was at around 6:30am (I know this because there was a webcast of the Kotel on chabad.org, so I was able to see the crowd before I left my apartment). There were still a lot of people there when I arrived, but it wasn't too crowded, and I was able to pray the morning service and the extra little service for birkat ha'chamah in relative peace. I also took a few pictures and videos and thought people might enjoy seeing a bit of what the scene was like. The video is sideways, so you will either need to turn your screen on its side, or it might just be easier to turn your head. Anyhoo, I wish all the M.O.T's out there a chag Pesach sameach v'kasher (a happy and kosher Passover) and hope that today's event really is a sign of good things to come.