“Lamnatseach—A song of the one who is victorious, al haNechilot—on the Nechilot [an instrument].” (Tehilim, 5:1) The Aramaic translation of “on the Nechilot,” is “l’shabcha al chignin.” This means “to offer praises at the dance festival, or fair.”1Chigna, like Nechilot is also the name of a musical instrument. This refers to one who shouts out with an intense cry. Chigna, is actually the bell of suffering, for when one who suffers cries out, all of his desire is that God hear his cry. This is as the verses continue, “Lend an ear to my words, God, understand my thoughts. Listen deeply to the voice of my shouts, my King, E-lohai, my God, for it is to You I pray. In the morning You shall hear my voice.” “Listen deeply to the voice of my shouts, my King and God”—“my King” because God loves me, and “E-lohai, my God” because He is my stronghold.2The particular name of God, E-loha denotes strength. “In the morning God will hear my voice, in the morning I will arrange my plea before You.” “Morning” teaches of the first rays of sunlight at dawn, and the renewed blossoming of the light of day. So, too, the very first emergence of will in the heart of man before it spreads forth is called “morning.” At this moment, while the thought has still just newly emerged, he asks God that the thought or desire not spread to a place against God’s will. “For You are not a God who desires evil, nor shall evil dwell with You” can be understood through the Midrash Ta’azria on the Parsha of nega’im (afflictions) (Tanchuma 7), “why does it not say here, ‘Speak to the children of Israel [in Vayikra, 13:1]’? For it is the nature of God that, ‘no evil—yaGORcha—shall dwell with You,’ meaning no evil does not lead—GORERet—Him along.” Israel represents intense cleaving to God. Thus it says, “for You are not a God who desires evil,” to give meaning to one’s prayer, for truly the very first emergence of the desire to pray has come from God, and therefore no evil could come of it. However, he fears that from this point on it could spread to a place of evil. Therefore he prays with great intensity for God to be with him to help when the thoughts and desires begin to spread out into the world, helping the effects of the desire to be clean even from an inkling of thought against God’s will. Then it will follow that all his actions will be pure.
לַמְנַצֵּחַ עַל הַנְּחִילוֹת. תַּרְגּוּמוֹ לְשַׁבָּחָא עַל חוּנְגָא, הַיְינוּ שֶׁהַצְּעָקָה הוּא בְּרַעַשׁ גָּדוֹל מְאֹד, כִּי חוּנְגָא הוּא פַּעֲמוֹן הַמַּרְעִים, שֶׁכָּל תְּשׁוּקָתוֹ הָיָה שֶׁיִּשְׁמַע אֵלָיו ה' בָּזֶה, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב "אֲמָרַי הַאֲזִינָה ה' הַקְשִׁיבָה לְקוֹל שַׁוְעִי מַלְכִּי וֵאלֹקָי כִּי אֵלֶיךָ אֶתְפַּלָּל ה' בֹּקֶר תִּשְׁמַע קוֹלִי", "הַקְשִׁיבָה לְקוֹל שַׁוְעִי מַלְכִּי וֵאלֹקָי", "מַלְכִּי" הַיְינוּ שֶׁהַש"י אוֹהֲבִי "וֵאלֹקָי" הַיְינוּ שֶׁהַש"י מִבְטַח עֻזּוֹ, "ה' בֹּקֶר תִּשְׁמַע קוֹלִי בֹּקֶר אֶעֱרָךְ" כוּ', כִּי בֹּקֶר מוֹרֶה עַל תְּחִילוֹת הַזְּרִיחָה וּצְמִיחַת חִידּוּשׁ אוֹר יוֹם, וְכֵן כָּל צְמִיחַת רָצוֹן בְּלֵב הָאָדָם טֶרֶם שֶׁמִּתְפַּשֵּׁט נִקְרָא בֹּקֶר, וְאָז בִּקֵּשׁ מֵהַש"י בְּעוֹד שֶׁהַמַּחְשָׁבָה צוֹמַחַת מֵחָדָשׁ לֹא תַּתְחִיל לְהִתְפַּשֵּׁט נֶגֶד רְצוֹן הַש"י, וְאָמַר "כִּי לֹא אֵל חָפֵץ רֶשַׁע אָתָּה" כוּ' עַל דֶּרֶךְ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בְּמִדְרָשׁ תַּזְרִיעַ בְּפָרָשַׁת נְגָעִים (תנחומא ז') לָמָּה לֹא נֶאֱמַר דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מִפְּנֵי כִּי "לֹא יְגֻרְךָ רָע" אֵין הָרַע גּוֹרֶרֶת אוֹתוֹ, וְיִשְׂרָאֵל מוֹרֶה לִדְבֵיקוּת בְּהַש"י, וְז"ש "כִּי לֹא אֵל" כוּ', "כִּי" הַיְינוּ נְתִינַת טַעַם לַדָּבָר שֶׁמִּתְפַּלֵּל מֵחֲמַת כִּי בֶּאֱמֶת בִּתְחִילַּת הַצְּמִיחָה שֶׁהוּא מֵהַש"י לֹא יִצְמַח שׁוּם דָּבָר רַע, אַךְ מִתְיָרֵא פֶּן יִתְפַּשֵּׁט אַחַר כָּךְ זֹאת הַנְּקוּדָה, לָכֵן הִרְעִישׁ כָּל כָּךְ בִּתְפִילָּתוֹ שֶׁיִּהְיֶה הַש"י בְּעֶזְרוֹ בִּתְחִילוֹת הַהִתְפַּשְּׁטוּת שֶׁיִּהְיֶה נָקִי מִכָּל צַד הִרְהוּר וּמִמֵּילָא יִהְיוּ נְקִיִּים כָּל מַעֲשָׂיו.
“Lamnatseach—A song of the one who is victorious, al haNechilot—on the Nechilot [an instrument].” (Tehilim, 5:1)
The Aramaic translation of “on the Nechilot,” is “l’shabcha al chignin.” This means “to offer praises at the dance festival, or fair.”1Chigna, like Nechilot is also the name of a musical instrument. This refers to one who shouts out with an intense cry. Chigna, is actually the bell of suffering, for when one who suffers cries out, all of his desire is that God hear his cry. This is as the verses continue, “Lend an ear to my words, God, understand my thoughts. Listen deeply to the voice of my shouts, my King, E-lohai, my God, for it is to You I pray. In the morning You shall hear my voice.” “Listen deeply to the voice of my shouts, my King and God”—“my King” because God loves me, and “E-lohai, my God” because He is my stronghold.2The particular name of God, E-loha denotes strength. “In the morning God will hear my voice, in the morning I will arrange my plea before You.” “Morning” teaches of the first rays of sunlight at dawn, and the renewed blossoming of the light of day. So, too, the very first emergence of will in the heart of man before it spreads forth is called “morning.”
At this moment, while the thought has still just newly emerged, he asks God that the thought or desire not spread to a place against God’s will. “For You are not a God who desires evil, nor shall evil dwell with You” can be understood through the Midrash Ta’azria on the Parsha of nega’im (afflictions) (Tanchuma 7), “why does it not say here, ‘Speak to the children of Israel [in Vayikra, 13:1]’? For it is the nature of God that, ‘no evil—yaGORcha—shall dwell with You,’ meaning no evil does not lead—GORERet—Him along.” Israel represents intense cleaving to God. Thus it says, “for You are not a God who desires evil,” to give meaning to one’s prayer, for truly the very first emergence of the desire to pray has come from God, and therefore no evil could come of it. However, he fears that from this point on it could spread to a place of evil. Therefore he prays with great intensity for God to be with him to help when the thoughts and desires begin to spread out into the world, helping the effects of the desire to be clean even from an inkling of thought against God’s will. Then it will follow that all his actions will be pure.