Birkat Kohanim Art

Priestly Blessing Art

In the Torah (Bamidbar / Num. 6:24-26) G-d commands the Kohanim (Priests) to bless the B'nei Yisrael (Children of Israel). The verses of the Birkat Kohanim (Priestly Blessing) are among the oldest in liturgy, found from the seventh century BCE by Archaeologists etched on silver scrolls in tombs.

During Temple times, the Kohanim recited this blessing every day. Still today, some synagogues in Yerushalayim, this rite is performed every morning and in other synagogues, it is recited only on Shabbat. Many synagogues in the Diaspora perform this rite only on Jewish holidays.

The Birkat Kohanim rite is performed by the Kohanim stretching their arms and hands forward and holding their hands together, palms down with the fingers split so that there are 5 spaces - one space between the thumbs, a space between the thumb and first finger of each hand, and a space between the second and third finger of each hand. The five spaces allude to verses in Shir HaShirim / Song of Songs 2:8-9 which state that G-d "peeks through the cracks in the wall", meaning G-d watches over and protects the Jewish people even when He is hidden.

This hand gesture was popularized by Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Sock) of the Star Trek TV series when he displayed his fictitious "Vulcan" greeting on the show, but he got this hand gesture idea from real life experience by seeing the Birkat Kohanim rite performed in synagogue as a boy.

The symbol of this hand gesture is often engraved on the tombstones of Kohanim. This hand symbol has become symbolic of the Jewish priestly class.

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