Perek Shira - The Song of the Rooster

[Music] thank you [Music] [Applause] [Music] thank you every morning at the first sight of dawn the rooster awakens the World to Sing to its creator anew even if a rooster is kept indoors and cannot see the sun's Rays its internal clock senses the time of dawn before the Advent of the alarm clock people used to rely on the rooster it is a gift to mankind which we mention every day in our morning blessings some roosters crow in the middle of night although the scientific reason for this is unclear we can explain it on a deeper level of understanding based on the teachings of the Zohar the second half of the night from Midnight to Daybreak is a period of intense Divine favor it is then that Hashem enters gun Eden to Rejoice with the righteous and they listen intently to words of Torah being studied on Earth at that time the rooster has a spiritual counterpart in heaven in the same way all beings on earth have spiritual counterparts the Heavenly rooster crows seven times once an hour from Midnight to Daybreak which causes the Roosters on Earth to Crow as well thus whichever hour a rooster crows it is echoing the call of the Heavenly rooster at that time at the time that Hashem enters to join the righteous in ganere all the trees of ganedan emit aromatic spices and sing and praise then the rooster too awakens and Praises with its first two calls that is in the first two hours following midnight the rooster Heralds hashem's entry into gun Eden with the first call it says raise your arches O Gates and let the Eternal entrances be raised and let the king of glory enter who is the king of glory Hashem strong and mighty Hashem mighty warrior with the second call it says raise her arches O Gates raise the Eternal entrances and let the king of glory enter who is he the king of glory Hashem master of Legions he is the king of glory Selah with the third call it says Rise righteous ones and engage in Torah study so that your reward will be doubled in the world to come those that engage in Torah both day and night deserve a double reward with the fourth call it says for your salvation I yearn Hashem it calls out that we should deserve to be redeemed from the Exile in the Merit of the nighttime Torah study until now the rooster has addressed only the righteous calling them to engage in Torah study now is the first light of day appears it addresses everyone with the fifth call it says until when shall you Slumber lazy man when will you rise from your sleep the rooster calls for man to rise and prepare for the morning prayers which are ideally recited in accompaniment of the Rising Sun with the sixth call it says do not love sleep lest to become impoverished open your eyes be satiated with bread this is the time to Don the Tolleson villain and set out for prayer it declares that excessive sleep in the morning reduces a person's productivity with the seventh call it says it is a time to act for the sake of Hashem they have annulled your Torah that is the nighttime period of divine favor has ended and it is now time to perform the Mitzvahs most of which can only be fulfilled during the day in our Urban Society we no longer rise to the call of the rooster yet its song shall not be silenced with its very existence it calls for man to awaken and to awaken others for the service of the Creator will we choose to rise and invigorate our souls with Torah study before the day becomes filled with Earthly occupations of temporal worth Will We rise with enthusiasm to pray to Hashem and to thank him for a new day filled with his kindness or will we continue to Slumber allowing earthliness to rule over godliness and the night to creep over the day whichever way we begin the day the rest is sure to follow as it Heralds the dawn the rooster is singing that the coming day is a gift a new opportunity for a person to perfect himself and the world around him and it calls to us to rise to that opportunity [Music] laughs [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music]