Hatikva. Not your normal national anthem - by Forest Rain

...Zion and Jerusalem are the home of the Jewish soul but they are also the example, the proof that all people can find the home their soul yearns for. Possibly this is the secret of Israel, why she fascinates and why she gives so many, including non-Jews, the feeling that coming to Israel is coming home.

Forest Rain..
Inspiration from Zion..
August '16..

Israel doesn’t do things the way other nations do and our national anthem is no exception to that rule.

What other nation on earth has had a national anthem at a time when they did not have a State they could call home?

The original poem was called Tikvatenu (Our Hope), was revised over the years, including by Imber himself and eventually became the two stanza anthem, Hatikva (The Hope), sung today.The words of Israel’s national anthem were written as a nine-stanza poem by poet Naftali Hertz Imber and were first published in 1876 or 1877 (the exact date is unknown). It served as the anthem of the Zionist Movement at the 18th Zionist Congress in 1933.

Although Hatikva was firmly established in the public’s consciousness as Israel’s national anthem, it was not formally legislated as such until 57 years after the establishment of the state.

For other nations, the anthem is a tool to build and reinforce national consciousness. Their songs speak of pride, superiority, the glory of battle and/or upholding the reign of the ruler. The lyrics reinforce the cohesion of a people based on their similar traits, taking part in the same battles and living in the same land.

Here too Israel is different.

Hatikva mentions no battles, no fight against oppressors and no similar traits belonging to our nation.

The consciousness of Israel as a nation has existed for thousands of years. There is no need to “pump” ideas of brotherhood or belonging together, the “our” in the lyrics comes quietly, naturally, without fanfare.

(Continue to Full Post)

Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh.blogspot.com. If you enjoy "Love of the Land", please be a subscriber. Just put your email address in the "Subscribe" box on the upper right-hand corner of the page.Twitter updates at LoveoftheLand as well as our Love of the Land page at Facebook which has additional pieces of interest besides that which is posted on the blog. Also check-out This Ongoing War by Frimet and Arnold Roth. An excellent blog, very important work. 

.