Mourner's Kaddish For Pet

[Beachbum1]

I hope this is OK to post.

I will find this helpful.

Modified Mourner’s Kaddish (Transliteration and Translation)

Most Jews who were raised reciting the Mourner’s Kaddish at a loved one’s death or yartzheit find great comfort and release in saying the prayer, especially in the company of others. It felt very important to me to be able to say the Kaddish when my pets, and then service dogs, died. However, the standard form of the prayer refers to “all of Israel” (all Jews), which felt neither inclusive of non-human animals nor of people I was mourning who were not Jewish. I recited it anyway, but I wanted a better way.

Several years ago, when my cat, Ferdinand, was dying of cancer, I asked a friend who knew Hebrew if there might be a suitable replacement. She came up with a phrase that translates roughly to “all of Creation” or “all G-d’s creation,” which I now use in all situations. The transliteration (pronunciation) of the blessing is below, followed by its translation into English. I regret that I cannot provide it in Hebrew, but neither my keyboard nor my brain are up to the task!

Mourner’s Kaddish (Modified)

Yitga-dal v’yit-ka-dash sh’may raba,
v’yam leech mal-chu-tay,
b’alma deevra chi-roo-tay,
b’chai-yay-chon uv-yo-maychon, uv-cha-yay d’chol bayt yishvay tehval,
ba-a-ga-lah u-viz-man kareev, v’imru oh-meyn.

Y’hay sh’may ra-ba m’va-rach l’olam ool-ol-may ol-may-yah.

Yit-bar-rach v’yish-ta-bach, v’yit-pah-ar v’yit-ro-mam,
v’yit-na-say v’yit-ha-dar, v’yit-a-leh, v’yit’halal
sh’may d’kud sho b’richu;
l’ay-la min kol bir-chatah v’shee-rata,
tush-b’cha-ta v’ne-cheh-mah-tah, da-a-mee-ron b’alma,
v’imru, oh-meyn.

V’hay sh’lo-mo ra-ba min sh’may-yah,
v’chay-im olaynu v’yal kol yishvay tehval
v’imru, oh-mayn.

O-seh shalom bimromahv.
Hu ya-ah-seh shalom.

Aleynu v’yal kol yishvay tehval,
v’imru, oh-mayn.

Mourner’s Kaddish (Amended) — An English Translation

May it be magnified
and may it be sanctified
Your great name

in the world you created according to your will.
May the world establish and fulfill

in your life and in your days
and in the life of all creation

soon
and near in time
and say, Amen.

May your great name be praised
forever, and ever and ever.

May it be praised
and may it be blessed
and may it be glorified
and may it be upraised
and may it be elevated,

and may it be honored
and may it be exalted
and may it be extolled,

the name of the Holy One, Blessed Be,

beyond all words of praise, words of song,
words of blessing, and words of comfort
that are uttered in this world,
and say, Amen.

May there be abundant peace from heaven, and life, for us and for all G-d’s creation; and say, Amen.

May G-d who creates peace in the celestial heights, create peace for us and for all creation; and say, Amen.

[ramonaghan]

This is beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

[greysmom]

It's a lovely tradition, and I like the changes. Shalom....

[robinw]

Thank you.

[seeh2o]

Beautiful, thank you for sharing this.

[LaFlaca]

This is absolutely beautiful and I thank you for sharing. I will recite this prayer when we lay Wendy to rest.

[Houndtime]

I used to recite the prayer for healing for our Paulie.

[BatterseaBrindl]

I am not a 'pray-er' but that is lovely

[Batmom]

Beautiful. Thank you.

[EllenEveBaz]

[sabrina]

Thank you for posting

[Richard]

I also found this post comforting, thank you, not only for the content (which is traditional and lovely), but for the shared "emunah," the innate spirit in which it was offered and shared and for the comments of others that comprise a kind of web minyon, a quorum of community that helps our prayer rise beyond our own singular voice, and finally within a website of caring people sharing the best of humanity. All this is truly the meaning of a mitzvah, a good deed. G-d bless and thank you all. 

[Bluezinnia]

We said this sometimes (with the translation similarly retuned) in the convent when I was a nun, believe it or not. It was just too beautiful not to, and while most of us had more Greek than Hebrew, we got through it. 

I love it that this mourning prayer is one of triumph-in-spite-of, and of absolute praise and gratitude. It's like the end of the long version of Cohen's song: 

"For all I've known of right or wrong,

I'll stand before the Lord of Song

With nothing on my tongue but 'Hallelujah'."

 

Edited April 12, 2022 by Bluezinnia
clarification

[Houndtime]

On 9/29/2017 at 12:23 PM, Beachbum1 said:

I hope this is OK to post.

I will find this helpful.

 

Modified Mourner’s Kaddish (Transliteration and Translation)

Most Jews who were raised reciting the Mourner’s Kaddish at a loved one’s death or yartzheit find great comfort and release in saying the prayer, especially in the company of others. It felt very important to me to be able to say the Kaddish when my pets, and then service dogs, died. However, the standard form of the prayer refers to “all of Israel” (all Jews), which felt neither inclusive of non-human animals nor of people I was mourning who were not Jewish. I recited it anyway, but I wanted a better way.

Several years ago, when my cat, Ferdinand, was dying of cancer, I asked a friend who knew Hebrew if there might be a suitable replacement. She came up with a phrase that translates roughly to “all of Creation” or “all G-d’s creation,” which I now use in all situations. The transliteration (pronunciation) of the blessing is below, followed by its translation into English. I regret that I cannot provide it in Hebrew, but neither my keyboard nor my brain are up to the task!

Mourner’s Kaddish (Modified)

Yitga-dal v’yit-ka-dash sh’may raba,
v’yam leech mal-chu-tay,
b’alma deevra chi-roo-tay,
b’chai-yay-chon uv-yo-maychon, uv-cha-yay d’chol bayt yishvay tehval,
ba-a-ga-lah u-viz-man kareev, v’imru oh-meyn.

Y’hay sh’may ra-ba m’va-rach l’olam ool-ol-may ol-may-yah.

Yit-bar-rach v’yish-ta-bach, v’yit-pah-ar v’yit-ro-mam,
v’yit-na-say v’yit-ha-dar, v’yit-a-leh, v’yit’halal
sh’may d’kud sho b’richu;
l’ay-la min kol bir-chatah v’shee-rata,
tush-b’cha-ta v’ne-cheh-mah-tah, da-a-mee-ron b’alma,
v’imru, oh-meyn.

V’hay sh’lo-mo ra-ba min sh’may-yah,
v’chay-im olaynu v’yal kol yishvay tehval
v’imru, oh-mayn.

O-seh shalom bimromahv.
Hu ya-ah-seh shalom.

Aleynu v’yal kol yishvay tehval,
v’imru, oh-mayn.

Mourner’s Kaddish (Amended) — An English Translation

May it be magnified
and may it be sanctified
Your great name

in the world you created according to your will.
May the world establish and fulfill

in your life and in your days
and in the life of all creation

soon
and near in time
and say, Amen.

May your great name be praised
forever, and ever and ever.

May it be praised
and may it be blessed
and may it be glorified
and may it be upraised
and may it be elevated,

and may it be honored
and may it be exalted
and may it be extolled,

the name of the Holy One, Blessed Be,

beyond all words of praise, words of song,
words of blessing, and words of comfort
that are uttered in this world,
and say, Amen.

May there be abundant peace from heaven, and life, for us and for all G-d’s creation; and say, Amen.

May G-d who creates peace in the celestial heights, create peace for us and for all creation; and say, Amen.

I carry this in my purse, so, when I go to services (which I will be going back to this weekend, in person, after two years), I can recite the prayer.