The Segula of 90 Amens a Day

The Segula of 90 Amens a Day

The Zohar HaKadosh teaches that prayer is considered צדקה (tzedakah): צ) 90) responses to “amen,” ד) 4) recitations of Kedushah, ק) 100) blessings, and 5 (ה) - the five Chumashim of the Torah (the Five Books of the Torah). In this connection, it is stated in Mishlei (14:34): “Righteousness exalts”. In the merit of this, the L-rd will have mercy on His creations. In addition, the Tikunei Zohar speaks of the virtue of those who answer “amen” 90 times every day, saying that they present the finest gift to Ha-Shem, namely tzedakah. Similarly, the book “Maavar Yabok” states that every day a Jew should “perform tzedakah”: צ) 90) responses to “amen,” ד) 4) recitations of Kedushah, ק) 100) blessings, and (ה) the five Chumashim of the Torah (the Five Books of the Torah). Rabbi Menachem Azariah mi-Pano wrote an important note that the 90 “amens” a person is obligated to recite each day include only “amen” responses to berachot, and not to Kaddish. Rabbi Moshe Zacuto, in his commentary on the Zohar (Lech Lecha), writes that blessings, as well as Kedushot and Kaddish, are recited and heard by the congregants in any event. Nevertheless, a person should make an effort to answer 90 “amens” by listening as others recite blessings, which was an ancient custom in Eretz Yisrael. Therefore, the pasuk specifically states (Isaiah 26:2): גוי צדיק שומר אמנים – “a righteous nation that keeps faith” – the Hebrew word for “faith,” אמונה, contains all the letters of the word אמן – “amen,” but it does not say שומר קדושות – “a guardian of Kedushot,” because a person must deliberately make an effort to answer “amen,” so that each day he brings the community the merit of 90 “amens.” 90 Amens—Like Ketoret Rabbi Yitzchak Abuhatzeira writes in his book “Elef HaMagen”: “A wonderful segula for one who wishes his prayers to be pleasing to the L-rd, like the prayer of the Ketoret, is to answer 90 ‘amens’ to blessings every day.” He found the source for this through a remez in the pasuk (Bamidbar 7:14): “One gold ladle weighing ten (shekels), filled with incense” – כף אחת עשרה זהב מלאה קטורת. The words  זהב מלאה – “filled with gold” – have a gematria of 90, alluding to 90 “amens.” In other words, when a person answers “amen” 90 times every day, his prayers are regarded by the L-rd as Ketoret. Protection from Witchcraft Rabbeinu Chida mentions another segula connected with 90 “amens” in his sefer “Midbar Kedemot,” stating that anyone who answers “amen” 90 times every day is protected from witchcraft—sorcerers cannot harm him. “This is precisely what a woman heard from a sorceress who had been sent to kidnap her child while she slept. The sorceress said that she could not do it because the mother had recited 90 amens that day. The woman awoke and heard this.” A Long and Blessed Life The sefer “Sefer Kadmon” cites the segula of 90 “amens” as a means of attaining a long and blessed life. “It is desirable for a person to pray in a Beit Knesset so that he can recite “amen” 90 times and thereby fulfill: צדיק באמונתו יחיה – “tzadik be-emunato yichyeh” – “the righteous person shall live by his faith”, since a literal interpretation yields the meaning that he lives “because of amen.” https://www.hevratpinto.org/PDF_n/Anglais_5777/672_lech_lecha_eng.pdf