Tehillim 100 – How to Change One’s Mazal Before Rosh Hashanah

Tehillim 100 – How to Change One’s Mazal Before Rosh Hashanah

Tehillim 100 is a special, profound psalm – “Mizmor LeTodah” (the Psalm of Thanksgiving). This is the only chapter of Tehillim mentioned in the Shulchan Aruch. The Shulchan Aruch instructs us to sing it, because in the future all other songs will be abolished (Shir HaShirim, Shirat HaYam) and new songs will be composed. But the only song that will remain after the coming of Moshiach is “Mizmor LeTodah” – Psalm 100. Therefore, it is important to recite it with a melody now. The Mekubalim reveal that this psalm contains 168 letters – represented by the letters קסח. According to the Atbash system, these letters form the word חסד – “Chesed”, which explains why reading Psalm 100 even once enables us to draw the energy of Chesed toward ourselves. Moreover, this psalm contains exactly 43 words – the gematria of the word גם – “gam”, which is a known klipah. By reading this psalm, we effect “bitul klipot” – the nullification of the klipot. Interestingly, “challah” also has the gematria of 43. There is a tradition to recite Psalm 100 during “Hafrashat Challah”. The Ben Ish Chai writes that every woman should bake challah before Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is the day when the first woman, Chavah, spoiled the challah – “challah” translates as “portion”; Adam was “chalato ba-Olam” – an important part of the world. She spoiled it (by giving him the forbidden fruit to eat), causing him to sin, and must now rectify everything. A powerful segula is to recite Psalm 100 forty times before Rosh Hashanah – to change one’s situation and improve one’s mazal. Since “Mizmor LeTodah” is the Psalm of Thanksgiving, whoever thanks the Almighty in advance for everything he has – for his portion, for every day he has lived, for his children, simply for waking up each morning, and for everything with which the Almighty has blessed him – merits, according to the Sages, a better portion in the eyes of Hashem.