Tehillim 91 – “Shir Shel Pegaim” – the Song of the Afflicted
Tehillim 91 – “Shir Shel Pegaim” (the Song of the Afflicted)
The Kabbalists call Psalm 91 “Shir Shel Pegaim” (the Song of the Afflicted). When recited, this psalm purifies the air and can even remove an impure spirit from the world and distance from a person those who cause various kinds of harm; it also protects against harmful forces and all kinds of destructive entities.The Sages advise reciting this psalm every day—that way, one will be protected throughout the year. And when difficult circumstances arise and “everything is going downhill,” it is especially important to recite it, as it says: “Yipol mitzidcha elef u-revavah miminecha, elecha lo yigash”—“A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but you will remain unharmed.”“Yipol mitzidcha elef”—this means that one thousand destructive angels will fall to your left; and “miminecha”—to your right—ten thousand.There is also a Midrash that relates that one thousand angels created through the performance of mitzvot protect a person on his left side, while ten thousand angels protect him on his right.The Gemara teaches that when a new house or an entire neighborhood is built, it is desirable to sanctify the place and cleanse it of impurity, accumulated negative energy, and various harmful forces, so that people may live there in peace.When our ancestors began building new neighborhoods or homes in Jerusalem, they would walk around the entire area designated for construction and recite Psalm 91—“Shir Shel Pegaim”—seven times.Chazal teach that it should be recited as follows: begin with the final verse of Psalm 90, “Vihi Noam,” twice.Then recite Psalm 91 seven times—its Hebrew designation is צ – צא (tzadi – 90) and א (aleph – 1), the gematria of the word “amen.”It is also customary to repeat the final verse of Psalm 91 twice: “Orekh yamim asbi'ehu, ve'ar'ehu bishuati.” To intensify the effect of these words, the Kabbalists advise reciting this verse twice in reverse order as well: “Bishuati ve'ar'ehu, asbi'ehu yamim orekh.”The Hidden Meaning of Tehillim 91 According to the Midrash, the eleven psalms from 90 through 100 were composed by Moshe Rabbeinu. They are connected with Psalm 90, “The Prayer of Moses,” and are assigned to eleven of the tribes:90—for the tribe of Reuben: “You reduce man to utter brokenness”;91—for the tribe of Levi: “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High”;92—for the tribe of Judah: “It is good to give thanks to the L-rd”;93—for the tribe of Benjamin: “The L-rd has reigned; He is robed in majesty”;94—for the tribe of Gad: “G-d of retribution”;95—for the tribe of Issachar: “Come, let us sing joyfully,” and so on.The Talmud calls Psalm 91 “a song that helps one escape troubles and the forces of evil.” (Talmud, Shevuot 15:6)And for one who recites it with a profound awareness of its meaning, G-d will help him escape in a time of danger.The Midrash says that Moshe composed it when he completed erecting the Mishkan, the Sanctuary that accompanied the Jews in the wilderness.The verses of this psalm also describe Moshe himself, who ascended to the higher worlds and was enveloped in the Divine mystery like a cloud, dwelling in the shadow of the Creator Himself.This psalm consists of three blessings:Verses 1–10—the blessing of a father to his son.Verses 11–13—the blessing of a mother.Verses 14–16—the blessing of Heaven. (Talmud, Sanhedrin 103a)91:4—“He will shelter you beneath His wing”—the relationship between the Creator and man is like the relationship between a fledgling and its mother, who protects it in every way.91:7—“A thousand will fall at your left”—this refers to evil spirits. The Most High assigns thousands and tens of thousands of angels to each person to protect him from evil spirits. (Babylonian Talmud, Berakhot; Tanchuma)91:11—“For He will command His angels concerning you, to guard you in all your ways”—there are two angels within every person: his “yetzer hara” (evil inclination) on the left, which is born together with a person, and his “yetzer hatov” (good inclination) on the right, which comes to a person when he reaches the age of thirteen and begins to strive for holiness. If the good inclination overcomes the evil inclination, they join together to protect a person in all his ways. (Zohar on Vayishlach)“When Shabbat ends, numerous destructive angels begin their work, flying and wandering through the world. Therefore, so that they do not rule over the holy nation, it is necessary to recite Psalm 91, which is called ‘the Song that Drives Away Destroyers.’” (The Holy Zohar)91:11—“For He will command His angels concerning you, to guard you in all your ways”— this is Rivkah’s blessing to her son Jacob when she sent him to her brother Lavan, so that he would avoid Esau’s vengeance.91:14,15—“I will elevate him because he knows My Name; he will call to Me, and I will answer him”— why do the prayers of Israel go unanswered? Because they do not know the Name that is unique to Him, as it says: “I will elevate him because he knows My Name; he will call to Me, and I will answer him.” (The Midrash “Shocher Tov”) 91:5—“You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day”—this refers to the “mazik,” a harmful force that moves through the air. It flies like an arrow, and therefore the verse says of it: “Do not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day.” How can one protect oneself from it? By fulfilling the mitzvah of “sending away the mother bird from the nest before taking the chick or the egg.” (Midrash Tehillim)91:1—“He who is initiated into the secret of the Most High dwells in the shadow of the Almighty”—when Moshe ascended to Heaven, he composed Psalm 91—“He who is initiated into the secret of the Most High.” When G-d said to Moshe, “Make Me a Sanctuary, and I will dwell among you,” Moshe composed the psalm: “He who is initiated into the secret of the Most High dwells in the shadow of the Almighty,” for he was filled with a passionate desire to dwell in the shadow of the L-rd. (Shocher Tov; Bamidbar Rabbah 12:3) 91:7—“A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but you will remain unharmed”—Rabbi Alexandri said in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi: “One who has completed his prayer must take three steps backward and then bow.” And in the name of Rav Shemaya they said: “One bows first to the right and then to the left. As it says: ‘and ten thousand at your right hand’”—the right side of a person is superior, for it is capable of withstanding the assault of ten thousand destructive demons. (Babylonian Talmud, Yoma 53b)Abba Benjamin said: “If the eye were permitted to see them, no one could withstand the demons.”Abaye said: “There are more of them than of us.”Rav Huna said: “Each of us has one thousand on the left and ten thousand on the right.” (Babylonian Talmud, Berakhot 6a) Rabbi Yudan said in the name of Rabbi: “There is no beit rubo (approximately 50 square meters) anywhere on the surface of the earth that does not contain nine kavs (approximately 2.5 liters) of demons. A person can extend his hand and it will pass through a demon.” But the L-rd protects us from them.Our teachers said: “The eyes of demons are bound, like the eyes of donkeys that grind flour. But when a person sins, the covering falls away; the demon looks at the person, and the person’s face changes, for demons suddenly strike him.” (Shocher Tov)(Collected by the website from sacred Jewish sources)
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