Ve-ahavta

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Pronunciations

Ve-ahavta (veh-ah-HAHV-tah) listen

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Definitions

  • n. The second paragraph of the Shema.

Example Sentences

  • "I’ve been trying to memorize the v’ahavta on my own for months now, and I get to about line 5, and it’s all downhill from there, ha." (source)

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Languages of Origin

  • Textual Hebrew

Etymology

  • וְאָהַבְתָּ 'and you shall love' from the first word of the second paragraph of the Shema

      • Who Uses This

      • Religious: Jews who are engaged in religious observance and have some Jewish education

      Regions

      • North America

      Dictionaries

      • The JPS Dictionary of Jewish Words, by Joyce Eisenberg and Ellen Scolnic, (Philadelphia, 2001).

      Alternative Spellings

      Veahavta, Ve'ahavta, Ve Ahavta, V'ahavta

Notes

  • "The Ve-ahavta is pivotal to every morning and evening service. This prayer begins with the words 'You shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.' The customs of reciting morning and evening prayers, teaching Jewish traditions to one’s children, wearing tefillin, and putting a mezuzah on a doorway come directly from the words of this prayer. The Ve-ahavta is written on the parchment found inside tefillin and mezuzot." (JPS)

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