Follow my instructions exactly:
Take one chicken.
Hold it by its wings.
Move it around your head in a circle, halo-style, three times.
Now say this:
“This is my exchange, this is my substitute, this is my atonement. This rooster/hen will go to its death (or this money will go to charity), while I will enter and proceed to a good long life and to peace.”
Now give the chicken to a kosher slaughterer (shoichet) and donate the chicken to charity.
Nice! You’ve just done the ritual called “kapparos” – pronounced “ka-PUH-ros” (long “o”). Or, in Yiddish, shlugged kapparos.
Allow me to qualify a few points:
1. This is a custom, that is traditionally done around Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. NOT a law. There’s a big difference.
2. Many have the custom to perform this ritual with money that will go to charity instead of a chicken that will go to charity. Back in the day, fowl was currency. It’s cool to continue traditions exactly as they were done back in the day; it certainly enhances preservation of our faith. But the point is charity, so if you’re squeamish, vegan, or a germaphobe, money is the way to go.
3. The chicken is not harmed or mistreated. They are handled at least as well as regular chickens are handled for normal food consumption. If the way chickens are handled for normal food consumption bothers you, I am sorry, but that is a whole ‘nother blog.
4. The concept is that the consequences of our misdeeds can be symbolically transferred to the animal, and simultaneously, wake us up to the reality that our deeds indeed do have consequences, in a very technicolor way. By sacrificing it (or anything of value) to charity, we have the priceless opportunity to gain absolvement for those misdeeds. Caveat: if you do kapparos, and keep on sinning, you’ve just wasted a chicken and your time. This ain’t no presto-chango hoojie woojie – it’s supposed to be a supplementary device in the general repentance toolbox.
5. Interested in trying it out? Let me know… I can work it out for ya.
Ever tried kapparos?? What was your experience?
As a rationalist, I really dislike the kapparot ritual. So do the Mechaber (the author of the Shulchan Aruch) and the Rashbah among others. In addition to the pagan/xtian aspect of offering a substitute for sins, large numbers of chickens needing to be slaughtered in a short interval is taxing for the shochet (risking not just physical exhaustion and accidents, but a higher chance of treif chickens being missed by inspection). Also some distributors do not soak or salt the chickens before distribution, relying on the recipients to do so. In this day and age few people know how to properly soak and salt a chicken.
Animal cruelty is a real problem with contemporary kapparot, although it need not be. I've seen kapparot with chicken done well, and agreed the ceremony need not be cruel to the chicken. I believe the trend is towards greater concern about violating the law against cruelty to animals, which is reassuring.
I officially am in love with the phrase "This ain't no presto-chango hoojie woojie." I am going to see if I can fit it into conversation.
Personally, we use money. I spent a lot of time on my grandmother's farm as a kid and I found chickens to be dirty, mean animals. Not really engendering good kaparah kind of feelings.I like my chicken wrapped up from the butcher, thank you very much.
Lenny: thanks for your viewpoint…glad to hear the trend is going in a good direction.
Amy: cracking up!!
Been there. Done that.
Just kidding (about the tone, that is).
Glad I experienced it. Once.
Thank you for the great explanation. I think I would have learned more had I know all that first.
I'm laughing at Amy's comments too. And Wendy, still remember my surprise as I rounded the corner to he parking lot and saw you with the chicken. You looked equally surprised!