Introduction
A new day has arrived.
Every day brings with it many new beginnings and new opportunities. As Jews, we begin every new day in cleanliness and purity, with a special series of religious acts that help us start off the day on the “right foot.”
Yehuda, the son of Teima, says: Be as bold as a leopard, as light as an eagle, as quick as a deer, and as strong as a lion, to do the Will of your Father in Heaven (Ethics of the Fathers).
Modeh Ani – Thanking G-d Upon Arising
As soon as we open our eyes in the morning, the first thing we must do is say “thank you”to G-d.
At night, when we went to sleep, we were tired and weak at the end of the day. At that time, a part of our ‘soul’ left our body and rose upward— to Heaven. Now that we are waking up in the morning, G-d returns that portion of the soul to us, and it is now good as new, refreshed and full of energy. For a present like that, we certainly must express gratitude!
Before even putting our feet on the floor, we press our palms together, bend our heads forward, and recite the following: “I thank You, O living and eternal King, for You have returned my soul to me with compassion. Great is Your faithfulness.”
Reciting this prayer while paying attention to each word is an excellent way to start a new day. There is nothing like beginning a new day with the positive energy that comes from saying thank you. This is all the more true when those words of thanks stem from a sense of faith in G-d.
This brief passage, Modeh Ani, is different from any other prayers we recite and from any passage in the Torah. We are not permitted to recite anything else from the Torah before we wash our hands in the morning, since our hands are still considered to be contaminated by spiritual impurity at this time. We recite Modeh Ani immediately upon arising, even before we wash our hands, for a few reasons. First, G-d’s name does not appear among the words. Second, and most importantly, this prayer serves to remind us that no impurity in the world can defile what Modeh Ani represents – that spark of Judaism deep within the heart of every Jew.
