Note 52 — VI. ELEAZAR BE-RABBI KALIR

This poem, which is found in the Ashkenazic ritual for New Year, consists of fifteen stanzas, and is an acrostic bearing the author’s name. Each stanza has three short rhyming lines. The poet asks why the Jewish kingdom is cast down (stanza 1). A brief answer is given by the Holy Spirit (stanzas 2 and 3). The remaining stanzas are uttered by the Jewish nation complaining of the evil done to her by her enemies who as yet have not been punished for their wickedness.