Shema

Shema Yisrael (Shema Israel or Sh'ma Yisrael; Hebrew: שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל, lit. 'Hear, O Israel') is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewish prayer services. Its first verse, Deuteronomy 6:4,^[1] encapsulates the monotheistic essence of Judaism: "Hear, O Israel: YHWH our God, YHWH is one" (שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָֽד׃).^[2]

The first part can be translated as either "The LORD our God" or "The LORD is our God", and the second part as either "the LORD is one" or as "the one LORD" (in the sense of "the LORD alone"). Hebrew does not generally use a copula in the present tense, so translators must decide by inference which translation is appropriate in English. The word used for "the LORD" is the Tetragrammaton (YHWH).

Observant Jews consider the Shema to be the most important part of the prayer service in Judaism, and its twice-daily recitation as a mitzvah (commandment by God to Jews). Furthermore, it is traditional for Jews to recite the Shema as their last words, and for parents to teach their children to say it before they go to sleep at night.^[3][4]

The term Shema is used by extension to refer to the entirety of the portions of the morning and evening prayers that commence with Shema Yisrael and comprise Deuteronomy 6:4–9,^[5] Deuteronomy 11:13–21,^[6] and Numbers 15:37–41.^[7] These sections of the Torah are read in the weekly Torah portions Va'etchanan, Eikev, and Shlach, respectively.