Why a Level 4 dedicated to the Alter Rebbe? The Shulchan Arukh of the Alter Rebbe is not a commentary on the Mechaber (מחבר) — it is an independent and complete Shulchan Arukh, written by the Alter Rebbe (Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of Chabad, disciple of the Maggid (מגיד) of Mezeritch). Its singularity: it combines halakha (הלכה) + טעמי המצוות + the inner dimension in a single work, and rules with a unique Talmudic rigour.
For Chabad, the Alter Rebbe is הפוסק האחרון — his ruling is the deciding authority. The Rebbe explicitly instructed to study the Shulchan Arukh of the Alter Rebbe (שולחן ערוך הרב) seriously. This page gathers the Rav's way on Siman ה׳ — the kavana of the berakhot — where the Mechaber writes a single seif, but where the Rav unfolds in three seifim (ג׳ סעיפים) the meaning of the Divine Names: the Name הוי״ה (אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל / הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה — above time) and the Name אלהים (תַּקִּיף, Master of all forces, בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים). This is precisely the heart of Chabad thought.
שולחן ערוך הרב — סימן ה׳ — כוונת הברכות
The full text of the Alter Rebbe's Shulchan Arukh
שולחן ערוך הרב, סימן ה׳ — כַּוָּנַת הַבְּרָכוֹת — וּבוֹ ג׳ סְעִיפִים
The text of the Alter Rebbe himself (Sefaria source Shulchan_Arukh_HaRav,_Orach_Chayim.5), followed by our English translation. The Mechaber treats this siman in a single seif (סעיף אחד); the Alter Rebbe in three (ג׳ סעיפים). Seif א — intending the meaning of the words and of the two Names — is the heart of the siman.
סעיף א צָרִיךְ לְכַוֵּן בַּבְּרָכוֹת פֵּרוּשׁ הַמִּלּוֹת… פֵּרוּשׁ קְרִיאָתוֹ… אַדְנוּ״ת… כְּתִיבָתוֹ בְּיוֹ״ד הֵ״א… הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה…
צָרִיךְ לְכַוֵּן בַּבְּרָכוֹת פֵּרוּשׁ הַמִּלּוֹת שֶׁמּוֹצִיא מִפִּיו וּכְשֶׁיַּזְכִּיר הַשֵּׁם — יְכַוֵּן פֵּרוּשׁ קְרִיאָתוֹ בְּאָלֶ"ף דָּלֶ"ת — לְשׁוֹן אַדְנוּ"ת, שֶׁהוּא אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל. וִיכַוֵּן עוֹד פֵּרוּשׁ כְּתִיבָתוֹ בְּיוֹ"ד הֵ"א — לְשׁוֹן הוי"ה, שֶׁהוּא: הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה. אֲבָל בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁגַּם כְּתִיבָתוֹ הוּא בְּאָלֶ"ף דָּלֶ"ת — אֵין צָרִיךְ לְכַוֵּן אֶלָּא שֶׁהוּא אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל.
The heart of the siman. One must, in the berakhot, intend the meaning of the words one utters; and when mentioning the Name, one intends the meaning of its reading — as אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת, the language of אַדְנוּת — that He is אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל, the Master of all. One intends, further, the meaning of its writing — as יוֹ״ד הֵ״א, the language of הוי״ה (« Havaya ») — that He is: הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה (He was, is and will be). But where the writing itself is אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת (and not the Tetragrammaton), there is no need to intend other than that He is אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל. The Rav's chidush: he distinguishes from the outset two situations — the written Name הוי״ה (two intentions: reading + writing) and the Name written itself as אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת (a single intention: אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל) — whereas the Mechaber treated only the first case.
סעיף ב בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁכְּתִיבַת הַשֵּׁם הִיא בְּאָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת — קוֹרִין הָאָלֶ״ף בַּ"חֲטַף פַּתָּח"… בְּיוֹ״ד הֵ״א — יֵשׁ קוֹרִין… בִּ"שְׁבָא"…
בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁכְּתִיבַת הַשֵּׁם הִיא בְּאָלֶ"ף דָּלֶ"ת — קוֹרִין הָאָלֶ"ף בַּ"חֲטַף פַּתָּח", כִּי כֵן הוּא נָקוּד בַּמִּקְרָא. אֲבָל בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁכְּתִיבָתוֹ הוּא בְּיוֹ"ד הֵ"א — יֵשׁ קוֹרִין הָאָלֶ"ף בִּ"שְׁבָ"א", כִּנְקֻדַּת הַיּוֹ"ד מִן שֵׁם הוי"ה בָּרוּךְ הוּא, וְיֵשׁ קוֹרִין הָאָלֶף בַּ"חֲטַף פַּתָּח", כִּנְקֻדַּת הָאָלֶ"ף בְּשֵׁם אָלֶ"ף דָּלֶ"ת.
Where the writing of the Name is אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת, one reads the aleph with a חֲטַף פַּתָּח, for so it is vocalised in Scripture (מקרא). But where its writing is יוֹ״ד הֵ״א (the Tetragrammaton) — some read the aleph with a שְׁבָא, like the vocalisation of the yod of the Name הוי״ה, blessed be He, and some read the aleph with a חֲטַף פַּתָּח, like the vocalisation of the aleph of the Name אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת. The Rav's chidush: this whole seif on the precise dikduk of the vowel-points (חֲטַף פַּתָּח / שְׁבָא under the aleph) — which mirrors the hidden vocalisation of the Tetragrammaton — has no explicit parallel in the Mechaber.
סעיף ג וּכְשֶׁיַּזְכִּיר שֵׁם אֱלֹקִים — יְכַוֵּן שֶׁהוּא תַּקִּיף וְאַמִּיץ, אֲשֶׁר לוֹ הַיְכֹלֶת בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים.
וּכְשֶׁיַּזְכִּיר שֵׁם אֱלֹקִים — יְכַוֵּן שֶׁהוּא תַּקִּיף וְאַמִּיץ, אֲשֶׁר לוֹ הַיְכֹלֶת בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים.
And when mentioning the Name אֱלֹקִים, one intends that He is תַּקִּיף וְאַמִּיץ (the Mighty and the Strong), He who holds the capacity (היכולת) in the upper and lower worlds (בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים). The Rav's chidush: where the Mechaber writes « תקיף בעל היכולת ובעל הכחות כולם », the Rav specifies תַּקִּיף וְאַמִּיץ and above all extends the scope — the capacity « בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים » — stressing that אלהים is the Name of mastery over all forces, above as below.
Source: Sefaria — Shulchan Arukh HaRav, Orach Chayim ה׳ (Kehot edition, three seifim / ג׳ סעיפים). English translation: DAAT. The Mechaber treats this siman in a single seif (סעיף אחד); no passage is cited beyond this verifiable text.
היסוד — הוי״ה ואלהים — למעלה מן הזמן
The yesod: הוי״ה and אלהים — above time
The Alter Rebbe's great reading — at the very threshold of Orah Haim — is that the kavana of the berakhot is not a vague intention, but the precise intention of the meaning of the Names: the Name הוי״ה and the Name אלהים. What the Rav establishes here in halakha (seifim א-ג) is exactly the subject he develops, in thought, in the way of Chabad — the שער היחוד והאמונה of the Tanya (at the level of principle; for in-depth study, see with a Chabad Rav).
שם הוי״ה — הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה
The Name הוי״ה — « He was, is and will be »
The principle (seif א). The Name הוי״ה (« Havaya ») is read אַדְנוּת — אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל, Master of all — and is written יוֹ״ד הֵ״א: its written meaning is הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה — « He was, is and will be ». Hence two distinct intentions in a single Name: its reading (אדנות) and its writing (havaya).
The inner dimension (Chabad — at the level of principle). That the Name הוי״ה means « הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה as one » — past, present and future in a single instant — teaches, at the level of principle, that He is above time: time itself is a creation, and He transcends it. This is the dimension of transcendence (סובב כל עלמין), the Name of mercy (מדת הרחמים), that brings existence from absolute nothingness.
Why one reads אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל and not as it is written. One does not pronounce the Name as it is written: one reads it אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל. The Rav therefore requires two kavanot — that of the reading (His sovereignty over all) and that of the writing (His transcendence of time) — without ever pronouncing the Tetragrammaton in full.
שם אלהים — תַּקִּיף בַּעַל הַכֹּחוֹת
The Name אלהים — the Master of all forces
The principle (seif ג). When mentioning the Name אלהים, one intends that He is תַּקִּיף וְאַמִּיץ — the Mighty and the Strong, Master of the capacity and of all forces, בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים (in the upper and lower worlds).
The inner dimension (Chabad — at the level of principle). The Name אלהים is, at the level of principle, the Name of gevura and of tzimtzum: the force that contracts and conceals the infinite light to make the existence of the worlds possible, and that « clothes » the Divine energy in nature. Hence the classic correspondence: אלהים shares the numerical value (גימטריא) of « הַטֶּבַע » (nature) — the immanent, concealed Divine Presence that animates and sustains every being (ממלא כל עלמין).
The yih'ud — הוי״ה and אלהים. All of Chabad thought rests in the unity (יחוד) of these two Names: הוי״ה, the transcendence above time, and אלהים, the immanence that contracts that light into « nature ». To have the kavana of both Names in the berakha is to unite, in the heart of the one who blesses, the G-d who transcends and the G-d who animates every instant of existence.
A pointer to study. The full development of the yih'ud הוי״ה / אלהים — transcendence and immanence, the סובב and the ממלא, אלהים / הטבע — is the proper subject of the שער היחוד והאמונה of the Tanya. This page presents it at the level of attested principle, without citing any chapter or precise wording. For in-depth study of this dimension, study with a Chabad Rav and in the text of the Tanya itself.
כחו של אדמו״ר הזקן בפסק
The force of the Alter Rebbe's psak
A comparison of the Alter Rebbe's way with those of the Mechaber, the Rama (רמ״א) and the Mishna Berura (משנה ברורה) on the key points of Siman ה׳. The Shulchan Arukh of the Alter Rebbe (שולחן ערוך הרב) row is highlighted — it sets out the Rav's own sensibility, as it emerges from his text (§1, three seifim). The Rav unfolds in three seifim what the Mechaber arranges in one.
| Topic | Mechaber | Rama | Mishna Berura | The Alter Rebbe's way (שולחן ערוך הרב) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| פירוש המלות (seif א) | OH 5:1 — « יְכַוֵּן בַּבְּרָכוֹת פֵּרוּשׁ הַמִּלּוֹת ». Intending the meaning of the words. | — (no hagaha on this siman) | MB 5:1 — the kavana of the meaning of the words; the first berakha (and the first verse of the Shema) as a case where kavana is מעכבת (link to siman 60-63, 101). | The Alter Rebbe's way — takes up « צָרִיךְ לְכַוֵּן… פֵּרוּשׁ הַמִּלּוֹת שֶׁמּוֹצִיא מִפִּיו » and makes it the gateway to all avoda she-balev: the berakha is full only when carried by the intention of its meaning. |
| שם הוי״ה — reading (seif א) | OH 5:1 — intention of the reading אַדְנוּת: « שֶׁהוּא אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל ». | — | MB 5:2-3 — explains אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל and the intention of reading the Name. | The Alter Rebbe's way — specifies « פֵּרוּשׁ קְרִיאָתוֹ בְּאָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת — לְשׁוֹן אַדְנוּ״ת »: one reads אדנות (and not as written), with the intention of His sovereignty אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל. |
| שם הוי״ה — writing (seif א) | OH 5:1 — intention of the writing יוֹ״ד הֵ״א: « שֶׁהָיָה וְהֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה ». | — | MB 5:2 — הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה: above time; the meaning of the writing of the Name הוי״ה. | The Alter Rebbe's way — chidush: he adds the case where the writing itself is אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת (« אֵין צָרִיךְ לְכַוֵּן אֶלָּא שֶׁהוּא אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל ») — a distinction absent from the Mechaber. |
| דקדוק הנקודות (seif ב) | — (the Mechaber does not treat the vocalisation of the aleph) | — | MB / Beur Halakha — the pronunciation of the Name and the vowel-point of the aleph (reported in the name of the mekubalim). | The Alter Rebbe's way — its own chidush: a whole seif (ב) on dikduk — חֲטַף פַּתָּח (as in Scripture) vs שְׁבָא (as the vowel-point of the yod of הוי״ה) — mirroring the hidden vocalisation of the Name. |
| שם אלהים (seif ג) | OH 5:1 — « תַּקִּיף בַּעַל הַיְכֹלֶת וּבַעַל הַכֹּחוֹת כֻּלָּם ». | — | MB 5:4 — the Name אלהים: Master of all forces. | The Alter Rebbe's way — chidush: « תַּקִּיף וְאַמִּיץ, אֲשֶׁר לוֹ הַיְכֹלֶת בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים » — he extends the mastery of the forces to the upper and lower worlds, which opens, at the level of principle, onto the yih'ud הוי״ה / אלהים of the Chabad way. |
| The inner dimension (Chabad) | OH 5:1 — the halakhic statement (meaning of the words, of the two Names). | — | MB — kavana of the meaning; pointer to the mekubalim for the depth of the Names. | The Alter Rebbe's way — the very Rav who rules halakha here develops, in thought, the yih'ud הוי״ה (transcendence, above time) / אלהים (immanence, גימטריא הטבע) — the subject of the שער היחוד והאמונה (at the level of principle). |
Table drawn from the full text of the Mechaber (Orah Haim ה׳, Sefaria source), the verifiable nossei kelim (Beit Yossef, Tur, Magen Avraham, Taz, Mishna Berura, Beur Halakha, Pri Megadim, Arukh haShulchan, Kaf haChaim) and Chabad thought at the level of principle (שער היחוד והאמונה). The Alter Rebbe's column rests on the actual text of the Shulchan Arukh HaRav reproduced in §1. Uncertain seif katan attributions are left « al derekh ha-sevara ».
קווי היסוד של שיטת הרב
The defining lines of the Rav's way on this siman
Four orientations that characterise the Alter Rebbe's sensibility on the kavana of the berakhot — beyond the mere application of the rules. Each follows the structure: principle of the siman → the Rav's reading → practical consequence. Each line rests on the Rav's actual text (§1).
קו א — כוונת פירוש המלות
Intending the meaning of the words
Principle of the siman: to intend, in the berakhot, the meaning of the words one utters (seif א).
The Rav's reading: « צָרִיךְ לְכַוֵּן… פֵּרוּשׁ הַמִּלּוֹת שֶׁמּוֹצִיא מִפִּיו » — the kavana of the meaning is the gateway to avoda she-balev; mouth and heart must say one and the same thing.
Practical consequence: one says the berakha while thinking of what the words mean, not by mechanical habit — especially the first berakha (link to siman 60-63, 101).
קו ב — שם הוי״ה — קריאה וכתיבה
The Name הוי״ה — reading and writing
Principle of the siman: when mentioning the Name הוי״ה — intention of its reading (אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל) and of its writing (הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה) (seif א).
The Rav's reading: two kavanot in one Name — sovereignty over all (אדנות) and transcendence of time (havaya). At the level of principle (the Chabad way): הוי״ה is the Name of the סובב, above time.
Practical consequence: at the moment of the Name, one intends « אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל » and « He was, is and will be » — without ever pronouncing the Tetragrammaton in full; one says the Name as one reads it (אדנות).
קו ג — דקדוק הנקודות
The dikduk of the vocalisation
Principle of the siman: the vocalisation of the aleph — חֲטַף פַּתָּח when the writing is אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת; שְׁבָא or חֲטַף פַּתָּח when the writing is יוֹ״ד הֵ״א (seif ב).
The Rav's reading: he devotes a whole seif to precise dikduk — the vowel-point mirroring the hidden vocalisation of הוי״ה (כִּנְקֻדַּת הַיּוֹ״ד מִן שֵׁם הוי״ה). The detail of the pronunciation itself bears meaning.
Practical consequence: one is careful with the pronunciation of the Name — kedusha also passes through the exactness of dikduk; one follows one's community's custom for the vowel-point of the aleph.
קו ד — שם אלהים — היחוד
The Name אלהים — the yih'ud
Principle of the siman: when mentioning the Name אלהים — intention that He is תַּקִּיף, Master of the forces בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים (seif ג).
The Rav's reading: אלהים is, at the level of principle, the Name of gevura / tzimtzum, the immanence that conceals the light into « nature » (אלהים בגימטריא הטבע). With הוי״ה, it is the yih'ud of the סובב and the ממלא — the heart of the Chabad way.
Practical consequence: at the moment of the Name אלהים, one intends His mastery of all forces, above as below; for the depth of the yih'ud, one studies the שער היחוד והאמונה with a Chabad Rav.
הלכה למעשה — מנהג חב״ד
Practical Chabad conduct
Six points of conduct that flow directly from Siman ה׳ in the sensibility of the Alter Rebbe and of Chabad — presented at the level of principle, referring to the Rav for the detail of particular cases.
For the Chabad Chassid — Siman ה׳ (כוונת הברכות)
- ① The kavana of the meaning of the words. In every berakha, keep in mind the meaning of the words being said — especially in the morning berakhot (ברכות השחר), before eating, and in every everyday berakha. Basis: SA HaRav seif א.
- ② The Name הוי״ה — two kavanot. At the moment of the Name: intention of its reading (אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל, Master of all) and of its writing (הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה — above time). One always says the Name as one reads it (אדנות), never the Tetragrammaton in full. Basis: SA HaRav seif א.
- ③ When the writing is אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת. Where the written Name is itself אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת (and not the Tetragrammaton), a single intention suffices: that He is אֲדוֹן הַכֹּל. Basis: SA HaRav seif א.
- ④ The dikduk of the pronunciation. Be careful with the vocalisation of the aleph — חֲטַף פַּתָּח when the writing is אָלֶ״ף דָּלֶ״ת; according to custom (שְׁבָא or חֲטַף פַּתָּח) when the writing is יוֹ״ד הֵ״א. Basis: SA HaRav seif ב; follow one's community's custom.
- ⑤ The Name אלהים — תַּקִּיף בַּעַל הַכֹּחוֹת. At the moment of the Name אלהים: intention that He is the Mighty (תַּקִּיף), Master of all forces in the upper and lower worlds. At the level of principle (Chabad): the yih'ud הוי״ה / אלהים. Basis: SA HaRav seif ג; for the yih'ud, see a Chabad Rav.
- ⑥ If one said a berakha without kavana. The kavana of the meaning is מעכבת for the first berakha (and the first verse of the Shema); elsewhere it is the ideal. To know, in a concrete case, whether to repeat — consult a Rav. Basis: pointer to siman 60-63, 101.
⚠ This section presents Chabad conduct grounded in the Shulchan Arukh of the Alter Rebbe, siman ה׳ (the actual text reproduced in §1). It does not replace a rabbinic ruling for a particular case. For any concrete question — and especially for the dimension of the yih'ud of the Names: consult your Rav, and for Chabad, a Chabad Rav.