Hannah
From Association of Independent Readers and Rootworkers
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Hannah is a Jewish wife, mother, and prophetess whose story is told in the First Book of Samuel in the Bible. Hannah and her co-wife Peninah were married to a well-respected, moral man named Elkanah, of the family of Zuph, who lived in Ramathaim-Zophim in the hilly region of Ephraim. Every year the family made a pilgrimage to the temple in Shiloh, where they offered sacrifices of thanksgiving and gratitude. Hophni, Phinehas, and their father Eli were priests there. Peninah had a great deal to be thankful for, including the many children she had born to Elkanah, but Hannah, although she was Elkanah's favoured wife, was bitter in her heart because she was unable to conceive. For nearly two decades she petitioned God to become a mother. Hannah was mocked by Peninah, who had many children and she hoped that Peninah's fertility might stir jealousy in her own womb, but still she remained childless. Hannah even pretended to commit adultery in the belief that her innocence of the charge would help her become fertile.
On one of the family's yearly pilgrimages to Shiloh, the priest Eli was sitting at the entrance of the temple courtyard. He saw the brokenhearted Hannah walk into the temple and, in a tearful whisper make her prayer to God. Hannah promised that, if she were to conceive a boy-child, she would dedicate her son to become a nazarite, a Jewish ascetic who did not cut his hair or consume alcohol. This was a common vow made by childless women at the time -- Manoah's infertile wife did he same, and her son Samson was raised as a nazarite, as described in the Book of Judges. In later years, when Judaism became more patriarchal, it was declared in the non-Biblical Mishnah Nazir 4:6 that "A man can vow that his minor son should be a nazarite, but a woman cannot vow that her son should be a nazarite." Despite that proscription, childless women still consider that the dedication of a male child to the service of God is an effective path to conception.
Because of Hannah's emotional but quiet plea, Eli wrongly concluded that she was drunk. Hannah explained to him how bitter she was over her situation, and told him, "I have poured out my soul before God." Upon hearing this, Eli immediately retracted his accusation and blessed her. Her desire was granted and she conceived a boy, whom she named Samuel, a nazarite, and a prophet in his own right. She kept her vow, and when Samuel was weaned, she brought him to the temple of Shiloh to serve as a priest under Eli, and provided offerings to the temple for his upkeep. She then spoke her famous prayer of thanksgiving, which is found in 1 Samuel 2:1-10 ("My heart rejoiceth in the Lord ..."). Every year thereafter, when the family made their pilgrimage to the temple, Hannah brought a new coat for Samuel, which she had made with her own hands. For her faithfulness and earnest prayers, she was rewarded with three more sons and two daughters. Her final prophecy, that God will send thunder from heaven against his adversaries and "judge the ends of the earth," has yet to be realized.
Like Sarah before her, Hannah is considered to be an effective intercessor for issues of infertility. Throughout her long years of failed attempts at conception she led a spiritual revolution that taught Israelites to use patient prayer and faith in God over demands for immediate miracles. Hannah is symbolically represented by the planet Venus, the zodiacal signs of Taurus and Libra, the fertile Fig fruit, the metal copper, and the magical stone malachite. The gematria number of her name is 63, her position on the the Kabbalistic Tree of Life is Netzach, and her Archangel is Hanael. The rituals and prayers associated with her are prayers for conception, offerings to the temple, the thrice daily rabbinic Amidah Prayer, the Sabbath blessings on the children, and the yearly festival of Tu B’Shevat, the New Year for the Trees.
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- Author:Dr. Jeremy Weiss
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