Chapter 137

 137:5   If I forget you, O Yerushalayim

Psalm 137 was written by the rivers of Babylon, where the exiled Jews wailed and lamented the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash. They wondered how they would continue to endure on foreign soil. How could they continue to sing the songs of Hashem, which were supposed to be sung in the Temple, in the exile? Their answer was an oath to never forget Yerushalayim. This psalm makes an oblique reference to Sefer Devarim 8:19, “If you do forget Hashem your God and follow other gods to serve them or bow down to them, I warn you this day that you shall certainly perish.” Israel’s exile came when they forgot God in their land. In Babylon, they promised themselves never to repeat that mistake, and never to forget Yerushalayim. Today, this psalm is recited at Jewish weddings just before the groom breaks a glass, ensuring that Jerusalem is always at the forefront of our minds and reminding us that no joyous occasion is complete until Yerushalayim is restored to its former glory.

 137:6 if I do not keep Yerushalayim in memory even at my happiest hour.

Rabbi Aryeh Levin (1885-1969)

Rabbi Aryeh Levin (1885 – 1969) was considered one of the most righteous and pious Jews of the 20th century. He was known as the “Tzadik (saint) of Yerushalayim” for his devotion to the needy and downtrodden of the Holy City. His passion for seeing only the goodness of people and his zeal for Jerusalem were part of his very fiber. As is the Jewish custom, Rabbi Levin would place ashes on the forehead of a bridegroom under the wedding canopy in order to keep the destruction of Yerushalayim at the forefront of everyone’s mind “even at my happiest hour”. Fittingly, he had the privilege of personally experiencing the fulfillment of Rabbinic adage: “All who mourn Jerusalem, merit to witness its rebuilding (Taanit 30b).” After the liberation of Jerusalem in 1967, the “Tzadik of Yerushalayim” would visit the Western Wall weekly, until his death two years later.