I stood there alone on a windy autumn day reciting the ancient words of the Kaddish for two people I had never met, but felt I knew. It was a wonderful, uplifting moment for me. I felt I did a great mitzvah to their memory. I plan to go back and visit again next year, but this time with my own daughter to introduce her to her ancestors, so she can leave a stone too.
One of the most common Jewish cemetery customs is to leave a small stone at the grave of a loved one after saying Kaddish or visiting.
Each pebble represented one of the sheep. Whenever the shepherd lost count of the number of sheep in his flock, he simply counted the number of pebbles in his sling to ensure his count was accurate. Others believe stones are meant to keep the soul in the grave. Christie Gross has been writing since Sign In Below. Forgot password? Sign In Not Registered? Create an Account Approved Provider? Sign In Here. Learn Plan Send.
Search Articles, Baskets, Shivas. Placing a Stone. Founder and Teacher at Or Hahechal Center for Jewish Spirituality The story I heard is that in ancient times it was not common to mark graves with any kind of structure.
Rabbi Goldie Milgram. Facilitator, author, meaningful Jewish learning at Reclaiming Judaism. The stones are typically found somewhere in the cemetery by those mourning. Stones being placed on a grave lets the family know that someone cared enough to visit the grave. It communicates that the loved one is still thought about and missed. The stones on a grave is a physical way to honor the deceased.
Stones last longer physically than flowers. They are everlasting and permanent like the memory of the deceased. It is considered a mitzvah is to mark a grave with a stone.
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