Sandaq

The sandaq or sandak (Hebrew: סנדק , “companion of child”) is the person who holds, at the time of the Jewish ceremony of the Circoncision ( Brit milah ), the male child on his thighs or its knees and holds up it while the circoncisor (Mohel) achieves the brith milah. It is about an honorary position.

The term would be derived from the Greek word suntekos , which means “companion of the child” and would have given in addition the French word “Syndic”.

The Rav Moshe Isserles ( Rema ) brings back the practice to hold the child on the knees ( Yoreh Dea 265:11). The Biour HaGra in Yore Dea 265: 44 cite le Midrash Shohar tov which explain why this habit is fondéee on Psaumes 35:10 “All my members will say: who is like You? ” ] ] . The midrash underlines how much each part of the body is used for the service of God and explains why to place the child on his thighs during the brit takes part of this service. Rema recalls that according to the tradition, a father should not twice honor a person by choosing it as sandaq for his child because a sandaq is as a priest which offers the incense ( ketoret ) to the Temple of Jerusalem. However the rule concerning this ceremony is that a cohen can achieve it only once in its life, God thanking that which achieves the ketoret by prosperity. It is thus advisable to make it possible a great number of cohanim to achieve the offering so that they can be thanked for the kind. In a similar way, it is advisable to make it possible the greatest number of people to be sandaq .

The Gaon de Vilna (YD 265:45) is circumspect vis-a-vis this interpretation. Firstly, according to this logic, a person should be used only once as sandaq in her life and not only once by phratry as it is indicated. Secondly, it indicates that one considering anybody to become prosperous forever by the simple fact of having been sandaq . Nevertheless, the Aroukh Hachoulkhan (Y.D. 265:34) indicates that one must respect the habit as mentioned by the Rema . It is specified there however that the habit in much of communities is that the Rabbin serf of sandaq for all the male children, this being justified by the comparison with the Cohen gadol (the large priest) which was in right to offer a Korban (sacrifice) each time it wished it. Thus the Chazon Ish would have been used as sandaq for an incalculable number children.

The honor is traditionally given has only one man, Jew: a patriarch of the family (grandfather, great-grandfather), a rabbi or another man known for his virtue and its observance of the Mitzvot . At certain more detached Jews of the tradition, it is allowed that the sandaq can be a woman or even a not-Jew. In the majority of the ceremonies, there is only a sandaq , but it is allowed that there are two of them; it is unusual to exceed this number.

During the brit milah , a chair is sometimes placed beside the seat of the sandaq . It is reserved to the Élie prophet and thus remains unoccupied during the ceremony; this practice rises owing to the fact that the prophet protects the child from the danger.

According to certain sources, the sandaq is the representative of the Élie prophet.

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