Mashiv HaRuach

Mashiv HaRuach (משיב הרוח, literally 'He who makes the wind blow') is a Hebrew literary journal, publishing house, and association dedicated to Jewish-Israeli poetry. Founded in 1994 by a group of young religious poets, some from West Bank settlements, it was created to provide a high-quality platform for Hebrew poetry that engages with Jewish memory, heritage, and experience while speaking from contemporary Israeli life. The journal's first issue appeared during the High Holidays of 1994 (Tishrei 5755) and sparked a wave of creativity in religious-Zionist poetry. The journal publishes three to four issues per year, featuring contemporary Hebrew poetry accompanied by original art. It has expanded its activities to include an annual poetry festival ('Yamei Ahava LeShira' – Days of Love for Poetry), poetry workshops ('Mizmor' and 'Siftei Tiftach'), and special anthologies. In 2013, it received the Ministry of Culture's Prize for Creativity in Zionism in the literature category. In 2022, the association co-founded the Zelda Prize with the Jerusalem Municipality and Yotzrim Zikaron. Mashiv HaRuach operates as a non-profit association and is a member of the Jewish Renewal umbrella organization 'Panim'. Its editorial team has included poets such as Eliaz Cohen, Yoram Nissinovitz, and Shmulik Klein. The journal is known for its pluralistic approach, bringing together religious and secular voices, and for its engagement with the Israeli settlement enterprise and religious-Zionist culture.

Mashiv HaRuach was founded in the summer of 1994 (Hebrew year 5754) by poets Shmulik Klein and Nachum Pachnik, who brought in Yoram Nissinovitz and Aya Sumech for the third issue. Eliaz Cohen and Naama Shaked joined later. The group was mentored by older poets Tania Hadar and Yosef Ozer. The first issue appeared during the High Holidays of 1994 (Tishrei 5755) and caused a significant stir in the religious sector and the Israeli creative scene. The journal's early issues were published at irregular intervals, but after a few years it began to appear regularly. It broke out of the religious-Zionist sector and gained public recognition. As the journal established itself, its members initiated special projects, notably the 'Mizmor' poetry workshop and the 'Yamei Ahava LeShira' (Days of Love for Poetry) festival, which has been held annually since 1996, primarily at the Yad Ben-Zvi complex in Jerusalem. Over the years, the journal published several special issues, some of which appeared as books: the anthology 'Mashiv HaRuach 5755-5765' (Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 2005), the anthology 'Ad Petach HaGan: Nachum Gutman and Hebrew Poets Following the Bible' (Even Hoshen, 2006), and the anthology 'Likutei Shirot' (Yedioth Ahronoth, 2011), the first collection of modern poetry inspired by Rabbi Nachman of Breslov. In 2005, following its issue on the Gaza disengagement, the journal was hailed as 'the most pluralistic journal operating in Israel' for including diverse and contradictory voices in the same issue. In 2013, it won the Ministry of Culture's Prize for Creativity in Zionism in the literature category, described as 'an impressive collective enterprise of poets and artists, new and veteran, with an emphasis on a religious stance that receives aesthetic and poetic touch with special sensitivity to the Hebrew language in its layers.' In July 2022, the Mashiv HaRuach association, together with the Jerusalem Municipality and the Yotzrim Zikaron association, founded the 'Zelda Prize' in memory of the poet Zelda. The prize calls for nominations from veteran and young creators, with guidelines emphasizing poetic excellence, originality, and components related to Zelda's poetry that create living, experiential, deeply Jewish yet universal and human memory. Among the winners are Hadasa Harchavi, Israel Dadon, and Dalia Hertz. The journal is a member of the Jewish Renewal umbrella organization 'Panim'. It continues to publish three to four issues per year, with a regular editorial team including Eliaz Cohen, Yoram Nissinovitz, and Shmulik Klein, along with other participating poets. Key poets associated with the journal include Naama Shaked, Sivan Har-Shefi, Shimon Fogel, Elchanan Nir, Omri Sharet, Amichai Hasson, Bichal Serlui, Nachum Pachnik, Rabbi Menachem Froman, and Yosef Ozer.

• 2022

  Co-founded the Zelda Prize with Jerusalem Municipality and Yotzrim Zikaron

• 2013

  Won Ministry of Culture's Prize for Creativity in Zionism (literature)

• 2011

  Anthology 'Likutei Shirot' published by Yedioth Ahronoth

• 2006

  Anthology 'Ad Petach HaGan' published by Even Hoshen

• 2005

  Anthology 'Mashiv HaRuach 5755-5765' published by Hakibbutz Hameuchad

• 2005

  Hailed as 'most pluralistic journal in Israel' after disengagement issue

• 1996

  First 'Yamei Ahava LeShira' poetry festival held

• 1994

  First issue published during High Holidays (Tishrei 5755)

A leading platform for Jewish-Israeli poetry, bridging religious and secular worlds, and fostering new voices in Hebrew literature.

• Mashiv HaRuach journal

  Poetry journal published 3-4 times per year

• Yamei Ahava LeShira festival

  Annual poetry festival held since 1996

• Mizmor poetry workshop

  Annual poetry writing workshop in Jerusalem

• Siftei Tiftach workshop

  Workshop for prayer poetry held in Elul

• Zelda Prize

  Literary prize founded in 2022

1. 1Official websitemashiv.org.il
2. 2About pagemashiv.org.il
3. 3Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Hebrew Wikipediahe.wikipedia.org