Chad Gadya | חַד גַּדְיָא

Mashadi Melody, sung by Galeet Dardashti

Anonymous · Europe · 15th–16th Century CE

Cumulative song sung at the end of the Seder. Each verse extends the chain until the Holy One, Blessed Be, defeats the Angel of Death itself.

חַד גַּדְיָא, חַד גַּדְיָא / דְּזַבִּין אַבָּא בִּתְרֵי זוּזֵי
Chad gadya, chad gadya / d’zabin abba bitrei zuzei
One little goat / that my father bought for two zuzim

V’ata shunra v’achla l’gadya...
Then came a cat and ate the goat

V’ata chalba v’nashach l’shunra d’achla l’gadya...
Then came a dog and bit the cat

V’ata chutra v’hikah l’chalba...
Then came a stick and beat the dog

V’ata nura v’saraf l’chutra...
Then came fire and burned the stick

V’ata maya v’chavah l’nura...
Then came water and quenched the fire

V’ata tora v’shata l’maya...
Then came an ox and drank the water

V’ata hashochet v’shachat l’tora...
Then came the slaughterer and killed the ox

V’ata mal’ach hamAvet v’shachat l’shochet...
Then came the Angel of Death and slew the slaughterer

וְאָתָא הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְשָׁחַט לְמַלְאַךְ הַמָּוֶת
V’ata HaKadosh Baruch Hu v’shachat l’mal’ach hamAvet...
Then came the Holy One, Blessed Be, and struck down the Angel of Death itself