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Q:

What does it mean that כל הקורא הלל בכל יום הרי זה מחרף ומגדף – anyone who says Hallel everyday, he’s making fun of Hashem chas veshalom (Shabbos 118b)?

A:

Hallel means to go wild; from the world hollel.  Hollel means a wild man, an excited man, and hallel means to speak about Hashem in wild words, in very excited words.
Now, if every day you are saying excited words, it loses its taste.  It doesn’t mean anything.  Once in a while, on special occasions, you say hallel. You shout in hallel. The old time hallel was a shouting. That’s for special times.
Every day, however, we still say it; only we do it more quietly like we say פסוקי דזמרה. Every day you should say it. Pesukei dezimrah! Every day come a little earlier to the beis haknesses, so you’ll able to say the whole pesukei dezimrah if possible with kavanah. It’s a tremendous benefit for us. But to shout every day, no.  Only on certain occasions.
If he shouts every day, he’s a mecharef u’megadef because after a while it becomes only an empty ceremony.  He doesn’t even mean what he’s doing.  He’s not sincere.  That’s the pshat.
TAPE # E-135 (April 2, 1998)

Rav Avigdor Miller on Saying Hallel Every Day

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Q:

What does it mean that כל הקורא הלל בכל יום הרי זה מחרף ומגדף – anyone who says Hallel everyday, he’s making fun of Hashem chas veshalom (Shabbos 118b)?

A:

Hallel means to go wild; from the world hollel.  Hollel means a wild man, an excited man, and hallel means to speak about Hashem in wild words, in very excited words.
Now, if every day you are saying excited words, it loses its taste.  It doesn’t mean anything.  Once in a while, on special occasions, you say hallel. You shout in hallel. The old time hallel was a shouting. That’s for special times.
Every day, however, we still say it; only we do it more quietly like we say פסוקי דזמרה. Every day you should say it. Pesukei dezimrah! Every day come a little earlier to the beis haknesses, so you’ll able to say the whole pesukei dezimrah if possible with kavanah. It’s a tremendous benefit for us. But to shout every day, no.  Only on certain occasions.
If he shouts every day, he’s a mecharef u’megadef because after a while it becomes only an empty ceremony.  He doesn’t even mean what he’s doing.  He’s not sincere.  That’s the pshat.
TAPE # E-135 (April 2, 1998)

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