Geshem (גשם) is one of the Hebrew words for "rain," applied mostly to the heavy rains which occur in Israel in the fall and winter. This half of the year is called in the Mishnah "yemot ha-geshamin" (days of rains). In the liturgy of the German-Polish ritual "Geshem" stands for the piyyuṭim which in the Mussaf or additional service for the Eighth Festival Day (Shemini Aẓeret) are read and sung as an introduction to the first mention of the "powers of rain," i.e., the words "He causeth the wind to blow and the rain to descend."