Tishrei 9: The Melting Heart

There are many things to say about Yom Kippur, which begins tonight at sundown.   Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.  We remove ourselves from the distractions of the material world and spend one whole day in prayer, traveling inward toward our purest spiritual selves and our true home in Gd.

But I still have some Rosh haShanah liturgy on my mind as I approach the biggest Day of Awe.  The Hebrew text above comes from one of the prayers we recite at Tashlikh, the ritual of symbolically casting away our sins of the past year into a body of water, which we performed nine days ago on Rosh haShanah. Although I’ve read them many times at Tashlikh in the past, these words struck me particularly deeply this year.   As I stood on the shore of Walden Pond on the first of Tishrei and contemplated the chasm between the person I’ve been and the person I want to be, this simple cry to Gd jumped off the Hebrew page at me.  In English:

Our heart melts within us and becomes like water.
What can we answer?  What can we say?

Tishrei 7: The Purist You

What would you look like if you pressed all the way down on your gas pedal?

The  following is from Rabbi Simon Jacobson, about preparing for Yom Kippur.  These questions are so important for all of us to ask ourselves.

What would you look like if you were at your best?

For some reason many of us know all too well what we look like when we are at our worst (that may be a bit too harsh, so let us say, when we are not at our best). But we are far less cognizant of our purest self.  Is it because society beats us up, or because misery loves company?  Whatever the reason, we are rarely dared to discover our fullest potential, and challenged to be at our best (except perhaps at work, but that’s for making money).  That’s why it’s refreshing — one can even say revolutionary — to know that once a year you are asked to do just that: to revisit (or discover for the first time) the real you — as you are at your purest, at your core.  When was the last time you tried that?  Do you have the courage to face your true self?

What would you look like if you pressed all the way down on your gas pedal?

— Rabbi Simon Jacobson

Hebrew notes from your devoted Hebrew teacher (yours truly):

Vocabulary:

Yom = day
Kippur = atonement

Yom Kippur = Day of Atonement

Pronunciation:

Yom: “yome”

Kippur: “keePOOR”

Tishrei 4: Returning to Pure Essence

From now until Yom Kippur, we are working on t’shuvah, a Hebrew word that literally means “return.”   (Sometimes translated as “atonement” or “repentance,” neither of which captures the real meaning.) (Sometimes it’s transliterated as “teshuvah.”) We make an effort to return to our soul, which is our Divine essence.  It’s the quintessential self that we really are.

There is a part of us that is always healthy and good and pure — nothing can harm it.  Not any damage that may have been done to us in life, not even damage we did to ourselves.  We can always return to our true soul.  It is pure, has always been pure, is always intact, no matter what happens.

Personally, I find this one of the most hopeful, optimistic inspirations of the 60-Day spiritual journey.  I love being reminded that regardless of negative events in my life, this pure, unharmed part of me is always there.  I feel more secure  when I remember that my Divine essence cannot be hurt. What wonderful news!

Recognizing one’s true essence is not always obvious.  This is why doing t’shuvah requires effort.

Do you know your true, essential self?

The Chicken and the Eggs: Rosh haShanah Down on the Farm

High-pressure afternoon yesterday: Rosh haShanah would begin in just a few hours, my round, holiday hallot — a variation I’d never tried making before — were rising in the oven.  I’d used up the last of my eggs, needed just one more, for glazing the loaves before baking.  So I zipped out to Codman Farm (c. 1740), which raises organic chickens and sells eggs at the Farm Store.

Image by Undeleterious via Flickr

Luckily there were two dozen eggs remaining in the store’s fridge; I grabbed one dozen.  As I dropped my $4 into the honor-system pay box, I heard something surprising for that context: low, breathy notes of a flute, wafting from the barn.  I cocked an ear as the notes formed a melody, beautiful and mournful and … familiar.  Wait a second — that’s Avinu Malkeinu!

I went to discover the source, and next thing I knew I was celebrating the eve of Rosh haShanah in a real barn!   The informal, moving service was delightful itself, led by warm, thoughtful people beneath the hayloft; I might have felt moved to blog about my first time davvening in a barn anyway.

Image via Wikipedia

But when, midway through the service, a red chicken wandered calmly through the congregation, heading toward the makeshift bimah as if she planned to cluck some Hebrew liturgy or perhaps even blow the shofar, I just knew I had to share.

L’shanah tovah u-m’tukah!

(“May you have a good and sweet New Year“)

Related Articles

• The High Cost of Eggs (kristof.blogs.nytimes.com)

Elul 29: Last day of 5770

Today we are halfway through our 60-day spiritual journey.  For the past 30 days we’ve been using the power of the month of Elul to consider what we accomplished in the past year, successes and mistakes, and what we’ve learned as a result.  We’ve also taken a close look at our Divine souls and how we might honor and cherish them in the coming year.

Most poignantly, perhaps, we’ve reviewed the past year through the lens of relationship — between ourselves and Gd, between ourselves and others, and between ourselves and our Selves.  What was good?  What hurt?  How shall we address the broken parts and make them whole again?  We try to emulate Gd by bringing compassion to all our relationships, with unconditional love.

Tonight, as the sun goes down before Rosh haShanah, the universe goes into a comatose state.  A slumber descends on all existence, everything comes to a standstill in cosmic silence, in apprehension of its contract being renewed.

Regardless of how you took advantage of the first 30 days of the journey, you still have 30 more days to experience spiritual transformation, thanks to the energy of the month of Tishrei, which starts with Rosh haShanah and contains all the “high holidays,” including the solemn and cleansing day of Yom Kippur and the week-long festival of joy that is Sukkot.

If you haven’t already done so, please consider subscribing to Rabbi Simon Jacobson‘s free daily emails about the spiritual journey.  Click here.

May you be inscribed in the Book of Life for a year of health, happiness, and learning.

— Natasha Nataniela Shabat