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Kislev: Close Your Eyes Section 1: Rest Your Weary Head Sefer Yetzirah (The Book of Formation) is a work of meditative proto-Kabbalah with strong magical elements. It is the earliest extant work of Jewish mysticism, and it is traditionally attributed to Abraham (18th Century BCE) and/or Rabbi Akiva (2nd Century CE). In it, each month is associated with a Hebrew letter, a constellation, a part of the human body and a human emotion, sense, or faculty. What does this passage suggest we should be paying attention to this month, and how does this relate to what is happening in nature, and your own inner experience of this time of year? ספר היצירה ה:ט (Sefer Yetzirah 5:9 (trans. adapted from R' Aryeh Kaplan המליך אות ס' בשינה He made the letter Samech king over sleep וקשר לו כתר And He bound a crown to it וצרפן זה בזה And He combined one with another וצר בהם And with them He formed קשת בעולם Sagittarius in the Universe וכסלו בשנה Kislev in the Year וקבה בנפש And the stomach in the Soul זכר ונקבה Male and female R' Tzadok haKohen Rabinowitz of Lublin (1823 – 1900), usually referred to as Rav Tzadok, was a major figure in Polish Chasidut. He started life in a prominent Lithuanian rabbinic family who were opposed to Chasidut, but was won over to Chasidut by R' Mordechai Yosef Leiner of Izhbitz, known as the Mei HaShiloach. His classes on Shabbat and festivals were transcribed by his students and compiled in Pri Tzadik (The Fruit of the Righteous) after his death. How does the below teaching connect us to our season and our ongoing work of Teshuvah (returning to our best selves)? פרי צדיק לראש חודש כסלו ג:א Pri Tzadik on Rosh Chodesh Kislev 3:1 כל חודש יש לו עסק בפ"ע Every month has its own work, and was created ונברא באות מיוחד מי"ב פשוטות with a particular letter from the twelve simple כמ"ש בסי"צ המליך אות ס׳ בשינה ones, as is written in Sefer Yetzirah: “Samech כסלו בשנה וקיבה בנפש וכולי over sleep...Kislev in the Year and the stomach in והוא עפמ"ש בגמרא the Soul etc.” As the Talmud teaches, “the קיבה ישנה .(stomach brings sleep” (Brachot 61b ואות ס׳ מורה The letter Samech refers to, “The Eternal supports סומך ה׳ לכל הנופלים .(all the fallen ones” (Psalm 145:14 … … וכן אות ס׳ ראשונה הוא הסובב ,And the first Samech [in the Torah] is in the word והיינו surrounding” (Gen. 2:11), referring to G!d“ שהשי"ת סובב ואור מקיף surrounding [everything] and the Transcendent וע"י כן סומך לכל הנופלים Light, through which G!d “supports all the fallen.” וכן תמונת אות ס׳ הוא היקף .And the image of the letter Samech is a circle Page 1 / My Jewish Learning / R' Daniel Raphael Silverstein / [email protected] / www.appliedjewishspirituality.org … … וזה עסק חודש זה להיות מבטח עז בהשי"ת And this is the work of this month: To stubbornly שישמרהו ויסייעהו trust that the blessed G!d will guard and help you אף אם קלקל ח"ו .even if you have acted destructively, G!d forbid יוכל לתקן הכל ע"י תשובה .You can fix everything through Teshuvah This month's faculty of sleep occupies a unique and quite problematic place in our lives. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2015 that 35% of US adults suffer from sleep deprivation, which causes a wide array of potentially serious physiological and psychological ailments. What does this ancient midrash have to say about our need for sleep? בראשית רבה ח:י Genesis Rabbah 8:10 בשעה שברא הקב"ה את אדם הראשון When the blessed Holy One created the first טעו בו מלאכי השרת human, the ministering angels erred because of ובקשו לומר לפניו קדוש ”!him, and sought to say before him, “Holy מה עשה הקדוש ב"ה ?Isaiah 6:3). What did the blessed Holy One do) הפיל עליו תרדמה He caused a deep sleep to fall upon him, then וידעו הכל שהוא אדם .everyone knew that he was human Many of our traditional sources emphasize the merits of sleeping as little as possible, to (supposedly) maximize the positive activities we can engage in. What assumptions about sleep are evident here? בראשית רבה ט:ו Genesis Rabbah 9:6 הנה טוב מאד .(And behold, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31“ והנה טובה שינה This means: “Behold, sleep is good!” But is sleep וכי שינה טובה מאד אתמהא actually very good?! After all, have we not been לא כן תנינן taught: “When the wicked drink wine and sleep, it יין ושינה לרשעים נאה להם ונאה לעולם ?”is good for them and good for the world אלא מתוך שאדם ישן קימעא However, because a person sleeps a little, they are הוא עומד ויגע בתורה הרבה .able to get up and toil greatly in Torah study Apart from as a prerequisite for learning Torah or dong other good deeds, how else might sleep be good, in the view of our early sages? בראשית רבה יז:ה Genesis Rabbah 17:5 ויפל יקוק אלקים תרדמה And the Eternal G!d caused a deep sleep to fall“ רבי יהושע דסכנין upon the human]...” (Gen. 2:21). R' Yehoshua of] בשם רבי לוי אמר Sichnin said in the name of R' Levi: the beginning תחלת מפלה שינה .of a person's downfall is sleep דמך ליה ולא לעי באורייתא When asleep, they do not engage in Torah or ולא עביד עבידתא .work רב אמר שלוש תרדמות הן Rav said: there are three types of deep sleep: the תרדמת שינה ותרדמת נבואה ;deep sleep of sleep; the deep sleep of prophecy ותרדמת מרמיטה .and the deep sleep of a trance … ... Page 2 / My Jewish Learning / R' Daniel Raphael Silverstein / [email protected] / www.appliedjewishspirituality.org רבנן אמרי The Rabbis said: [there is a fourth type] even the אף תרדמה של שטות .deep sleep of foolishness … ... רבי חנינא בר יצחק אמר שלושה נובלות הן R' Chanina bar Yitzchak said: there are three נובלת מיתה – שינה withered reflections: A withered reflection of נובלת נבואה – חלום death is sleep; a withered reflection of prophecy is נובלת העולם הבא – שבת dreaming; a withered reflection of the world to רבי אבין מוסיף עוד תרתין come is Shabbat. R' Avin added two more: a נובלת אורה של מעלה - גלגל חמה withered reflection of the heavenly light is the נובלת חכמה של מעלה - תורה sun; a withered reflection of heavenly wisdom is Torah. What attitudes towards sleep are revealed in this talmudic bedtime prayer? תלמוד בבלי – ברכות ס:ב Babylonian Talmud, Brachot 60b הנכנס לישן על מטתו אומר One who enters to sleep on their bed recites the משמע ישראל עד והיה אם שמוע .first paragraph of the Shema ואומר ברוך המפיל חבלי שינה על עיני Then they recite: Blessed [are You...] Who makes ותנומה על עפעפי the bonds of sleep fall upon my eyes and slumber ומאיר לאישון בת עין upon my eyelids, and illuminates the pupil of the eye. יהי רצון מלפניך ה׳ אלקי May it be Your will, O Eternal my G!d, that You שתשכיבני לשלום ותן חלקי בתורתך make me lie down in peace and give me my ותרגילני לידי מצוה portion in Your Torah, accustom me to mitzvot ואל תרגילני לידי עבירה and do not accustom me to transgression, lead me ואל תביאני לידי חטא ולא לידי עון not into error, nor into iniquity, nor into ולא לידי נסיון ולא לידי בזיון .temptation nor into disgrace וישלוט בי יצר טוב May the good inclination have dominion over me ואל ישלוט בי יצר הרע and may the evil inclination not have dominion ותצילני מפגע רע ומחלאים רעים over me. Save me from an evil mishap and evil ואל יבהלוני חלומות רעים diseases. Let neither bad dreams nor troubling הרהורים רעים ותהא מטתי שלמה לפניך thoughts disturb me. May my bed be flawless והאר עיני פן אישן המות before You. Enlighten my eyes in the morning lest I sleep [the sleep of] death. ברוך אתה השם Blessed are You, O Eternal, Who gives light to המאיר לעולם כולו בכבודו .the whole world in His glory Page 3 / My Jewish Learning / R' Daniel Raphael Silverstein / [email protected] / www.appliedjewishspirituality.org Section 2: Isn't Life a Dream? In the traditional annual Torah-reading cycle, this powerful story is always recited in Kislev. What does this text have to say about sleep and dreams, and what questions does it raise? בראשית כח:י-יח Genesis 28:10-18 וַיֵצֵ֥א יַעֲק֖ב מִבְאֵ֣ר שָ֑בַע וַיֵ֖לְֶ חָרֽנָה And Jacob left Be'er Sheva, and went toward וַיִפְגַ֨ע בַמָק֜ום וַיָ֤לֶן שָם֙ Charan. And he encountered the place, and he כִי־בָ֣א הַשֶ֔מֶש .slept there, because the sun set וַיִקַח֙ מֵאַבְנֵ֣י הַמָק֔ום וַיָ֖שֶם מְרֽאֲשֹתָ֑יו He took some of the stones of the place, he put וַיִשְכַ֖ב בַמָק֥ום הַהֽוא .them under his head and lay down in that place וַֽיַחֲל֗ם וְהִנֵ֤ה סֻלָם֙ מֻצָ֣ב אַ֔רצָה He dreamt a ladder was set on the ground and its וְראש֖ו מַגִ֣יעַ הַשָמָ֑יְמָה top reached to the sky, and angels of G!d were וְהִנֵה֙ מַלְאֲכֵ֣י אֱלקים עֹלִ֥ים וְיֹרד֖ים בֽו .going up and down on it וְהִנֵ֨ה יְקוָ֜ק נִצָ֣ב עָלָיו֮ וַיֹאמַר֒ And the Eternal was standing over him and He אֲנִ֣י יְקוָ֗ק אֱלקי֙ אַבְרהָ֣ם אָבִ֔יָ וֵאלקי יִצְחָ֑ק said, “I am the Eternal, the G!d of your father הָאָ֗רץ אֲשֶ֤ר אַתָה֙ שֹכֵ֣ב עָלֶ֔יהָ Abraham and the G!d of Isaac: the ground on לְָ֥ אֶתְנֶ֖נָה ולְזַרעֶָֽ which you are lying I will give to you and to your offspring. וְהָיָ֤ה זַרעֲָ֙ כַעֲפַ֣ר הָאָ֔רץ ;Your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth ופָרצְתָ֛ יָ֥מָה וָק֖דמָה you shall spread out to the west and to the east, to וְצָפֹ֣נָה וָנֶ֑גְבָה the north and to the south.
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    Hasidic Judaism - Wikipedia, the freevisited encyclopedi ona 1/6/2015 Page 1 of 19 Hasidic Judaism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Sephardic pronunciation: [ħasiˈdut]; Ashkenazic , תודיסח :Hasidic Judaism (from the Hebrew pronunciation: [χaˈsidus]), meaning "piety" (or "loving-kindness"), is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality through the popularization and internalization of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspect of the faith. It was founded in 18th-century Eastern Europe by Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov as a reaction against overly legalistic Judaism. His example began the characteristic veneration of leadership in Hasidism as embodiments and intercessors of Divinity for the followers. [1] Contrary to this, Hasidic teachings cherished the sincerity and concealed holiness of the unlettered common folk, and their equality with the scholarly elite. The emphasis on the Immanent Divine presence in everything gave new value to prayer and deeds of kindness, alongside rabbinical supremacy of study, and replaced historical mystical (kabbalistic) and ethical (musar) asceticism and admonishment with Simcha, encouragement, and daily fervor.[2] Hasidism comprises part of contemporary Haredi Judaism, alongside the previous Talmudic Lithuanian-Yeshiva approach and the Sephardi and Mizrahi traditions. Its charismatic mysticism has inspired non-Orthodox Neo-Hasidic thinkers and influenced wider modern Jewish denominations, while its scholarly thought has interested contemporary academic study. Each Hasidic Jews praying in the Hasidic dynasty follows its own principles; thus, Hasidic Judaism is not one movement but a synagogue on Yom Kippur, by collection of separate groups with some commonality. There are approximately 30 larger Hasidic Maurycy Gottlieb groups, and several hundred smaller groups. Though there is no one version of Hasidism, individual Hasidic groups often share with each other underlying philosophy, worship practices, dress (borrowed from local cultures), and songs (borrowed from local cultures).
  • A Different Kind of School. Kabbalah Experience

    A Different Kind of School. Kabbalah Experience

    A different kind of school. Course Catalog 2013/2014 Kabbalah Experience Engage your spirit. Contents Welcome to 1 Year One Core Curriculum 2 Year Two Core Curriculum Kabbalah 3 Year Three Core Curriculum Experience 4 Year Long Text Study Engage your spirit. 5 Year Long Experiential Learning 6 Electives and Mini Courses It’s about you transforming. While Jewish in its 7 Faculty origin and language, the Kabbalah Experience curriculum 8 Fall 2013 Registration Form has a universal spiritual message. Our classes are specifi- cally designed for people seeking a deeper understanding Mission Statement about life’s purpose and meaning. Kabbalah Experience is an open and Kabbalah Experience classes consist of small groups inclusive learning community committed in which questions and dialogue facilitate learning the to encouraging individual spiritual growth principles of Kabbalah and help students apply them to through the study and application of personal growth. This adult-centered method of learning Kabbalah’s insights into the parallels appeals to people who learn best when their own thinking between physical and spiritual reality. process is encouraged and engaged. The Kabbalah Experience curriculum draws upon Officers selections from the major texts of the Kabbalah, including the Zohar and Sefer Yetzirah, the teachings of Isaac Luria, Ilana Erez, President the Ba’al Shem Tov and more contemporary Kabbalah Elliott Husney, Past President teachers. The curriculum also draws from the sciences Dr. Martin Dubin, Vice President — quantum physics and biology, as well as the spiritual Malena Fernandez, Treasurer wisdom of other cultures and insights from various schools Ken Diamond, Secretary of psychology.
  • צב | עב January Tevet | Sh’Vat Capricorn Saturn | Aquarius Saturn

    צב | עב January Tevet | Sh’Vat Capricorn Saturn | Aquarius Saturn

    צב | עב January Tevet | Sh’vat Capricorn Saturn | Aquarius Saturn Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 1 | 17th of Tevet* 2 | 18th of Tevet* New Year’s Day Parashat Vayechi Abraham Moshe Hillel Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov Rabbi Salman Mutzfi Rabbi Huna bar Mar Zutra & Rabbi Rabbi Yaakov Krantz Mesharshya bar Pakod Rabbi Moshe Kalfon Ha-Cohen of Jerba 3 | 19th of Tevet * 4* | 20th of Tevet 5 | 21st of Tevet * 6 | 22nd of Tevet* 7 | 23rd of Tevet* 8 | 24th of Tevet* 9 | 25th of Tevet* Parashat Shemot Rabbi Menchachem Mendel Yosef Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon Rabbi Leib Mochiach of Polnoi Rabbi Hillel ben Naphtali Zevi Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi Rabbi Yaakov Abuchatzeira Rabbi Yisrael Dov of Vilednik Rabbi Schulem Moshkovitz Rabbi Naphtali Cohen Miriam Mizrachi Rabbi Shmuel Bornsztain Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler 10 | 26th of Tevet* 11 | 27th of Tevet* 12 | 28th of Tevet* 13* | 29th of Tevet 14* | 1st of Sh’vat 15* | 2nd of Sh’vat 16 | 3rd of Sh’vat* Rosh Chodesh Sh’vat Parashat Vaera Rabbeinu Avraham bar Dovid mi Rabbi Shimshon Raphael Hirsch HaRav Yitzhak Kaduri Rabbi Meshulam Zusha of Anipoli Posquires Rabbi Yehoshua Yehuda Leib Diskin Rabbi Menahem Mendel ben Rabbi Shlomo Leib Brevda Rabbi Eliyahu Moshe Panigel Abraham Krochmal Rabbi Aryeh Leib Malin 17* | 4th of Sh’vat 18 | 5th of Sh’vat* 19 | 6th of Sh’vat* 20 | 7th of Sh’vat* 21 | 8th of Sh’vat* 22 | 9th of Sh’vat* 23* | 10th of Sh’vat* Parashat Bo Rabbi Yisrael Abuchatzeirah Rabbi Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter Rabbi Chaim Tzvi Teitelbaum Rabbi Nathan David Rabinowitz
  • Parshat Korach June 26-27, 2020

    Parshat Korach June 26-27, 2020

    4 Tammuz ● Parshat Korach June 26-27, 2020 Dearest Members and Friends, Judging historical figures along with the movements or ideals they launched and promoted FRIDAY, JUNE 26 is not an easy task. Decades, even centuries, may pass before there is the clarity of 6:30pm KABBALAT SHABBAT perspective. And even then there is always the chance of a complete revision. Is the VIA ZOOM enduring success of a message or legacy proof that someone or something is right? What 7:50pm CANDLELIGHTING happens if history has written them off as an aberration? Are we to assume that this judgment is correct? More importantly, what if someone or something is profoundly wrong, SATURDAY, JUNE 27 but contemporary thinking embraces them? Last month, Professor Shaul Magid wrote a superb article in Tablet regarding the anti-Zionism of Rabbi Joel 8:53pm SHABBAT ENDS Teitelbaum, the charismatic rabbinic leader of the Satmar Jewish community before the Second World War 9:20 HAVDALAH VIA ZOOM who went on to become the fiery beacon of ultra-orthodox anti-Zionism in the postwar world. He suggests that Rabbi Teitelbaum’s views are not just worth reading, but extremely important to read if you want to get Guidelines for Praying at a rounded perspective on the theological backdrop to the Jews’ post-exile return to their Promised Land. He home: is broadly correct, although I must respectfully disagree with the subheading of his article, which proclaims that “few Jews today agree with the late Satmar rebbe’s attacks on Zionism.” When davening at home, it is best Although the tens of thousands who make up the current Satmar community along with the many smaller to daven at the same time that Hasidic groups aligned with them may lack the theological sophistication of their founding father, they more you would have davened when in than make up for their superficiality with the depth and vehemence of their determined anti-Zionism.