Let The Light In....And Out

This week’s Torah portion, Beha'alotcha starts with Moses’ command to Aharon to light the Menorah (Candelabrum) and Aharon's fulfillment of the command:

G-d spoke to Moshe, saying: "Speak to Aharon and say to him, 'When you kindle the lamps, the seven lamps shall illuminate towards the body of the Menorah.”

Why does this command appear here? What is the connection between the lighting of the menorah by Aharon and the events of the narrative of the book of Numbers? The command to light the Menorah has already appeared twice in the Torah: in Exodus and in Leviticus. Why is the Torah now repeating it for a third time?

The tabernacle was built by Moses. This may lead to the impression that the people of Israel have no portion in it. The commandment concerning the oil is meant to counter this perception: B'nei Yisrael's part in the tabernacle is their regular contribution of oil for lighting. Moses building it is a one-time event. The Jewish people participate in a way that is ongoing by regularly bringing oil.

The lighting of the menorah fits well in the book of Numbers.

In our Parsha, Aharon is charged with lighting the menorah as a representative of the nation, but the people are also involved and have a role -- not just their leaders.

It says in Midrash Tanchuma, "Say to Israel, "It is not because I need your light that I tell you to light the lamp, but rather for your own merit…”

According to Rabbanit Sharon Rimon, When a person builds a house, he makes windows in the house, since he wants the light to enter. So he makes the windows narrow on the outside, and wide on the inside. Why? In order that the light will enter from outside and illuminate inside. But when Solomon built the Temple, he did not make the windows like this. Rather, he made them narrow on the inside and wide on the outside, in order that the light would emanate from the Temple and illuminate outwards. As it is written in the book of Kings (Sefer Melachim Chapter 6), "And for the House he made windows that were wide" on the outside "and narrow" on the inside – to show that G-d is light, and He has no need for your light.

The Temple is built so that light will emerge from the inside and illuminate outwards.

The Torah chooses to emphasize the nation's share in the lighting. Why?

Without the people of Israel lighting the Menorah, the light of the Temple will not be disseminated beyond the Temple.

Am Yisrael are partners in kindling the light of the Sanctuary and spreading it outward.

How can each of us spread light around us? How can we connect to our own light?

We’re going to do a short visualization practice

Take a moment to get comfortable and sit in a quiet spot where you won’t be disturbed.

Close your eyes and take a deep breath in, and as you exhale, let the tension start to leave your body. Or you can leave your eyes open and focus on a spot in front of you.

Breathe naturally, not controlling the breath in any way.

Do a short scan of your body, noting how your body feels.

Focus on the areas where tension is stored, and imagine releasing the tension with each exhale. Feel your body becoming more relaxed..... letting go of stress.

After the next exhale imagine light flowing from you – outside of you.

What does that feel like?

Who would you like your light to touch? Take a moment and imagine light flowing from you and reaching this person…..

Now imagine this light coming back to you and passing through you.

You can radiate this light and also receive it and take it in.

How does it feel to bask in this light? Can you feel warmth?

Take a few more moments.

Feel the fullness and warmth of this light and make an intention to take some of it with you as you finish this practice.

Remember that you can access and imagine this light again, anytime you need to.

Listen to this on Insight Timer:

https://insighttimer.com/skeinon/guided-meditations/light-visualization-and-the-menorah

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3YtSprqK8u6fsCZP9z218W?si=e1b1de3238ee42be

Why Mindfulness Is Not Passive

In this week’s Parsha, Behar, we learn about the Sabbatical year and letting the land lie fallow. We don’t plant or cultivate the land. Every seven years we observe the Sabbatical year. While my understanding of agriculture is limited, I have read that allowing the land to rest can save it from burnout and overuse and allow it to regenerate and flourish.

Industrial agriculture has depleted a lot of land around the world and this affects global warming. According to the Rodan Agricultural Institute, “the healthier the soil, the greater its holding capacity for carbon.“ The Sabbatical year could “complement other land conservation and carbon sequestration techniques by letting land rest and increasing soil fertility preserve carbon. “ Just as people rest on the seventh day (Shabbat), the land is personified and it rests on the seventh year. This also allows the farmer to focus on other things in that year, such as learning and spiritual pursuits.

In addition, it allows farmers to temporarily “release” ownership of their fields so poorer people can eat good quality produce: “And six years thou shalt sow thy land, but the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of thy people may eat; and what they leave the best of the field shall eat (Exodus 23:10).” Farming is a very intensive and active pursuit. Letting the land lie fallow, therefore, means that in the seventh year the ordinarily very active worker of the land suddenly has to become passive. That’s not easy!

Some think that mindful meditation, too, is a passive endeavor. But that is a misconception. It is much more than just sitting on the floor with legs crossed and emptying the mind. Mindfulness is an active practice, requiring us to keep noticing our thoughts, feelings, sensations and perceptions, watching them come and go from a distance. It’s a practice that requires training and discipline. Just as you wouldn’t expect to go to the gym and start lifting heavy weights, you have to train the muscle called paying attention or noticing.

Mindfulness is not about giving up or disengaging from the world around us. Some say that meditation allows you to clear your mind in order to be unaffected by the world and accept whatever comes. But that, too, is a myth. The core of mindfulness meditation is the exact opposite.

Mindful meditation practice is used to calm and teach our minds a different way of being in the world, allowing us to practice observing the stream of thoughts and emotions without the bias that pollutes our experience. While we are observing and contemplating, we find that our problems are often more complex or simpler than we imagined; that they are dependent on other situations; that they have their roots in something deeper, or are less difficult than we thought. In meditation, we step out of our automatic reactions and open up to seeing things more clearly. We connect with our deeper intentions. A commitment to the practice of mindfulness can give us more clarity and allow us to take important and healing action. There is a time to rest and a time to take action, but the two are not mutually exclusive. As the Sabbatical year teaches us, sometimes resting or pausing can give us the energy and ability to grow and flourish.

What Is Independence?

What is Independence?

Independence: The quality or state of not being under the control of, reliant on, or connected with someone or something else.

There is independence on the micro-level of the individual and on the macro-level of a nation governing itself. The Jewish people have yearned to be independent in their own country since our forefather Abraham set out for the promised land. This became more felt or urgent when we were enslaved in Egypt.

We cried for freedom from our masters and Pharaoh.

When we were freed, there was a condition:

So that we can worship our G-d and choose to enter a mutual covenant together.

This is more like freedom with “strings attached'' or freedom with a purpose, and not just to be free to do whatever we like.

When we were freed from slavery, we were physically free, but were still psychologically dependent with fears and anxiety about the future.

The people felt insecure. They kvetched and cried and actually wanted to go back to Egypt and be dependent on their masters once again! It was a long process to become an independent nation.

But independence is not always a positive virtue. It’s okay to rely on other people, and fitting into a society or community that is benevolent is also positive.

Building a thriving nation isn’t possible without cooperation and mutual assistance.

There are countless ethnic groups in Israel from a wide range of backgrounds and mother tongues. It’s not utopia, but I can honestly say that the feeling of community and peoplehood is like no other place I have been. Coming as an immigrant with no family was like no challenge I’ve ever faced. And yet, I wasn’t really alone. The stranger on the street asking me if my baby was warm enough, the neighbor asking me if I needed anything while my husband was away, the delicious meals from my synagogue after I gave birth, the group of army parents supporting each other while our sons served together, and so many more.

The saying it takes a village means that many people must cooperate to achieve a goal.

You don’t forfeit your own independence completely, but rather harness it with others towards a common good. That is what we’ve accomplished here in 74 years.

Happy Independence Day! יום עצמאות שמח