Parshah Summary – P’shat
Parshat Re’eh, which means “see,” opens with Moses’ stark teaching to the Children of Israel: blessing and curse are set before you; choose blessing! He then reminds them of the ceremony they must perform when they enter the land, that the litany of blessings promised to them if they follow the Torah should be proclaimed publicly on Mount Gerizim, and the curses for not following the Torah on Mount Ebal. Instructions are then given for establishing a Temple in “the place that Hashem will choose,” and that the Temple should be the only place that offerings are brought. And while it is permitted to slaughter animals anywhere for meat, the blood (which is poured upon the altar when animals are offered in the Temple), may not be eaten.
The people are then warned against false prophets, and the identifying signs for kosher animals and fish, along with the list of non-kosher birds (first given in Leviticus 11), are repeated. Moses then reminds the Israelites that they must tithe a tenth of their produce, and that this tithe must be eaten in Jerusalem, or else exchanged for money with which food is purchased and eaten there. In certain years this tithe is instead given to the poor. (Today the practice is to self-tithe a tenth of our livelihood for the poor.) Firstborn cattle and sheep, however, are to be offered in the Temple, and eaten only by the the kohanim (priests). Moses then reviews the mitzvah of tzedakah, charity, which is the obligation to lift up anyone in the community who becomes needy with a gift or a loan. Furthermore, on the Sabbatical year (occurring seven years), all loans are forgiven, and all indentured servants are set free after six years of service. The parshah concludes with the laws of the three pilgrimage festivals – Pesakh (Passover), Shavuot and Sukkot – when everyone is to make the journey to Jerusalem and bring their offerings.
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
רְאֵ֗ה אָנֹכִ֛י נֹתֵ֥ן לִפְנֵיכֶ֖ם הַיּ֑וֹם בְּרָכָ֖ה וּקְלָלָֽה׃ אֶֽת־הַבְּרָכָ֑ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר תִּשְׁמְע֗וּ אֶל־מִצְוֺת֙ יְהֹ–וָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֧ר אָנֹכִ֛י מְצַוֶּ֥ה אֶתְכֶ֖ם הַיּֽוֹם׃ וְהַקְּלָלָ֗ה אִם־לֹ֤א תִשְׁמְעוּ֙ אֶל־מִצְוֺת֙ יְהֹ–וָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֔ם וְסַרְתֶּ֣ם מִן־הַדֶּ֔רֶךְ אֲשֶׁ֧ר אָנֹכִ֛י מְצַוֶּ֥ה אֶתְכֶ֖ם הַיּ֑וֹם לָלֶ֗כֶת אַחֲרֵ֛י אֱלֹהִ֥ים אֲחֵרִ֖ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־יְדַעְתֶּֽם׃ See – I place before you today blessing and curse! Blessing, if you listen to the commandments of Hashem your God that I command you today; and curse, if you do not listen the commandments of Hashem your God, but turn away from the path that I command you today and go after other gods, whom you have not known… - Devarim (Deuteronomy) 11:26, Parshat Re’eh
A story about the Baal Shem Tov: As Yom Kippur drew to a close, the time came say the blessing over the new moon. To say this prayer, it is necessary to actually see the moon in the sky. But, on this particular evening, the sky was overcast and the moon was not to be seen. The Baal Shem Tov had the sense that a great calamity was coming to the Jewish people, but that he could avert the calamity, if only he could say the blessing on the new moon. He concentrated all his powers on parting the clouds so that the moon would shine through, but to no avail. Eventually he lost hope, and went into his room, grief stricken about the evils that were to come. Meanwhile, the other hasidim who knew nothing of what the Baal Shem was going through, began to sing and dance in ecstasy, so happy they were that their master had successfully led them through the Day of Atonement. As their ecstasy grew, the throng made their way into the Baal Shem’s room, and they drew him into the dance. His spirits were lifted as he began to move and sing with his hasidim. Just at that moment, a hasid ran excitedly into the house to report that new lunar crescent has just appeared in the sky, and that the blessing could now be intoned.
One of the great Hasidic insights is that joy is not merely a symptom of the Path, it is the very foundation of it. Without joy, all of our other potentials will be fleeting, or even remain un-actualized altogether. This is why the ninth sefirah of Yesod on the Tree of Life, which means “foundation” and represents joy, is the point of connection between the upper sefirot (spiritual potentials) and Malkhut, the world of time in which our lives unfold. עִבְדוּ אֶת יה–וה בְּשמְחָה בּאוּ לְפָנָיו בִּרְנָנָה: Serve the Divine with joy; come before the Presence with joyous song… Psalm 100:2 But, and this is crucial to understand: this foundational Joy is not a negation of grief or sorrow; it is a way of relating with grief and sorrow. In this sense, (spiritual) joy is not an ordinary emotion; it is a quality of the consciousness that becomes aware of ordinary emotions. It is within our power to access this quality at any moment, even and especially in dark moments. This is the deeper meaning of the story: it is not merely that the disciples of the Baal Shem Tov cheered him up; it is that they brought him into an acceptance of the bitter and the sweet; this is the transformation from an attitude of grasping and resistance to life, into the Dance of Life. And, only when the Baal Shem Tov accepted things as they are, did things change for the better, and the moon revealed itself. רְאֵ֗ה אָנֹכִ֛י נֹתֵ֥ן לִפְנֵיכֶ֖ם הַיּ֑וֹם בְּרָכָ֖ה וּקְלָלָֽה See, I set before you today blessing and curse… Blessing and curse are ever the potentials before us. They are set before us הַיּוֹם hayom – “today” – meaning, right now. They are not merely consequences that we’ll have to deal with later; they are inherent within this moment. But how do we choose blessing? אֶֽת־הַבְּרָכָ֑ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר תִּשְׁמְע֗וּ אֶל־מִצְוֺת֙ יְה–וָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֧ר אָנֹכִ֛י מְצַוֶּ֥ה אֶתְכֶ֖ם הַיּֽוֹם׃ Blessing, if you listen to the commandments (mitzvot) of Hashem, your Divinity, that I command you today… The ordinary understanding is that the mitzvot are the various religious rules to follow. But on a deeper level, “listen” means to be aware of הַיּוֹם hayom – “today” – meaning, be present with this moment as it appears – that is the “commandment.” In this deep listening, in this being present with the reality of the moment, there can be the realization of blessing – that is, the joy inherent within the awareness that accepts both the בְּרָכָה וּקְלָלָֽה brakhah uklalah, the blessing and curse, the sweet and the bitter, meaning: things we want and things we don’t want. And through the window of this fundamental blessing of being present, other spiritual qualities can manifest as well, represented by the five sefirot above Yesod: Hesed (lovingkindness), Gevurah (strength), Tiferet (beauty, harmony, peace), Netzakh (commitment, persistence, not giving up), and Hod (humility, gratitude). All of these qualities are dependent on the foundation (Yesod) of joy: וּשְׂמַחְתֶּ֗ם לִפְנֵי֮ יְה–וָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶם֒ אַתֶּ֗ם וּבְנֵיכֶם֙ וּבְנֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם... And you shall rejoice before Hashem your Divinity with your sons and your daughters... Deuteronomy 12:11-12 This is the power of meditation: to help us awaken the joy of spacious inner freedom inherent within our deepest being, not just for ourselves, but so that we may lift up one another, and draw one another into the Dance of Life.
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Parshah Summary – P’sha
The third parshah of Sefer Devarim continues with Moses’ closing address to the Children of Israel, promising them that if (Eikev) they will fulfill the mitzvot, they will prosper in the Land – a “good land, a land with streams and springs and fountains issuing from plain and hill; a land of wheat and barley, of vines, figs, and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey…” Moses also rebukes them for their failings in their first generation as a people, recalling their worship of the Golden Calf, the rebellion of Korakh and the sin of the spies. But he also speaks of forgiveness and the Second Tablets, instructing them in the core principles of “circumcising the heart,” and the mitzvah to “love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” Moses explains that their forty years in the desert, during which they were sustained with daily “manna” from heaven, was to teach them “that a human being does not live by bread alone, but by all that emanates from God’s mouth does a person live!” Moses describes the land they are about to enter as “flowing with milk and honey,” blessed with the “seven species” – wheat, barley, grapevines, figs, pomegranates, olive oil and dates. He warns them to be aware, lest they become arrogant and begin to believe of themselves that “my power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth…
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וְהָיָ֣ה עֵ֣קֶב תִּשְׁמְע֗וּן אֵ֤ת הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים֙ הָאֵ֔לֶּה וּשְׁמַרְתֶּ֥ם וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֖ם אֹתָ֑ם וְשָׁמַר֩ יְהֹ–וָ֨ה אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ לְךָ֗ אֶֽת־הַבְּרִית֙ וְאֶת־הַחֶ֔סֶד אֲשֶׁ֥ר נִשְׁבַּ֖ע לַאֲבֹתֶֽיךָ׃ And it will be if you listen to these discernments and guard them and do them, then Hashem your God will guard for you the covenant and the kindness which was sworn to your ancestors… - Devarim (Deuteronomy) 7:12 Parshat Eikev
The infamous and much hated Rabbi, Menahem Mendel of Kotzk, once visited his little home town where he grew up. While he was there he made a point of visiting his first, early childhood teacher who had taught him the alef-bet, whom he loved very much. Before he returned home, he happened to run into another teacher of his. “I see that you visit your preschool teacher, but you don’t visit me? What have I done to offend you?” asked the teacher. “You taught me things that can be refuted,” replied the Kotzker, “because according to one interpretation they can mean this, and according to another they can mean that. But my first teacher taught me things which cannot be refuted, and so they have remained with me; that is why I owe him special reverence.”
The mind tends to dwell upon that which it does not know for sure. That’s because it is the job of the mind to figure out, to conjecture, to approximate, to guess; that’s how we are able to navigate life and make decisions. But this useful tendency often becomes a compulsive habit, usurping awareness away from what we actually do know. The more we ignore that which we know for sure, compulsively investing our guesses, conjectures and approximations with a reality they don’t really possess, the more we live life through the screen of thought; this is called “living in one’s head.” Notice: people often feel most strongly and defend most passionately (and attack most violently in defense of) things they don’t really know for sure. What is it that we do know for sure? Turn your attention from involvement with your thoughts and “see” what is actually happening, right now. This is meditation – intentionally noticing and therefore knowing what is really present now in your experience. At first, there may be a feeling of disorientation or fear. What if thoughts are just thoughts? What will happen if you let go of all that mind generated drama and attend to what is present, to what you actually know for sure? The ego is uncomfortable with this, because “ego” is a sense of identity built from our thoughts and feelings. Begin letting go of your thoughts and feelings, and the ego can feel threatened. הָלַ֣ךְ חֲשֵׁכִ֗ים וְאֵ֥ין נֹ֙גַהּ֙ ל֔וֹ יִבְטַח֙ בְּשֵׁ֣ם יְה–וָ֔ה וְיִשָּׁעֵ֖ן בֵּאלֹהָֽיו Though one walks in darkness and has no glow, let them trust in the Name of the Divine, and rely on their God… - Isaiah 50:10 הָלַ֣ךְ חֲשֵׁכִ֗ים וְאֵ֥ין נֹ֙גַהּ֙ ל֔וֹ – Though one walks in darkness and has no glow… The haftora hints that there is an aspect of our consciousness that is forever in a state of not-knowing: ayn nogah lo – “has no glow.” It doesn’t say that one has no “light” but rather one doesn’t even have any “glow” at all; one “walks” in total darkness. But if we can be clear about not being clear, if we can truly understand and know on the deepest level that all of our mind’s judgments are guesses and approximations, then we can transcend the mind-identified ego; we can transcend our separate self-sense that thrives on belief in our own thoughts and denial of the darkness. This is the Path of ר Reish, the Recognition of Not-Knowing. יִבְטַח֙ בְּשֵׁ֣ם יְה–וָ֔ה וְיִשָּׁעֵ֖ן בֵּאלֹהָֽיו – let them trust in the Name of the Divine, and rely on their God… Then, in that surrender to Not-Knowing, a new way of being emerges: first, trusting in the Divine Name – that is, trusting in how Reality is unfolding – this is the Path of י Yud. And second, relying on God – that is, knowing that God/Reality/Being is ultimately “in charge” – everything we have and everything we are is ultimately “held” by That. This is the Path of ס Samekh – of knowing God as our Eternal Support. Then, we can realize: there is something we can know, if we would only stop and see it: we are This Consciousness, seeing That which is present, Now. Interestingly, if we put these three letters together: ר reish, י yud and ס samekh, we get רִיס rees – “eyelash.” The function of the eyelash is to protect the eye from foreign particles; it is to protect our seeing. Secondarily, lush eyelashes are considered beautiful, hinting: to truly see without the foreign impediments of thought and preconception allows us to behold a beauty that transcends all concepts. וְהָיָ֣ה עֵ֣קֶב תִּשְׁמְע֗וּן אֵ֤ת הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים֙ הָאֵ֔לֶּה – And it will be if you listen to these judgments… The word for “if” or “because” is עֵקֶב eikev, which literally means “heel,” as in the English idiom that one thing will “follow on the heels” of another, meaning that one thing is the consequence of another. But according to a hasidic teaching, the hint is that we should become present with our bodies – even in our heels – that is, the most insensitive part of the body should become aware. Then, when we are fully present, with awareness permeating the whole body, we can make these subtle mishpatim, subtle judgments concerning our own thoughts, and we can begin to truly know what we know and what we don’t know, trusting in the Mystery. Then, in connection with the Truth of this moment and in surrender to the unknowability of everything beyond this moment, the heart is set free, and we can rest in knowing the vastness of what we really are: the simple, open space of awareness within which the fullness of this moment now arises.
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Parshah Summary – P’sha
This second parshah of Sefer Devarim continues with Moses’ monologue to the Children of Israel on the banks of the Jordan. He opens with how he prayed to enter the Promised Land along with them, but instead he was told he must climb a mountain and view the Land from afar before he dies. He then continues telling the story of the Exodus from Egypt and their receiving of the Torah at Sinai, followed by the prophesy that future generations will abandon the Path for “false gods,” leading to the exile and their being scattered among the nations. But, from their exile they will once again seek the Divine and return.
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וָאֶתְחַנַּ֖ן אֶל־יְהֹוָ֑ה בָּעֵ֥ת הַהִ֖וא לֵאמֹֽר׃ אֲדֹנָ֣י יֱהֹוִ֗ה אַתָּ֤ה הַֽחִלּ֙וֹתָ֙ לְהַרְא֣וֹת אֶֽת־עַבְדְּךָ֔ אֶ֨ת־גׇּדְלְךָ֔... “I pleaded with Hashem at that time, saying, ‘My Lord, Hashem, You have begun to show Your servant Your Greatness…’” - Devarim (Deuteronomy) 3:23, 24 Parshat Va’Etkhanan
Once, on a family trip to Italy, I was in a cab with my father in law. At one point he turned to me and said, “So, Brian – are you enjoying yourself or would you rather be at some ashram in India?” I replied, “Well, I don’t really put energy into rather-ing things.” He was silent for a moment, and then said, “I get that. That’s good. I’m going to eliminate ‘rather’ from my vocabulary.”
So, what does it mean to not “rather” something? It doesn’t mean that you can’t make good judgements. It doesn’t mean that you don’t take yourself out of an undesirable situation, or that you don’t help to make things better for yourself or others. It just means that whatever your experience is, whatever situation in which you find yourself, you don’t put mental and emotional energy into wishing things were different. Instead, you first accept the moment as it is; this is meditation. Then, do whatever you do from this attitude of being aligned with the truth of what is happening. In Musar, the Jewish practice of cultivating character traits, this practice of “not-rather-ing,” of being content with what is in the moment, is called הִסתַפְּקוּת histapkut, or Equanimity. But it’s important to understand that this is not merely a character trait; it’s not something that you add on to your personality, but rather it’s a quality of Presence – a quality inherent within the field of awareness beneath and beyond your personality, beneath and beyond your thoughts, beneath and beyond your feelings. And while thoughts and feelings are always flowing and changing, awareness is the background against which thoughts and feelings happen. So, when we shift from the sense that “I am this personality, I am these thoughts and feelings,” into knowing ourselves as the field of Presence within which our thoughts and feelings are happening, then הִסתַפְּקוּת histapkut is very natural, because awareness itself is never preferring one thing over another thing; it is simply open to whatever there is to perceive in the present moment – that’s why it’s called “Presence.” וָאֶתְחַנַּ֖ן אֶל־יְהֹוָ֑ה בָּעֵ֥ת הַהִ֖וא – I pleaded with Hashem at that time… In other words, Moses is saying, “I implored that I should be at some other time, at a time other than this moment. I don’t want to be here, I want to get to the Promised Land.” But God says רַב־לָךְ rav lakh – “enough of you already!” רֹ֣אשׁ הַפִּסְגָּ֗ה וְשָׂ֥א עֵינֶ֛יךָ עֲלֵ֣ה – “Ascend to the top of the cliff and raise up your eyes…” The expression for “ascend to the top of the cliff” begins, רֹאשׁ עֲלֵה alei rosh which literally means, “Raise up the head.” Meaning, get out of your head! Don’t be so identified with your own opinions, with your emotional reactions and so on. How do you do that? וְשָׂ֥א עֵינֶיךָ v’sa einekha – “and raise up your eyes”… Meaning, instead of putting energy into thought – that is, judging and “rather-ing,” simply see what is happening in this moment. Be the witnessing Presence within which this moment is unfolding. This is the Path of ע Ayin – Witnessing Presence. When we do that, something else becomes visible… ...אַתָּ֤ה הַֽחִלּ֙וֹתָ֙ לְהַרְא֣וֹת אֶֽת־עַבְדְּךָ֔ אֶ֨ת־גׇּדְלְךָ֔– ‘You are beginning to make Your servant see Your Greatness…’ We see the gedulah, the Divine Greatness, when we approach this moment as a beginning, as if seeing for the first time as an eved, a servant to Reality/Truth/Being, rather than being a judge or rather-er. From Here, we can participate in the moment unfolding with הִסתַפְּקוּת histapkut, with sweet Equanimity; this is the fruit of meditation.
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Parshah Summary – P’sha
The fifth and final book of the Torah opens with Moses beginning his recap of the Torah to the Children of Israel, who are all assembled on the bank of the Jordan river. He begins by recounting the events and teachings that were given in the course of their forty-year journey from Egypt to Sinai and then to the Promised Land, both rebuking them for their failings and encouraging them to remain faithful to the path he has set before them. In the course of the parshah, Moses recalls the judges and leaders appointed to ease his burden in leadership; the journey from Sinai through the vast desert; the sending of the spies and the people’s fear of entering the Land, leading to that entire generation dying out in the desert. Also recounted are more recent events: the refusal of the nations of Mo’av and Ammon to allow the Israelites to pass through their countries; the wars against the Emorite kings Sikhon and Og, and the settlement of their lands by the tribes of Reuven and Gad and part of the tribe of Manasheh; and Moses’ message to his successor, Joshua, who will take over Moses’ leadership after his death.
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
לֹֽא־תַכִּ֨ירוּ פָנִ֜ים בַּמִּשְׁפָּ֗ט כַּקָּטֹ֤ן כַּגָּדֹל֙ תִּשְׁמָע֔וּן Don’t show favoritism in judgment; (literally, “don’t recognize faces in judgment”) like the lesser as the greater, you shall listen… Devarim (Deuteronomy) 1:17, Parshat Devarim
Some disciples of Reb Pinhas of Korets once asked him why, when he prayed, was he not wildly ecstatic in his devotions the way many other hasidim were. Reb Pinhas replied, “As you know, the point of prayer is to divest oneself from all separateness, to merge with the Divine, and this is a kind of death. But, our sages tell us that there are two kinds of death: one is as hard a rope being pulled through the ring of a mast, and the other is as easy as removing an eyelash from a glass of milk. It is the second kind of death that I have been granted in my prayer.”
The Reality that we call “Divine” is nothing but the “Being-ness” of things; it is the basic “Is-ness,” Ever-Present. As such, we are never and can never be separate from It. But, most are unconscious of this fact, because the “Isness” of our own being is a quality of consciousness, and consciousness tends to be aware of objects rather than its own subject-hood. This is not to say that we don’t experience our “selves” – just the opposite. As we move through the world, we tend to split reality into two parts – “me” and “everything else.” The problem is that we don’t know who “me” really is; we assume we are our thoughts, our feelings, our stories. We feel we are a spirit trapped in our bodies, looking out. We identify with one small aspect of ourselves – the aspect of thoughts and feelings – and call that “me.” But this ordinary “me” is actually just another object among objects, perceived by and living within the vast field of awareness that we are. This field of awareness, formless and borderless, is the true “I” hidden within plane sight, the vast inner “heavens” within which the “earth” of all particular experiences come and go. ִ שִׁמְע֤וּ שָׁמַ֙יִם֙ וְהַאֲזִ֣ינִי אֶ֔רֶץ כִּ֥י יְה–וָ֖ה דִּבֵּ֑ר... Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, For the Divine speaks… - Yeshiyahu (Isaiah) 1:2, haftara for Parshat Devarim The “heavens” and the “earth” come together as our bodily temple: At the deepest level, we are the “heavens” – we are the formless awareness that “hears.” But, we are able to “hear” through the medium of the senses; that is why the “earth” gives “ear.” The aim of meditation is to bring heaven down to earth by making our bodies into vehicles for consciousness. How do we do that? לֹֽא־תַכִּ֨ירוּ פָנִ֜ים בַּמִּשְׁפָּ֗ט – Don’t recognize faces in judgment… Meaning: don’t judge one “face” over another – every being, every experience, every moment – meaning this moment, is literally a Face of God. כַּקָּטֹ֤ן כַּגָּדֹל֙ תִּשְׁמָע֔וּן – As the small, like the great, listen! Whether we judge this moment as something great and important, or insignificant and unworthy of our attention, תִּשְׁמָעוּן tishma-un – listen anyway! It is through our unconditional Presence with whatever arises that we transcend that conditional “self” and come to recognize the One behind all faces; this is meditation. In this practice of returning frequently to unconditional Presence, we “remove the eyelash from the milk” so to speak, thereby stitching together “heaven” and “earth,” the world of time with the Eternal Present, binding words to the wordless, and connecting our deeds back to the silent field within which they unfold. To do this consistently, moment by moment, requires a simple trust in the way things unfold, a trust that this, now, is where we should be, at least for Now. This quality of Trust is embodied by the letter י yud.
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