Jewish Meditation Online
  • Home
  • About
    • About
  • Offerings
    • EVENTS
    • Calendar
    • Monthly Community-Wide Meditation
    • Bring Brian Yosef to Your Community
    • Wisdom School Bar and Bat Mitzvah Program
  • Teachings
    • Weekly Torah and Holiday Index
    • Learn Integral Kabbalah Meditation
    • Instagram Posts
  • Donate
  • Contact

What is Different About This Moment? Sefirat Ha'Omer

4/26/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
Each of the seven weeks between the holidays of Passover and Shavuot, the festivals of Liberation and Revelation, are said to be channels for the seven lower s'firot of the Tree of Life- the seven Divine qualities. In addition, the seven days of each of the seven weeks also embody the same seven qualities.

Therefore, each of the 49 days (7 days x 7 weeks) has its own unique permutation
Rebbe Nachman of Bretzlov teaches:

​
“Know, that whatever people speak about during the days of S'fira, they are only talking about the S'fira of that day. People who understand are able to hear and know this, and if they will pay attention well to what people discuss, they will hear them talking only about the S'fira of that day...”

​-Likutei Moharan I, 182

Rebbe Nachman is saying that if you listen closely, you will see that everyone around you is talking about the particular permutation of the particular day.

A fascinating claim! Is that really true? Are people going around talking about whatever they're talking about, and yet unbeknownst to them, the particular s'fira permutation of the day is influencing their thoughts and words?

Actually, to go down this road of inquiry is to miss the point. There's another profound opportunity for inquiry that comes from this teaching:

If you begin with the idea that everyone around you is talking about the sefira of the day in veiled terms, and you want to discover the hidden meaning of what they're saying, what does that lead you to do?

It leads you to listen very very carefully! It leads you to be present- to keep your mind in the shape of this question: "What's really going on?"  


When you do that, you may not get an answer. With the practice of inquiry, the answer isn't really the point. It's the shape of your mind that's the point.

When your mind is shaped like a question mark, it is open, curious, receptive- very different from a mind that already knows the answer, shaped like a period or exclamation point. 

So, this S'firat HaOmer period can be wonderful practice of inquiry. You can even do this practice without even knowing the Hebrew terms and Kabbalistic concepts. Simply ask inwardly each of the 49 days- what is the quality of this day? What is shining from everything that's arising in this experience? 

Then, just notice. If revelation comes, wonderful, but it's not the point. Counting is the point- meaning, noting and asking into the uniqueness of this moment.


Shabbat Shalom, Ma'adim L'simkha- Good Times!

P.S. If you do want to learn about the Hebrew terms and Kabbalistic concepts, here's some info: 

The Seven Sefirot and the "Middah" or spiritual quality associated with them:

Hesed- "Loving Kindness" (Middah is also Loving Kindness)
Gevurah- "Strength" (Middah is also Strength, particularly drawing boundaries)
Tiferet- "Grace/Beauty"- Middah is Compassion.
Netzakh- "Victory" or "Eternity"- Middah is Persistence, Not-Giving-Up.
Hod- "Majesty" or "Glory"- Middah is Gratitude, also Humility.
Yesod- "Foundation"- Middah is Connection, Empathy, Intimacy.
Malkhut- "Kingdom"- Middah is Trust, Faith.

​Here is a cool chart I found for seeing how the S'firot permute for all 49 days, along with instructions for the counting of the Omer, which is done in the evenings. This year, the first day (16th of Nisan on the chart) was Saturday night, April 23rd. (There's a little typo however- the final day in the middle, the holiday of Shavuot, begins on the 6th, not the 7th, though it extends through the 7th outside the land if Israel.)
Picture
For more info on how to do the daily Omer counting ritual with the dates for this year 2016 (5776), here's a useful link I found- Click Here
​
There are also tons of apps available nowadays for counting the Omer.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Free Guided Meditation Here.

    Daily Meditation on Zoom and Livestream –
    Experience our growing community
     Here

    Archives

    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    June 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    October 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012

    RSS Feed


Jewish Meditation Online Community

Jewish Meditation Music

Jewish Meditation Techniques

Jewish Meditation Guided
Torah of Awakening © Copyright 2023 All rights reserved. 
  • Home
  • About
    • About
  • Offerings
    • EVENTS
    • Calendar
    • Monthly Community-Wide Meditation
    • Bring Brian Yosef to Your Community
    • Wisdom School Bar and Bat Mitzvah Program
  • Teachings
    • Weekly Torah and Holiday Index
    • Learn Integral Kabbalah Meditation
    • Instagram Posts
  • Donate
  • Contact