And God arose from upon him

ויעל מעליו אלקים במקום אשר דבר אתו

And God arose from upon him[Yaakov] in the place where he talked with him

Genesis 35:13

This verse occurs at the end of a message Yaacov receives from God, and signifies the end of the message. This is a very interesting way of describing a spiritual experience and union with God. Kabbalah often talk about Ruah Hakodesh (holy wind) that descends upon people and allows them to receive information, but here we only learn about it when it ends. I think that in itself is very common. People often move into an elevated state of consciousness slowly and don't realize how high they've gone until it's over.

The Ramban writes that it was not a prophetic vision or dream alone, but that the Shekinah came to him where he stood, and put him on the path to truth. He cites Genesis 17:22 as another example of this type of experience. We must also ask if the place mentioned is a physical place or a spiritual place or a place within Yaakov?

Yaacov has a great variety of spiritual experiences. He has prophetic dreams, he gets messages directly from God, he wrestles with Angels, and, as seen in this verse, he experiences mystical union with God

The question is where is the place within you where God can connect to you? How can you make the space within yourself to invite God to descend upon you?

Wrestling Fear into Transformation

My hevruta Shmuel Shalom Hacohen teaches experiential Torah. It's often difficult to explain what that means, but our study this past week really made it clear to me. It's when studying Torah is not simply the intellectual process of trying to make sense of the text. It's when studying Torah makes sense of one's life. The process of making sense of the text is the process of making sense of one's own life and self. If that process links directly to one's heart, then the study becomes a healing ritual to connect one to God and break through klipot (barriers) and blockages.

The story we studied was Yaacov's first meeting with Esau after years of separation. Yaacov had a lot of fear about the meeting. He'd been told by God to return to the land of his birth, but that meant seeing his brother Esau.  The last time he saw Esau, Esau was swearing to kill him. In Genesis 32:10, Yaacov prays to God that his meeting will go well and expresses many of his fears. What follows is the wonderful story of his wrestling with an angel all night. A close reading of the text will show that this was a night of transformation for him, allowing him to move beyond his fear, beyond his image of himself, and transform the relationship between himself and Esau.

The story begins with Yaacov leaving his camp, at night, with his wives, handmaids, and children. He crosses over the מעבר יבק which literally translates as the "empty passage" or "the passage of desolation". He helps his family to cross a river, but remains behind alone. He is in the midst of his family, but isolated from them. When fear is in control, it separates us from those we love. His family has moved on in the journey, but he remains stuck in his own desolation.

He then struggles with a man until dawn. Another aspect of a person lost in fear is their anger with the world, especially when the fear is about one's personal safety. It doesn't matter who this man is (Gn 32:30), Yaacov would have found a way to fight with him. Had he not been lost in fear, he might have welcomed the man in to talk, but as is, he struggles and fights with him.

It becomes clear that they are evenly matched and so the man touches Yaacov's hip and dislocates it. The man then begs to be freed from the struggle as the dawn is approaching. Yaacov asks for a blessing in return. The man asks for his name. Yaacov, he replies. Yaacov יעקב derives from עקב ekev, or heel. He was named that way because when he was born, he was grasping the heel of his twin Esau. עקב ekev also means footstep. Yaacov had been following in his brother's footsteps his whole life.

The man changes his name to Israel, one who struggles because Yaacov struggled with God and with man and was up to the challenge. Israel, ישראל can also be interpreted as ישר אל straight to God. When the sun rises, he names the place Paniel for here was the place where he saw God face to face (Panim פנים).  On this night of struggle, after injuring himself, Yaacov was finally able to connect directly to God and was no longer trying to imitate his brother.

The result? "He raised his eyes and saw, and there was Esau coming with 400 men" (Gn 33:2). Esau was also clearly expecting a fight. But with his fear no longer in control, Yaacov could truly see Esau and understood that he no longer wanted a fight. By changing himself, Yaacov had changed Esau and their relationship. The work done on himself reflected into Esau and both were changed by Yaacov's night of struggle.

So when Yaacov approached him, he sent his wives and children first, not his fighting men. When the two brothers saw each other, they embraced and cried. Yaacov was truly Israel then - no longer following or fearing his brother, but able to stand as equals and truly love Esau.

This interpretation arose during our Hevruta study. When I was going over my notes later on, I suddenly realized that this was me. I am going to be in the states in a few months and will be seeing an old friend with whom I've had some problems over the past few years. I've been worried about the meeting and trying to figure out how we can avoid fighting. I realized I need to find out what I'm afraid of, experience it for myself, and allow that change to shift my relationship with my old friend. It feels as if most of the change has already happened as a result of this study. This is the essense of experiential Torah study.

Photo courtesy of Docman

Animal guides

Photo courtesy of Kirklandj

A common question I hear is if Judaism has animal spirit guides or totem animals. There are  references to angels that appear in the form of animals, but the idea of an animal spirit guide is not commonly found in Jewish mysticism. During a Zohar class, we studied a story of two men who went on a journey and were led by an Eagle. It conversed with them and eventually turned into a man who brought them to the heavenly beit midrash (house of study).

I'm not a person who has ever been attracted to animal spirit guides or totems. Most of the souls I encounter are in Human form, if they have a shape. I share this reference in answer to the questions I've received and for those who do interact with spirit animals.

From the Zohar, part III, page 161 bet, parsha Shelah. Translation by my teacher.

He [the spirit guide] turns to them and says, go out from here, you are meritous, you are righteous. They went out. That appointed being gave them each a rose and they went out. When they went out, the door of the cave was closed and couldn't be seen at all.


They saw that Eagle that was coming down from that tree. And he went into another cave. These two they smelled their rose and they entered into there. And they met the Eagle by the opening of the cave, he said to them: “Please come in true righteous ones, friends, because I have not seen the joy of friendship from the day that I'm here. Only with you.”


They entered into the cave. They arrived in another orchard and the Eagle is with them. They found people there studying the Mishna. So then the Eagle transformed into the image of a person in garments of glory shining like them [the masters of the Mishna]. And he is sitting like one of them. He said to those that were sitting there [the two people in the story]. Give honor to these masters of the Mishna who came here because their master has shown them great wonders here.


One of them said, Do you have sign? They said yes, we do. They took out their two roses and smelled them. The masters of the Mishna said “please sit down master of the yeshiva, sit down true righteous ones.” They were happy with them, and they sat down. At that time, they learned there 30 Halachot that they did not know before this, and others secrets of the Torah.

Magic Eight balls and free will

 

Photo Courtesy of CRASH: candy

Everyone wants a magic eight ball. Ask a question, shake, then get a definitive answer as to what to do. Unfortunately, the world doesn't work that way.

Generally when we ask for spiritual direction, we do not get clear directions from the spirit world. I think it's part of God giving us free-will. If God spoke plainly to us, our only choice would be to do or not do. When we get vague images or half-remembered dreams, it forces us to do the work and make the best choices we can. Our role in this world is not to follow blindly, but to engage and grapple with God. The messages we get can help us along, but it's still up to us to do our work so we can interpret them correctly.

Healing is swimming in the Ocean

 Photo courtesy of Morberg

A patient of mine was late earlier this week. She called me to let me know she was on her way, but running about 20 minutes late. As I waited for her, I began the treatment. I sat at the head of the table and placed my hands where they would be if she were lying on the table. I pictured her in front of me and felt our energy connecting. I felt like I could "see" her whole body  I felt a strange pattern in her neck, which I'd never felt in her before. When she came in 10 minutes later, the first thing she said was that she had slept funny the night before and her neck felt stiff.

When I work on people, my main focus is creating the space in which they can heal. I am not very good at "seeing" everything that is going on in their body, but when the connections are made and the space is created, the healing happens. So it was a little surprising to me that I'd seen her neck problem before she came in.
I realized that the distance between us had allowed me to "see" her problem. Like most feelers, I instantly react to the presence of others. I feel their emotions and energies and immediately start to interact with them when I touch or am in the same space with them. I realized that seeing requires distance, which is why it's so hard for me in the treatment room.

It's the difference between standing on the cliffs and watching the ocean and swimming in the water. While on dry land, you can see the expanse of the water and hear the crash of the waves. But when you are swimming in the ocean, you can feel the cold of the deep and the motion of the waves. The healing happens when you are in the water. The connection between the healer and the patient is what bring the shechina and God into the healing, which allows it all to happen.

A Pesach thought: Mishna Pesachim 10:4

The Mishna in Pesachim 10:4 begins with the four questions and then continues:

The father should teach [about the exodus] according to the son's knowledge, wisdom, and ability. You begin in disgrace and end with praise.

The traditional explanation is that one teaches about the disgrace of our slavery and end with the praise of God for bringing us out of Egypt. I think it's more didactic: teach your children according to their ignorance and curiosity. When they are uncomfortable with their ignorance is when learning begins, so find out the things which don't sit right with them about the exodus and about the seder and begin the teaching there.

May you all have wonderful Seders that move from confusion and consternation to praise and connection to God.

The Jewish Standing Stone

Photo courtesy of Minipixel

The study of sacrifices brings us to the story of Jacob's dream. The story can be found in Genesis 28:10-22.

To quickly recap the story: Jacob has left home to find a wife in Paddan-aram and left an angry and vengeful Esau behind. He's on his way and, seeing that the sun is about to set, takes a stone from the area and lays his head upon it. That night, he dreams that there is a ladder fixed to earth upon which angels ascend and descend. God stands by his side and promises him that his many descendants will be a blessing to all the nations. God also says that God will protect him be with him where ever he goes.

When he wakes, Jacob lifts the stone upon which he slept into a Matzebah מצבה (pillar), pours oil upon it, and proclaims that this is the house of God and it a Gateway to heaven. Jacob then vows to God that if God protects him, he will accept God as his God and the pillar will be God's house. Furthermore, of all the God gives him, he will tithe 10 percent  to God.

On the pshat (simple) level Jacob had an unexpected spiritual experience, his first, in which he found that God was protecting and standing next to him. He realized that where he slept was a place of power and created a Matzebeh to mark the place. He then makes a vow to God demonstrating that he was changed by the experience.

One central issue in this story is what is a Matzebah? The word derives from the root יצב which means to station oneself or to take a stand, and appears three times during the story.

The first is verse 12 in reference to the ladder that reaches from earth to Heaven: סלם מצב ארצה "the ladder was fixed in the ground". In this case, it means fixed permanently. We learn here that this is a place where there is always a שער השמים a gate of heaven (Gn 28:17). The ladder is not resting on the ground, but it is fixed to the place.

The next occurrence is in the next verse ה' נצב עליו which can be translated as "God is standing upon him" or "God is stationed with him". Again, there is a sense of permanence here. God will always be with him.

The last two occurrences are in relation the rock. In 28:18 it states: וישם אתה מצבה "and he put it (the stone) as a pillar".  In 28:22: והאבן הזאת אשר שמתי הצבה יהיה בית אלקים "And this rock that I put as a pillar will be the house of God". The Brown Driver Briggs translation of Matzebah is a pillar or obelisk or a stone that is anointed as a memorial of a divine appearance.  In addition to that the Matzebah is a special marker that denotes a place where God can always be reached. Then Jacob poured oil upon it, it was a type of sacrifice to proclaim that this was a holy place, a place of power where the gate of heaven is easily accessible.

A מזבח mizbayach is the more common type of Altar that can be moved or built as needed. The Matzebah is determined by it's location and can't be moved.

Bringing this to the present day, I'm left wondering if there are certain places where everyone can connect more easily with God? Or places where individuals can easily connect to God due to a prior history with the place? Or if we need to build some sort of altar when we want to connect, and what that would look like from a modern Jewish perspective? What do people think?