This week, let’s focus on the sense of smell. Though the sense of smell was once considered the most primitive and useless sense for humans, much more associated with hunting canines, a resurgence in its appreciation has resulted in the practice of aromatherapy, a technique which matches fragrances with emotions and therefore can calm, excite, or help with sleep. Incense was long an integral part of the Temple sacrificial system. Ketoret, incense is described in detail in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers in the Torah and recipes are given in the Talmud. The incense was used on the altar and may have helped cover up the smell of roasting sacrifices. Sacrifices that were offered properly were a pleasing fragrance to God. The Sages remarked that the incense ritual was the most moving of all and orthodox practice continues rehearsing the incense ritual in order to be ready when the Temple is reconstructed. This incense was Holy and only to be used for sacred purposes. The spices in the Havdalah ritual of Shabbat’s end is a remnant of this powerful Temple practice.
This past Friday, during our outside service I asked the congregation to walk around our garden and rub their fingers on the herb plants and smell them while walking the v’ahavta prayer. The sense of smell is a very powerful gateway to unlocking the heart and soul. It’s too bad the use of fragrance fell out of use after the destruction of the Second Temple.
Day #1. And now to meditation. Find something with a pleasant, natural fragrance. A fruit, incense, flower, herb plant, spice, candle. Place it near where you meditate. Find your place of comfort and repose and sit in a relaxed position, either on the floor with a pillow under the hips, or in a chair with the feet on the floor or the legs crossed lotus style. Make sure that you support your body with shims of pillows or material in a way that you are comfortable for the meditation time. Take a deep breath and breath in the fragrance you have chosen. Allow your hands to rest on your knees and focus on your breath and the accompanying aroma. Focus the mind on the scented breath and allow it to conjure up memory, hopefully pleasant. Breathe in and out and follow the breath, lifting the odiferous object to your nose when the smell fades. Be gentle, don’t knock yourself out with the smell. It should be stimulating but not overwhelming. End your session by taking a final breath out, releasing the aroma.
Blessed are you, Ruler of the Universe, who creates all variety of spices.
This is the blessing for spices that we say in the Havdalah service to end Shabbat after we spot three stars in the dark sky. It is said that the sense of smell is connected strongly to memory and sniffing spices will conjure up the sweetness of the Shabbat. Repeat your meditation with a scent that you find calming. Be sure to end with a deep breath and gratitude for the senses of smell and taste.
Day #3. Sit in your meditative position with hands on your knees and open to receive whatever gifts come your way in this meditation. Can you remember the scent you worked with yesterday without having it “in person?”
Day #4. Preparing for Shabbat. Can I bring the aroma of memory and tradition into my Shabbat? Bake or warm a Challah? Cook a kugel, a homemade soup or roasted chicken? What memories do I cherish of home cooking from my childhood? The spices of Havdalah? How do these olfactory memories touch my soul?
Shabbat Shalom All.
Week #5 - Counting the Omer
Putting the Om back in Omer
It is the fifth week of counting the Omer. This week I would like to focus on visual meditation or contemplation.
Day 1. First, find a candle or other object such as a favorite stone or a flower and place it in front of where you will sit. If it is a candle light it. Sit in your comfortable chair or if you like on the floor with a pillow under your tush and legs comfortably crossed if you like. But don’t get fancy, a chair is fine. Place the hands gently in your lap or on your knees (palms up is nice) and with a soft gaze, meaning relaxing the eyelids, focus on your object. (I don’t suggest a photo or art work as I believe three dimensions is better.)
Breathe in and out as we have done before, beginning with breaths that originate in the abdomen and rise through the chest and clavicle. Focus your awareness on the object until the object fills your mind. This point is the place of meditation. Close the eyes if you wish and visualize the object behind the lids. The goal is 15- 20 minutes of this contemplation. End with a deep breath and blowing out the candle or holding the item for a moment.
Day 2. Sit comfortably and quietly and either again focus on yesterdays object or close the eyes and visualize the word yud heh vav heh or YHVH, the four letter word for Gd (the tetragrammaton), what we pronounce Adonai. If this is difficult you can write it on a 3 by 5 card and contemplate that. Sheviti Adonai l’negdi tamid from Psalm 16:8 says I will always keep Gd before me, some say a reference to meditation on the Holy Name.
Stay focused for 15-20 minutes, breathing. End by slowly opening the eyes and focusing slowly on the surrounding room.
Day 3. Sit and cover the eyes lightly with the hands. “See no evil.” What would your world be like if you looked upon only that which was of elevated nature and looked aside from those things that are disturbing, disgusting, disarming? Would we become less fatigued by this troubled world and be able to help more if our imaginative and entertainment life had less visual violence? Spend 15 minutes with eyes covered. Does a color appear behind your eyelids? Which one? What does that color mean to you? End the meditation by lowering the hands and taking a deep breath.
Day 4. Go someplace beautiful. Down to the harbor in Fredburg, a garden, a park, or a museum, and sit in a comfortable position even if it is in your car. Gaze at a natural object, a tree, the river, or flowering plant and breathe. Can you feel your body vitals slowing down? Your mind calming? Gift yourself 15-20 minutes. As you end this contemplation say a blessing for the gifts of creation.
Day 5. Preparing for Shabbat
How can you dress up Shabbat this week? Can you add flowers or candles or a challah to your table if that is not your habit? A pretty table cloth? A new outfit to come to Temple? This is called Hiddur HaMitzvah, embellishing the mitzvah. And it is a mitzvah in itself. It is a Divine act to beautify the world.
FRIDAY, MAY 23rd -
Shabbat Shalom, all. Rabbi Lynn will have a meditation in the sanctuary just before our Friday service time, 7:50-8:10pm, sharp, in between our "bring your own picnic"at 7 pm, weather permitting, and our outdoor Shabbat service. If it rains and the picnic is out Rabbi Lynn will start the meditation in the sanctuary at 7:30pm.
Some references: Aryeh Kaplan’s Jewish Meditation is a classic.
Thich Nhat Hanh’s Walking Meditation is a moving account.
(I think that was a pun)
Week #4-Counting the Omer
Putting the Om in Omer - Week 4
Here we are on the fourth week of counting the omer.
Day 1- Continuing with the gift of 10-20 minutes a day of quiet time, find your comfy chair and sit. Focus on the breath as it enters and leaves the body. Repeat.
Day 2- Last week we put the hands over the lips to focus on that which comes out of our mouths. Did a mindfulness about what you say effect what you do? How you feel?
Today during your meditation let’s focus on hearing. Using a bell, crystal or metal glass or bowl, begin your meditation by ringing this object once, striking it once gently with a metal or wooden spoon.
Listen carefully and closely to the sound of the breath entering and leaving the body. “Ocean breath” is the name given to a special breath used in meditation where the breath is brought in and out through the mouth and the passage of it over the back of the mouth causes a sound like the ocean. See if you can make this sound without forcing. Repeat for 10-20 minutes. End your meditation by chiming the bell or glass.
Day 3- Place your hands gently over your ears, the elbows comfortably pointing down. Continue with your meditation in this position, focusing on receiving only holy sounds, sounds that are pleasant and joyful.
Day 4- Preparing for Shabbat
What would our world be like if we only heard holy speech? What if we refused listening to Lashon Harah, bad speech or language that jars the nerves, and wounds the heart? Practice Lashon Hatov, good speech, this Shabbat, taking care to neither speak hurtful words nor hear them. What effect does this have on your day?
Shabbat Shalom. I will have a group mediation for those who wish after Shabbat Torah study on Saturday, approx. noon for thirty minutes.
Week #3 - Counting the Omer
Putting the OM in Omer – Week #3
Sorry for the late posting. Perhaps start with day 5 for Shabbat and then return to #1.
Day 1 of third week-
Last week we began sitting meditation. If this doesn’t suit you, continue with the walking meditation. There is really nothing more to it than walk slowly, count to four, smile. Ahhh, how simple is life. Feel free to experiment with reciting the Ve’ahavtah or another prayer you are familiar with or a mantra like the Shma whilst you are walking..
If you resonated with the sitting, let’s continue that.
Find a quiet place. You know, when I began this I had two little kids. I would set them up with an activity and go into my bedroom and post a note that said “Do not disturb for 20 minutes unless there is blood!” I guess they could read at that time. They got used to it and began to ask if I was going to meditate. But I digress…
Sit in a quiet comfortable place. It is not necessary to sit on the floor or cross your legs Yogi fashion. A comfy Western chair with feet on floor is fine. I found that with back problems I couldn’t even do that and began meditating lying down with pillows under my knees. Did I fall asleep? Not usually but more on that later.
Find a quiet place, sitting in a comfy chair, feet in comfy position. Begin again by focusing on the breath going in and out. The breath, in this relaxed state may become quiet and shallow but every so often a deep breath may be needed. Notice if that breath begins in the belly and works its way up to the clavicle. If the mind wanders to thought, and it will, bring it gently back to the breath. When the time is up, take a deep breath and gently resume you day. That’s it.
Day 2 of third week of Omer
Find ten to twenty minutes, a quiet place and a comfy chair. Begin by closing the eyes completely or leaving them slightly open and gazing at the floor about 2-3 feet in front of you so that the neck is upright but relaxed. Last week we focused on a word with the breath. This week let’s bring to mind a phrase: Here are a few Hebrew examples: Shma Yisrael (Hear O Israel), Adonai Echad (Gd is One), Ribono shel Olam (Master of the Universe), Todah Rabah (Thank you very much), Oseh Shalom (Maker of Peace), Ve’imru Amen (and we say Amen, Amen really means I Believe), Shalom aleichem (Peace unto you), Modim anachnu lach (we thank you). Any uplifting phrase will do. Think this phrase in your mind and/or whisper it across your lips. Breathe gently and when thoughts divert, bring the mind gently back to the phrase. You can refer to a clock or watch to note the passage of time. End with a deep breath.
Day 3 of third week of Omer
If you are challenged by keeping focused on the breath or a word or a phrase or ANYTHING, this is normal. The mind is like a monkey, jumping from tree to tree. Meditation, like any skill, is acquired through discipline and practice. But most importantly, it is acquired by not judging your practice, the process or progress. Progress does not compute with meditation. You are not going anywhere. Comparison is counterproductive. Refrain from thinking “this meditation is no good” or this one is better (or worse) than yesterday’s.” What is important is that you do it. Regularly. Our tradition expresses this regularity through prayer services twice a day, Shacharit (morning) and minchah/maariv (afternoon/evening). These prayer moments usually last twenty minutes, the same as transcendental meditation recommends. Twice, twenty minutes a day. Curious. When Gautama Buddha invented Buddhism, we, the Jewish people were in exile in Babylonia, Iraq. A hop, skip, and jump from India. Could there have been a connection? One doesn’t judge whether this prayer service was better or worse than yesterday’s, whether the leader was more brilliant this evening than in the morning. The art is in the doing. For Judaism, the art is also in the community of prayers.
Day 4 of third week of Omer.
Our hands do the work of Gd. Last week we sat for meditation and I suggested resting the hands either up or down on the knees. Today, sit for meditation, in your favorite chair if you can, close the eyes partially or completely and gently place the hands over the lips. Yes, like the three monkeys, “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.” Lower your elbows so they are resting and supported by your body wherever they fall so you are not straining. Contemplate what your world would be like if you “spoke no evil.” Lashon harah, bad speech or gossip is one of the highest level chets, missing the marks, in Judasim. Lashon hara, say our Sages, can lead to stealing, adultery, and murder whether of the physical person or their reputation and good name. Adonai sifotai tiftach ufee yagid tehilatecha, “Open my lips that my mouth may declare Your Glory” we say at the beginning of the Amidah, the standing prayer. But while we are sitting in quiet meditation let us close our lips to hurtful speech. Continue contemplating your chosen phrase, visualizing all that comes from your mouth as gratitude, praise, or belief in the divinity that surrounds us. If the arms become uncomfortable, lower them and place hands on the knees. End the meditation with a deep breath.
Day 5 of the third week of the Omer. Preparing for Shabbat.
Do you notice any change in how you feel after three weeks of meditation? Can you find ten to twenty minutes in your day to keep up the practice? Is there any difference in how you conduct your day before or after you meditate? Could you imagine dedicating a half day a week to Shabbat? Peacefully accepting creation without feeling the need to acquire, create, just being? Could you contemplate a day with elevated speech and refraining from lashon harah? This Shabbat consider celebrating or observing the Sabbath in a new way and catch yourself whenever you hear yourself speak ill of anyone or anything. Pretend that you are always in the presence of the Divine.
Shabbat Shalom everyone and Happy Mother’s Day. Remember that EVERDAY is Jewish Mother’s Day!
Week #2 - Counting the Omer
Putting the OM in Omer – Week #2
Day 1 – Last week we approached meditation while walking to the Ve’Ahavtah just incase you thought you could never sit still long enough. If you feel comfortable walking through meditation, keep it up. But for those who feel they can sit, take a twenty minute break from your (work)day, find a place where there is likely not going to be distractions and relatively quiet and sit in a comfortable chair. Close you eyes gently and place your hands on your knees. Breathe in and out in a regular breath and simply consciously follow your breath. In, out. If your mind wanders or thoughts of any kind pop into your mind, bring your thoughts gently back to the breath. Whether the thoughts are negative or positive is of no consequence, simply bring the mind back to the observation of the breath in and out. You may gently look at your watch to see how much time has passed. Gently return to the breath if your time is not up.
Day 2 - Is meditation Jewish? The word hagah in the Torah seems to indicate a kind of meditation that is not explained, something qualitatively differentfrom prayer. David Kimchi of the 12th century, known as Radak, wrote that hagah can be like the cooing of a dove or the roaring of a lion. Depending on the quality of your breath, your meditation could go either way! Take another ten to twenty minute break in the late morning or afternoon, sit quietly in a chair and this time place your hands face up on your knees. Close your eyes completely or partially and follow the breath again. In and out.
Day 3 - Did you notice a difference between the hands up or down? Sit again comfortably, close eyes partially or totally and breathe. Follow the breath with your mind, allowing stray thoughts to enter and gently leave and return to the breath. If doubt enters that this is not a Jewish preoccupation be assured that the Talmud and Midrash describe ancient schools of meditation with countless adherents. Last week, we looked at our world of beauty. This time listen carefully to your breath as it enters and exits your body.
Day 4 – Are you filling your lungs completely with breath? Can you hear it? Begin the intake by breathing into your belly, moving up to the chest and finally the clavicle. Reverse to exhale. When sitting at the beach one day, meditating, I became aware that my breath imitated the in and out of the ocean and I could hear in my mind the word Ya as the wave came in and Vah as the wave went out. Pick a two sylable word, perhaps in Hebrew, such as She-ma (Listen), Ya-weh, Ya-vah, (4-letter names for God that we don’t really know how to pronounce), Ash-rei (Praise), Ah-hoov (Love) Ri-bone (Master), O-lam (Eternal), Gi-boor (Strength), A-vot (Ancestors-Fathers), I-ma (Mother), To-dah (Thanks), To-rah (Teaching), Ge-ul (Redemption). Use an English word, Yiddish word or any other language if you wish but make it a word that is melodious and represents something sacred.
Day 5 – Give yourself the gift of ten to twenty whole minutes of breathing calm in preparation for Shabbat or in Shabbat. You deserve it! Sit quietly, breathe, let your word drift in and out with each breath. At the end of this day’s meditation, ask the following questions: How will you prepare for Shabbat this week? What will you do or not do? Can you use your gift of hearing as a source of soothing this Shabbat? What could you give to yourself and family to draw closer to Eden?
***I will lead a meditation in the sanctuary at 12 PM this Saturday, May 3rd, after Torah study for a half an hour. Join me. ***
Week #1 - Counting the Omer
Putting the OM in Omer.
The seven weeks between Pesach and Shavuot are a special time of focus. I would like to take this time to explore with the congregation ways to develop “the still small voice” within by quieting the mind and relaxing the body. In the following weeks I will suggest ways in which this can be explored. In our over-stressed lives we rarely take the time each day to stop and detach ourselves from the frenetic life around us. Yet doing just that is an integral part of our Jewish tradition in the form of Shacharit, Mincha and Maariv, the morning, afternoon and evening services. How can we reclaim that wisdom between break neck work and long commutes? Many of you may already practice meditation in some form. Where once meditation was an exotic new age and dubious practice, recent controlled experiments with long term meditating Buddhists monks demonstrate that a meditative practice can have permanent and profound effects on the health of the brain and the body. Meditation has long been a part of Jewish tradition but in Judaism’s most rational periods it was hidden. Let’s explore the Jewish roots of meditation. Each week I will suggest a meditation technique, a Hebrew word, melody or verse to contemplate. Take a few minutes, 10-20 if you can, for at least three days each week and see if this discipline can have an effect on your inner spiritual life.
***On Wednesday, April 23rd from 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm Rabbi Lynn will lead a walking meditation. Please join her if you can!***
Week One:
Day one of the Omer: Monday April 21. When I was young I never thought I had the zits flesh, the ability to sit still long enough to meditate. But when I read the Vietnamese Buddhist Monk, Thich Naht Hanh’s book on walking meditation and tried the technique, I was hooked. The technique is easy. Walk ever so slowly in a place of beauty, count aloud one to four as you walk four steps, stop, smile. That’s it. Count and walk four more steps and smile. Repeat. Repeat for ten to twenty minutes.
Day two: Tuesday April 22. The Shma and Ve’ahavta are prayers said everyday three times a day, including once before bed. The Ve’ahavta (“And you shall love the Lord…”) instructs that one “should teach these words when you are sitting at home and when you walk by the way.” Try TNH’s walking meditation again today but instead of counting, say the six words of the Shma, one word for each step and smile. Repeat. Remember to walk very, very slowly. If you wish, you can say the Ve’ahavta while you are walking, reading it from a book or from memory. It’s on page 130, 131 of Gates of Prayer.
Day three: Wednesday April 23. Don’t know what to do with your hands? Put them in the classic prayer position, palm to palm and walk with the Shma as above.
Day four: Thursday April 24. Again walk slowly using the Shma Yisrael to count your steps, smile after six. Gaze at a thing of beauty. A flower, insect, tree bud, squirrel, cloud etc. Walk, Shma, smile, gaze at a thing of beauty. Repeat.
Day five: Friday April 25. Give to yourself the time to repeat this walking exercise. Prepare for Shabbat by asking yourself “Do I notice the beauty of creation around me?” Shabbat shalom everyone.
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