Today, the second intermediary day of Pesach (Passover), hundreds of Kohanim (Jews descended from Moses’ brother Aaron, who was the head of the priestly class) and thousands of Jews in Israel went to the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem for the traditional Birkat Kohanim (the priestly blessing).
This blessing features powerful words that can be experienced as a deep meditation. Shrouded in their tallitot (the ritual prayer shawl), the Kohanim recite the following words to the onlookers:
Continue reading #MeditationMonday – The Priestly Meditation →
Pesach (Passover) is coming soon and we Jews are busy searching for and cleaning the chametz (leavened food that is forbidden on Pesach) from our homes. But we must not get so busy searching for the pretzels our kids stuffed behind the couch cushions that we forget to look for the chametz inside of ourselves.
What is this internal chametz? It’s all the detritus – the negative character traits, immoral desires, etc. – that impurify us and hold us back from being the best that we can be.
What is YOUR chametz?
Continue reading What is YOUR Chametz? →
One simple Jew's journey to Jewish joy (simcha) via ancient and modern techniques.
