As Kislev approaches my mind once again turns to the corners of my Tallitot — which are vacant of Tzitzit. I have had an amazing emotional block around tying Tzitzit to my daily tallit and my ceremonial one. Tzitzit are hugely important to me. As a spiritual practice they not only make sense to me at a primal level, but also as a “magickal” tool via the tying of knots — and it’s a direct mitzvah from the Torah.
Elul – Preparing for The Days of Awe
Elul is a month of preparation. It’s a month to continue healing from Av, but mostly it’s about preparing for the Yamim Noraim (ים נוראים) – The Days of Awe. The symbol of the month is Cattle, which I guess we could interpret a lot of different ways, but I want to offer a specific interpretation for the PunkTorah community in preparing for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot (aforementioned Days of Awe).
Cattle – the Symbol of Elul
Elul is a month of preparation for Rosh Hashanah — at least in modern Judaism. It’s interesting then, that the first of Elul is the “New Year of Cattle.” In ancient Israel it’s the time when the cattle were counted and tithed. Cows are mentioned from time-to-time in the Tanakh and other scripture — think about the seven cows (פָּרוֹת) of Pharoah’s dream (Gen 41), the bullock (בָּקָר) regularly sacrificed, and of course the golden calf (עֵגֶל) that got us into a lot of trouble.
Considering this, you’d expect there to be several entries in the Encyclopedia of Jewish Symbols about cows, calves, bulls, and cattle. But the only one there seems to be the one about the Golden Calf.
Why??
Eyes, Symbol of Tammuz
Tammuz 5772 begins at sundown on June 20, 2012 and ends at sundown July 19, 2012.
Tammuz is another one of those months with no holidays, except for a minor fast, and no real practices associated with it. At least not any I’ve found. This makes a lot of sense when you think of the Jewish wheel of the year in relationship to agrarian cycles. The summer months are when there is too much work to be done in the fields sowing, tilling, planting and harvesting. Even though there isn’t a specific practice that we can associate with Tammuz, there is a theme. It’s vision and eye sight. Tammuz is a month that challenges us to really see what’s in front of us and focus.
If vision is the theme, then eyes are the symbol.
The practice for Tammuz then, is to see. Open your eyes. Look at the world around you this summer. Take in all the color, the wonder, the humor, the magick and mystery of the summer as it unfolds. Notice things you’ve just walked past before. See the beauty in everything, from graffiti to the most luscious garden.
Take pictures and share the beauty that you find. Find new ways to see old things and share that.
See. Really see. See those around you. See yourself.
Tammuz is a month for clarity and vision. So open your eyes.
ברוּכָה אַת, שְכִינָה, אֱלֹהֵינוּ רוּחַ הָעוֹלָם, פּוֹקֵֽחַ עִוְרִים
Blessed are you Holy One, your Presence fills creation, opening the eyes.
Finding Refuge in the Month of Elul
It’s Jewish tradition to read Psalm 27 daily during the month of Elul, which falls during August and September. In this month of Elul, we have no holidays. It’s the month where we are supposed to turn inward and prepare for the High Holy Days: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. It always seems like this month should be one of quiet reflection, but it never is for me.
>>>> Read the rest of this post at NPR’s “Being Blog.” >>>>>