Archive for the ‘Calendar’ Category

Hosha’not

Monday, September 23rd, 2013

From Reb Zalman:

HOSHA’NOT  / הושענות are recited while walking with the Lulav and Etrog around the Torah desk, each one on its day, each day of Sukkot. All seven are then also recited on Hosha’na Rabba, THE GREAT HOSHA’ANA DAY and in some communities these seven are also accompanied by the sounding of the SHOFAR.  This version following the traditional one is based on the seven days of the Creation story and follows the English ABC while the traditional version has all the letters of the Alefbet and is based on other levels of the interpretation of the quality of the days. The traditional versions Hosha’ana 4, 5 and 6 have strong ecological concerns and were the encouragement to offer these

 

For the first Thursday – turn (This year,  September 19, 2013)

Hosha’na for the sake of the Aura of life the Beams of Light the Clearness of Light the Dynamics of Light the Effulgence of Light the diFfraction of light the Glory of light the Haloes of light the Illumination of light the Joys of sight

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HaShir for High Holydays

Tuesday, August 27th, 2013

Reb Zalman sends these singable texts in English for liturgy of this time of year. Use them when you davenn during this season. Click here to download a word document with all the texts for yourself.

KI HINEH KAHOMER
DIRGE ON AUSCHWITZ
AVINU MALKENU
T’SHUVAH
A SONG FOR RAISING CONSCIOUSNESS PSALM 130
AVOT
MALKHUYOT
SHOFAR
ZIKHRONOT
SHOFROT
ABBA, ABBA HAVE PITY!
VIDDUI
Kavvanah for KOL NIDRE
YOU HOLD OUT A HAND

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Dear God!

Monday, August 26th, 2013

Reb Zalman sends the following song. Click here to hear it sung by Reb Zalman.  Click here to open pdf

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13AttributesBBB2

A Gentle Prescription

Monday, August 26th, 2013

Reb Zalman sends his Hattarat Nedarim / The Release of Vows. It is based upon the traditional formula usually recited erev Rosh Hashanah. This gentle prescription prepares us for the prayers and liturgy of the Yamim Noraim / The Days of Awe. Read it over to see how it resonates for you; then find three people to serve as your judges to read it some time close to Rosh Hashanah. LeShanah Tovah u-Metukah / for a good and sweet year. From Gabbai  Seth Fishman

“My friends: I ask the three of you to serve as judges in a court empowered to release one from vows. Will you please serve for me in this capacity?”

The judges: “Yes, we are prepared to hear you.”

“What follows is not intended to void promises I made to other people from which only they can release me.

“From time to time in this past year, I made vows, sometimes having spoken them out loud, or having made a resolution, or sometimes just having had the intention to change something in my actions, or to change something in my behavior, or an attitude in my mind. Some were in relation to myself, to my body, to my mind, or to my soul. Some dealt with the way in which I was to conduct myself in relation to others. Most of all, there were those that dealt with my relation to God.

“At times, I undertook a practice or a custom, doing it three or more times, but having since willingly or unwillingly abandoned it and, I know that this, too, has had the power of a vow.

“When I have asked in my prayers for people, whether prayers for healing, for blessing or for the repose of souls departed, in which the formula included, ‘Because I shall contribute to tzedakah‘, I may have forgotten to do it or may not have been aware I said it. I ask you to release me from these as well.

“All these I regret and, I ask you to recognize my regret and to release me from all these vows.”

The judges: “Hearing your regret, we release you. All is forgiven, all is released. And may it be that just as we, here below, have released you from these vows and obligations, so too may it be that you may be released from the same by the court above.

“As I stand here, aware of my fickle nature in matters of vows, promises and resolutions, I hereby declare that for the coming year, should I again offer such vows, promises and resolutions, may they have no effect and not become binding on me. At this moment, I regret any of these and wish that they not be valid.”

The judges: “We have heard your declaration and consider it licit and legal.

May you be blessed with a good year, inscribed in the book of life and sealed for good.

In Honor of Aaron’s Passing

Wednesday, July 10th, 2013

Click here for Hebrew text. (Below is a word-for-word translation.)

Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av in honor of the passing of the Tzaddik Aaron, attendant to the regal bride, Aaron the Priest – invited guest for the Sefirah Hod!

For in his life, Aaron offered many offerings, and always, with their bringing of an offering, when he heard the verbal confessions of the baalei teshuvah, he emphasized the phrase, (Leviticus 1:2), “when a person brings an offering it is of you“, that, in truth, it was the sinner’s job to offer up himself for sins in error [שוגג], while for sins done intentionally [מזיד] they, [the sinners], are punished.

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Accessing Bnot Zelophehad Energy

Friday, June 28th, 2013

Click here for text in Hebrew.

It’s been a long journey getting to the Land. On the way, we received the Torah and along with it, lots of laws and rules. But were those rules and the guidance they provided really sufficient for all our future needs? Was it given complete to Moses for all time with us now simply using it as our guide for every situation going forward?

The following texts will give us clues for some answers:

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The Gift of Shavuot

Sunday, May 12th, 2013

Click here for Hebrew text.

Shavuot‘s Sefirah is Gevurah. Gevurah is understood as God’s mode of punishing the wicked and judging humanity in general. It is the foundation of stringency, absolute adherence to the letter of the law, and strict meting out of justice. It is Yitzchak‘s time and the day of giving Torah, (Eruvin 54), “From the mouth of the Gevurah” we heard when the mountain was picked up and held over our heads.

On Shavuot, the Sefirah of Binah shines in its fifty gates within the attribute of Gevurah. An attempt to access Binah‘s light is humbling because she encompasses every combination from Chesed Sheb’Chesed down through Malchut Sheb’Malchud along with one that is beyond these.

So receiving Torah from Gevurah is somewhat like a Hebrew school teacher who hits you on the back of the hand when you did something wrong; not like Pesach where you had chesed chinam, freely bestowed love. You are like a Kindergarten child and God is stripping down the Torah to make it accessible to the small portion of which you may be capable.

We learned that on Shavuot the entire Torah was given, but we also learned that the light of Binah delivered by Gevurah was condensed into ten Commandments, so everybody can relate: 1) Anochi, deal with this, God, a presence. 2) You shall not have other gods, just stick with Hashem, don’t be swayed or distracted. 3) Don’t take the name in vain, what’s in a name(?), but okay. 4) Keep the Shabbos, makes good sense. 5) Honor your mom and dad, really(?), well, if you say so, will do our best. 6) Don’t murder, ok. 7) Don’t commit adultery, Check.  8) Don’t steal, Yes, feels wrong. 9) Don’t bear false witness, 10) Don’t covet, we have done this; we will do our best. That’s the way it is given, condensed into the ten and, the Shechinah was also condensed.  She usually flies all around creation but for an instant on Shavuot she is focused between the two staves of the ark, and gives revelations to us.

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Beauty’s Joyful Excitement

Friday, April 26th, 2013

Here is a link to the Hebrew text:

When we count the Omer starting with Chesed of Chesed and ending with Malchut of Malchut, then Lag B’Omer, the thirty-third day, is Hod Sheb’Hod. Hod represents “beauty“, “a sense of perfection“, “balance“, “symmetry” and “aesthetic“. For an entire week this is our theme and, as we go through the days of the week we arrive at Hod sheb’Hod on the fifth day of our Hod-focused work. It is that part of the work in which we are remembering that we need to be sensitive to the level of “affect” in the way that we present the Hod on which we are working. Hod is to be presented in a way that is respectful of its non-verbal impact on the receiver, of how it is felt, and of the sense of beauty one feels when it is handed over. So Hod Sheb’Hod is “the beauty of the beauty”.

In Genesis 32:26, after the angel wrestles with Jacob and Jacob prevails, the angel injures Jacob’s left leg, (when the Sefirot are mapped to the parts of the body, Netzach and Hod are associated with the right and left legs respectively), and his left leg is dislocated from its socket. Here is the interpretation on a symbolic level (cf Pardes Rimmonim Shaar 17:1):

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Paying Teshuvah Forward

Thursday, April 18th, 2013

The following is based on a Hebrew Text from Reb Zalman’s Sefer, Yishmiru Daat.  Click here for Reb Zalman’s text in Hebrew.  Rebuking a person can help him onto a path of Teshuvah, which begins to effect repair for the sin.  (Freely translated by Gabbai Seth Fishman)

The Torah states: “Be sure to rebuke et amitecha / your fellow group member and don’t bear a sin through him.” (Leviticus 19:17)

When a person does something wrong and we witness it, then the person is to be rebuked.  When we close our eyes to the sins of others and avoid dealing with the anxiety or stress we may feel in taking a stand, then we are being passive to the situation.  The rebuking can be a very important thing to the person, the group and the world. Let’s look more closely at how it can help.

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Sefer ha-Hasidut Shvat Yahrzeiten

Tuesday, January 8th, 2013

Sefer ha-Hasidut (Rafael, Yitzhak, ed., Tel Aviv: Avraham Zioni, 1972), with around one hundred Rebbes, is arranged according to Yahrzeit. Now the material has been scanned with OCR.

Here are the Shvat sections in Hebrew only. (Please click the Rebbe to see a section):
2 Shvat: Reb Zusha of Anipoli
4 Shvat: Rabbi Yisroel of Polotzk
4 Shvat: Rabbi Abraham Kalisker
4 Shvat: Rabbi Moshe Leib Erblich of Sassov
5 Shvat: Reb Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter (“Sefat Emet”)
7 Shvat: Rabbi Dovid Biederman of Lelov
10 Shvat: Reb Shlomo Lutzker
21 Shvat: Reb Yitzchak of Neshchiz
22 Shvat: Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk (“Kotzker”)
22 Shvat: Reb Leibele Eiger

ספר החסידות
הרב משולם זלמן חייא הכהן
שחטר-שלומי שליט”א

שבט יאָהר-צייטען

ב’ שבט רבי זושה מהאניפולי
ד’ שבט רבי ישראל מפולוצק
ד’ שבט רבי אברהם מקאליסק
ד’ שבט רבי משה ליב מסאסוב
ה’ שבט רבי יהודה אריה ליב מגור
ז’ שבט רבי דוד מלילוב
י’ שבט רבי שלמה מלוצק
כ”א שבט רבי יצחק מנישכיז
כ”ב שבט רבי מנחם מנדל מקוצק
כ”ב שבט רבי יהודה ליב אייגר מלובלין