Yom Kippur and Mindfulness and Reflection

At 2pm tomorrow, Yom Kippur, I will be one of three people 'leading' a reflection and contemplation session at Congregation B'nai Shalom. Rabbi Sharon Sobel asked me to gather writings, poems, and other reflections and read them as a way to hold a space for reflection and contemplation...no guided meditation, no instructions, no rules...just a safe place for congregants to be alone together.

A remarkable idea and I am honored to be part of it.  Yom Kippur, I must admit, is a very sad and melancholy time for me. I take this reflection and contemplation and forgiveness stuff seriously and well - I hope I do come out the other end okay. 

Once the first notes of Kol Nidre sound, tears and emotions well up in me. It is hard work to ask forgiveness from all those whom I have sinned against.  Yom Kippur is not the time for that.  Asking God's forgiveness for those times that I have transgressed against God, is the purpose of Yom Kippur.

I think though, that in some part they are one in the same.  I know that when I hurt another I am sinning in front of God.  Frankly, nobody can beat me up emotionally as well as I can to myself...Yet from Kol Nidre to N'hilah, the 24 hours pass and I feel emotionally spent, bathed in the presence of God and wrapped in a blanket of contemplation and forgiveness.

Maybe that's why we don't bath on Yom Kippur...we don't want to wash away God's presence....

Mmmmm....

So at 2pm we will sit and I will read, the Hyde Brothers will play cello and piano... and many or few congregants will share a space together, in their own thoughts...safe, contemplative...an escape perhaps from the lure of food...and getting ready for Yitzkor and breaking the fast...yet in the that moment we can all be present with each other, for each other...and just be...

Yom Kippur is about Being Present...and that is a gift!

Thursday April 14 with Rabbi Shefa Gold - 'The Exodus Process'

Short of studying with Shefa Gold at her four week intensive in New Mexico, a weekend with her is an extraordinary experience. Hebrew Chant Boston produced a series a of programs, workshops and Shabbat services along with several local congregations from April 14-17. Maybe it was a little risky to bring in such a specialized program the weekend prior to pesach (Passover).  In any case, the sessions and services were well attended and the meditation and chanting was powerful.

Hebrew Chant Boston - Weekend with Shefa Gold

Hebrew Chant Boston is making a name for itself once again.  Founded only recently, they have been responsible for a weekend 'tour' by The Kirtan Rabbi and now a similar - pre-pesach 'tour' by Rabbi Shefa Gold.  Shefa is almost single handedly responsible for the resurgence in Jewish chant.  Her melodies have become a regular part of Shabbat services and Birkat Hamazon.

Short of studying with Shefa Gold at her four week intensive in New Mexico, a weekend with her is an extraordinary experience. Hebrew Chant Boston produced a series a of programs, workshops and Shabbat services along with several local congregations from April 14-17. Maybe it was a little risky to bring in such a specialized program the weekend prior to pesach (Passover).  In any case, the sessions and services were well attended and the meditation and chanting was powerful.

Read on and I will discuss the journey we all were fortunate to take with Shefa.  For me, I had the great pleasure of playing drums/accompanying her for 4 of the 5 sessions.  Follow these links and you can learn more about me and my drumming or about the weekly meditation sessions that I lead, or you can learn more about local chanting from Hebrew Chant Boston.

Making Shabbat Intentional

Here it is, Wednesday already - hump day.  The workweek is half over and the weekend is halfway here. Is Shabbat on your radar? Probably not.

No shame in that of course. Most people, regardless of religious persuasion don't have the Sabbath on their radar.  My experience is that even those who go to church or to synagogue pretty regularly (every week/every other week) are often going through the motions and not mindful of the Sabbath.   Many of us show up physically, but leave our intentionality at home.  Whether we show up in shul or show up on our own, how we show up, our mindfulness, or perhaps intentionality (kavanah in Hebrew), is an important consideration.

Maimonides said: "Prayer without kavanah is no prayer at all. He who has prayed without kavanah ought to pray once more. He whose thoughts are wandering or occupied with other things need not pray until he has recovered his mental composure. Hence, on returning from a journey, or if one is weary or distressed, it is forbidden to pray until his mind is composed The sages said that upon returning from a journey, one should wait three days until he is rested and his mind is calm, then he prays."

That seems to beg a question - Are the prayers of those who rarely come to synagogue heard any better or worse than the prayers of those who come to synagogue but without the appropriate intention (kavanah).?  In my world of mediation and meditation I work hard not to judge others. Rather I try to observe what they do and not do.   

As an observer, I suggest that Shabbat - that 24 hour period from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday is a time of reflection and meditation.  It is a time for family and peace.  It is a time to separate in some way from the 'daily grind'. How each of us does it and to what level of intention we do it...well only we can determine that.

I recommend intention...

Practicing Paying Attention

We think we are paying attention...we really do.  Yet the sunset and the full moon, the smell of the ocean or the cool breeze across our skin often goes unnoticed. It is all there for  us to notice... yet many of us miss it everyday.  It is important on Shabbat to just be...to be here with no need to get somewhere else.  To be present...to be here and now in the moment.

I used to work in Boston and chose to park my car in the garage under the Boston Common. It wasn't the cheapest, although it was pretty convenient.  It offered me the daily opportunity to walk through the Public Gardens on the way to my office.  Everyday each, each way I started my day with a walk through this beautiful setting - a heaven in the midst of urbana.

I could literally stop and smell the roses. It was important to me to recognize the holiness of that place and to breathe it in.  Shabbat offers us that space to find holiness in our lives...Meditation offers us skills to pay attention to that holiness...and to savor it.

Be present.