#Jewish meditation

[compassionmattersmost]

Into the Mystic: Devekut and the Journey of Clinging to the Divine

Continuing Our Journey In our last post, inspired by the teachings of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi and The Philosophy of Chabad by Nisan Mendel, we began a journey into the depths of Jewish spirituality and mysticism. This miniseries is inspired by the many timeless conversations I had with Rabbi Shmuel Reich, and it will open a window into practices that have been cherished by spiritual…

[unbidden-yidden-deactivated20240]

Now seems as good a time as ever to post this guided meditation I found that is Jewish specific:

There are more than just this by the same person, but this is the one I've listened through myself and can vouch for.

[ayeolaomolara]

Breathe Deep

Intentional breathing and meditation have saved me from falling apart during the hardest moments of my life. I honestly wouldn’t be here if I never learned how to pause and surrender to the simplicity of breath.

When I was in grade school I struggled with what felt like a mountain of insecurity and catastrophic thinking patterns. My skills in ruminating only grew stronger as the challenges I faced gained more depth. I went from battling intrusive thoughts about the color of my skin to battling thoughts about the merit of a species that creates systems that breed homelessness and genocide.

I lost my faith under the weight of what felt like an inherently cruel world. It wasn’t until I was hospitalized twice that I finally learned how to reorient myself with deep breathing.

It sounds ridiculous, but truly I’ve breathed through the worst of my experiences and made it to the other side with my mind better off. Deep breathing has allowed me to recognize what I can actually control and given me space to be gracious, regardless of my situation. Reorienting myself to my body and the peace within myself, it’s a skill and I’m so grateful to have had the chance to hone it.

With this piece I wanted to illustrate what a deep intentional breath can feel like. Everyone’s experiences are different but at this point, each conscious deep breath feels like bliss for me, it feels like calling my spirit back into my body, it feels like a hug from a loved one, a prolonged meditation practice can even feel psychedelic and euphoric for me. I’ve fallen in and out of meditation practice over the years. Currently I just practice timed meditation upon waking up (5 min) and then bursts of deep breathing throughout the day as challenged arise. I hope to get back to the hours long meditation I used to practice when I was coming out of my adolescence depression. But for now I’m really thankful to just incorporate deep breathing into my life where I can 🩷🙏🏾🌸🦧🐉

[idylls-of-the-divine-romance]

Christians who are super weird and paranoid about Eastern philosophy and religions are really weird to me. Like, let me tell you a secret about Christianity

[hole34]

you can be a buddhist and/or buddha regardless of your religion btw

contrary to popular belief buddhism isn't actually attached to only one type of theism. you can be atheist, monotheist, polytheist, pantheist, non-theist, and still be a buddhist, as well as become a buddha yourself.

some cultures may have buddhism attached to a certain theism or practice but the faith itself can and does apply to anyone.

i personally am something of a pagan buddhist, pantheist. i believe in some sort of otherworldly natural force, but i don't believe in a god. i believe nature has power of its own and consciousness is an entity above life, that consciousness is simply put into a physical body to be experienced. i believe all living species are the same, and i believe that nature is the presence of that otherworldly force. but i also believe that everyone is responsible for their own actions and has the ability to manipulate the world around, for better or worse.

you can believe in a god or gods and be a buddhist. the core belief of buddhism is the understanding of the existence of suffering, and the pursuit of peace in response. you can believe there is a god above you and still practice buddhism, you can believe there is a godly plan for you and still understand your suffering. you can believe life is nothing more than science that exists only for your one lifetime and still pursue peace and understanding of your existence as a conscious being. you can believe you have the power to control things spiritually, such as belief in spells, and still understand suffering and pursue peace.

anyone can become a buddha. all you have to have is awareness of your consciousness and even the slightest intention to understand your life, or even just to live. you can be a satanist and become a buddha, you can be jewish and become a buddha, and so on. you can be suicidal and become a buddha. you can be an addict and become a buddha. you can have mental illness and become a buddha. you can be in any position, be a victim of anything, and you still have the ability to become a buddha. sadhu. 🩷

[zebratoys]

Hebrew letters and Biblical prayers carry inscribed spiritual forces and attributes that are directly connected to the divine powers of the source. When reciting Hebrew prayers, we invoke divine energy and align ourselves with faith in God. For thousands of years, Biblical prayers and blessings have been recited so as to communicate sacred rays to Divinity’s sanctuary upper worlds igniting eternity’s glowing effect of providence and holiness.

HALELUYA releases a new coloring book of Prayers & Blessings. Glimmering with the holiness of the Torah and the Bible, The Prayers & Blessings Coloring Book of the HALELUYA: Jewish Soul Art Series gracefully endows sparks of faith, sacredness, and tribalhood essences. An art experience that offers a profound spiritual pathway to nurture ancestral holistic roots and values, renew the connection to God, the Torah, and the Land of Israel.

The Prayers & Blessings Coloring Book aims to deliver an optimal and blissful therapeutic art experience that ignites faith and radiates holiness. The prayers and blessings coloring art works promote and enhance body-mind-soul synergy, meditation, and transformations designed for loving, faithful spiritual self-exploring journeys shimmered with feelings of unity, oneness, wholesomeness and growth. All prayer and blessing coloring pages are created in the Holy Land and nourished by the Galilee wonderlands, the Holy City of Safed, and the wondrous Jordan River aura.

Buy Now on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DJJZHXD5

[dovymcjewpunk]

[brother-hermes]

WHY MEDITATE?

“One of the most elusive truths is knowledge of the self. Generally we see ourselves only through a thick veil of ego. For this reason, it is impossible to see ourselves as others see us. Through meditation, however, we can remove the veil of ego, and see ourselves with a degree of objectivity. In this manner, we can look at ourselves objectively as a third person. We are then able to see our own shortcomings and overcome them.

“The self-awareness engendered by meditation can also strengthen the ego when needed. Thus, a person with a weak self-image and feelings of inadequacy can learn to be more self-assured. He can examine his motivations and learn to become more inner-directed, doing the things he desires, and not simply what others expect of him. He can look objectively at his relationships with others and learn to improve them.

“One of the most powerful uses of meditation is to gain an awareness of the spiritual. Although we may be surrounded by a sea of spirituality, we are not usually aware of it. Spiritual sensations are quite faint and usually overshadowed by the world of the senses. Even in a state of sensory deprivation, the self-gener-ated thoughts of the mind tend to obseure spiritual sensation.

“However, if a person can quiet down all extraneous thoughts, he can then "tune in" to the spiritual. This tuning-in is what is known as the mystical experience. In this sense, meditation is the most important technique of mystics all over the world.”

-Excerpt from Jewish Meditation by Aryeh Kaplan

This is one of the best arguments for meditation I’ve ever seen. Kaplan really cuts to the core of why meditation matters.

[bubblegumpopdefiance]

I don’t think people these days are “lost” or “falling away from God.”

I think people want their religion to represent their values.

Because I see non religious people meditating, doing service, advocating for the rights of others, finding majesty in the natural world, and finding community.

People used to find these things through religion but I think religion has failed most of us.

There is goodness and majesty in the world.

Let’s find it.

And if we can’t find it, let’s make it happen.

[bubblefemmejewitchery]

hitbodedut from heyalma on ig

[compassionmattersmost]

Discovering Mystical Contemplation: The Alter Rebbe’s Practice of Hitbonenut and Bittul

Explore the transformative path of Hitbonenut and Bittul in Jewish mysticism, as practiced by the Alter Rebbe, to reach direct experience and divine unity. Translation of the Hebrew Text in the Above Image “… the esteemed Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, the great sage and author of the book Tanya, in his later years would immerse himself daily in deep contemplation and focus on achieving…

[rabbimicahstreiffer]

Stop and See: A Sermon for Rosh Hashanah 5784

Derlivered on Rosh Hashanah Morning 2023 at Congregation Kol Ami, Thornhill, Ontario. Let me ask you a question: Have you looked at the sky today? The story is told that once the great Rebbe Nachman of Bratzlav was looking out his window and he noticed one of his disciples, Chaim, rushing down the street toward the market. The Rebbe called out, “Chaim, have you looked at the sky today?”“No,…

[shamballalin]

Meditation ~ Jesus Searched for the Lost Tribes of Israel on His Journeys Through Nasibain (Nasibus between Mosul and Syria) 450 Miles from Jerusalem ~ Tehran in Iran ~ Herat in Afghanistan ~ Up the Khyber Pass on His Way to Kashmir

Let me share my travels with you. Has anyone told you where I was when I was 18 to 30 years old, and after my crucifixion until my old age? Do not despair. Others may have indoctrinated you in one religion or another. I will share my life with you, and my mission here on Earth. Cyrus II of Persia was also known as Cyrus the Great, the founder of the Achaemenid Empire, which was the First Persian…

[idylls-of-the-divine-romance]

Fundamentalist be like "I read the bible literally" but then insist that wives take their husband's last names. Genesis 2:24.

[makingqueerhistory]

I have a somewhat odd question. In June, I was part of creating an online Pride Shabbat for queer Jews unable or unwilling to go to Pride in their home area due to the rise in antisemitism, and as part of it, I wrote a memorial/Kaddish meditation about queer people across time and space. It’s fair to say I couldn’t have done it without MQH, which featured heavily in my research of historical queer figures.

I want to share the piece on Tumblr because I think some folks with progressive synagogues might like it, or may simply find it personally meaningful. Here comes the question: in any other time, I’d find it absolutely abhorrent to share it without crediting you for the time, love, effort, and care you’ve put into MQH that made my job so much simpler. But times being what they are, I don’t feel it’s right to do so indiscriminately, because I’m all too aware you may face splash damage for being associated with a filthy Bad Jew who doesn’t disavow all of Judaism etc. etc.

As a result, I feel obligated to ask if you’d prefer I omit your name from the post, especially since you’re trying to make MQH financially solvent. Please let me know, so I can decide how to structure my post.

Okay this is a complicated question. I will admit I was initially quite confused by the second paragraph of this, until I checked your blog. I realized quickly that you are refering to the fact that you're a Zionist.

I feel like I have been very public about the fact that I oppose Zionism, but in case I haven't been obvious enough, I want to say it clearly:

I learned about anti-Zionism and the movement to free Palestine from almost exclusively Jewish voices. People who have been referred to as "self-hating" when I post about them. They are voices I didn't seek out for their opinions on Palestine, but who shared their opinions with a level of love and passion that I admire deeply. They have gifted me with time and education, and they are the only reason I believe what I do today. Without these Jewish voices, I do believe I could have lost myself in the deliberate obfuscation that happens around this issue.

All of this being said, yes, please do share that I was able to help share queer stories that informed what you have created. But know, that everything I have made comes from a deep love and passion for justice that includes the Palestinian people.

[zebratoys]

Rabbi Yehuda Leib Ha-Levi Ashlag is known as בַּעַל הַסּוּלָם, Baal HaSulam i.e. "Owner of The Ladder" which refers to his magnum opus "HaSulam" and the “Talmud Eser Sefirot” kabbalah, a complete commentary on the Zohar that re-edits the works of 16th century Kabbalist Rabbi Isaac Luria. In this undertaking, Ashlag presents utmost attention and precision to clear, detailed interpretations of the sequence of the creation and the structural organization and processes occurring in the upper worlds (Olamot Elyonim). His teachings delve deeply into the Kabbalistic concept of the Ten Sephirot, the emanations through which divine energy manifests in the world, and provides profound explanations of each Sephirah and their interconnectedness, offering insights into the nature of God, creation, and the human soul. The work is divided into six volumes containing sixteen parts and over two thousand pages, and is perceived as the core of Kabbalah Mysticism that was followed by contemporary adherents who spread the teachings of the Kabbalah on a mass scale. Ashlag studied Kabbalah from the age of seven, hiding pages from the book Etz Chaim "The Tree of Life" by Rabbi Hayyim ben Joseph Vital, the foremost disciple of Rabbi Isaac Luria. His masterwork "HaSulam" (The Ladder) earned him the name “Baal HaSulam”. Ashlag experienced Kabbalah teachings as a means of profound personal transformation and his work captures the inner processes that a Kabbalist undergoes on the path of spiritual attainment and illumination toward a union with God by becoming a vessel for divine light. Baal HaSulam emphasized and advocated practical application for integration of Kabbalistic principles into ethical behavior, social justice, and interpersonal relationships. Ashlag saw that the evil inclination in people (human egoism) would rise to an altogether new height in humanity causing a new era of suffering felt as a meaningless confused existence. Tikkun Olam (Repair of the World) is central to Baal HaSulam's teachings, the idea that humanity has a responsibility to actively participate in the repair and elevation of the world by engaging in spiritual practices and acts of kindness, where disciplines focused on transforming human consciousness from a state of desiring to receive to desiring to give. Practicing individuals can thus contribute to the restoration of harmony, synergy and balance in the universe, shining sparks of a unifying glow of love across the world.