Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 28 Adar 1, 5784
Parsha Va-Yakhel: (Exodus 35:1 – 38:20)
Sixth Portion: Exodus 37:17 – 37:29

 Good morning! As we prepare for Shabbat, there are some interesting things at work. This is a SPECIAL shabbat tonight and tomorrow – Shabbat Shekalim. Because we have a leap month, an “extra” Adar – the Shabbat before the month of Adar II adds an extra Torah portion that I will dig into more tomorrow. I just wanted to make sure we are all aware of it.

In many senses, energetically, this Shabbat is about reunion.  In terms of marriage, I love what Chabad writes about that here.

The idea is the “Half Shekel” we will read about – signifies the half portion that was to be counted in the census. As we do our work within? We find reunion with the parts within us that have not been connected. We will discuss more about marriage and the half shekel tomorrow!  For now, it is this spirit of “reunion” that I want to bring with us into the Torah portion.

Yesterday, we focused on the ark and the table.  We discussed senses – and we can see the container of the ark of our hearts. The table had tools, and had the bread on it – taste. Let’s dig in:

 17And he made the menorah of pure gold; of hammered work he made the menorah, its base and its stem, its goblets, its knobs, and its flowers were [all one piece] with it.

18And six branches coming out of its sides: three menorah branches from its one side and three menorah branches from its second side.

19Three decorated goblets on one branch, a knob and a flower, and three decorated goblets on one branch, a knob and a flower; so for the six branches that come out of the menorah.

20And on [the stem of] the menorah [were] four decorated goblets, its knobs and its flowers.

21And a knob under the two branches from it, and a knob under the two branches from it, and a knob under the two branches from it; [so] for the six branches that come out of it.

22Their knobs and their branches were [all one piece] with it; all of it [was] one hammered mass of pure gold.

23And he made its lamps seven, and its tongs and its scoops of pure gold.

24He made it of a talent of pure gold, and all its implements.

Today we see the menorah. The light. We can see the light and feel the warmth of the burning. What I love about this, and what I’ve written in the past is the idea of the menorah being one piece. It was unity. And. It was separated out – the six branches and one in the center. Seven lamps. Pure gold.

Let’s keep going:

25And he made the incense altar out of acacia wood, one cubit long and one cubit wide, square, and two cubits high; its horns were [one piece] with it.

26And he overlaid it with pure gold, [on] its top, its walls all around, and its horns; and he made for it a golden crown all around.

27And he made two golden rings for it underneath its crown on its two corners, on its two sides, as holders for poles with which to carry it.

28He made the poles out of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold.

29And he made the holy anointing oil and the pure incense after the art of a perfumer.

Smell. We had taste with the bread. We have sight and touch with the menorah, and now we have smell.  We are meant to have a reunion with ALL of our senses at the same time. How often do we get AWAY from our senses -and get sucked into our mind?

May this weekend be a reunion of our senses! What are you feeling physically? What do you hear? What do you smell? What do you see? What do you taste? How often do we ask ourselves these questions?

May we all have a restful Shabbat just being in our senses!

Here are my thoughts from the past two years:

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 21 Adar, 5783

So given the joining of the two Parshas, it is FASCINATING that today’s joined Portion is just one Portion. Let’s stop and consider why this one portion may be isolated by itself. What is the message?

Given what I wrote last year about this portion, I find it fascinating. This year as we read, we are called to focus and remember how we are not separated. We are not continuous. We are not permanent. Only Hashem is.

This is the spiritual journey – to discover the freedom that comes from letting go of this idea we are separate from other human beings. They may not recognize how we are connected, but we can still see a connection. We can embrace that connection.

And we can live in this moment, knowing the next one isn’t assured. We are not permanent. We are not continuous. We are meant to adapt, to move, to be flexible. And remember we are connected. To each other.

That has consequences for us, doesn’t it?

What are your thoughts?

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 24 Adar I, 5782

Yesterday we focused on the ark; and today’s portion has us watching Bezalel crafting the candelabrum. Remembering that the ark cover and the candelabrum were the two pieces in the tabernacle that were pure gold.

We learn that the candelabrum was one single piece of metal. It’s base, it’s stem, it’s ornamental cups, spheres, and flowers were all from the same piece of metal and NOT made separately.

I looked online for an image of the candelabrum; and to be honest, nothing I saw matched what I read in the Torah portion, which is really interesting.

Here’s what the Torah says in looked like;

– 3 branches on each side

– each branch had three decorated cups, a sphere and a flower

– the stem of the candelabrum had four cups; one below the point where the branches connected and three at the top.

– the stem also had a sphere where each of the branches came out

So. What is the takeaway from todays portion?

For me, my thought connects to ourselves. We see ourselves as separated from one another. We are Individuals. But what if this isn’t true?

A recent quote I read from a book about Tibetan Spirituality had this quote:

“We seek assurances from life that confirm the unconfirmable: that we are solid separate, permanent and continuous.”

I think the message of the candelabrum (and the tabernacle) is reinforcing the message that we are NOT solid. Only Hashem is solid. We are not separate; we are one piece of metal connected together. We are not permanent as the tabernacle was never intended to be permanent. And we are not continuous; as the tabernacle and temples that came after it no longer exist.

What is continuous – is Hashem’s love. What is permanent is Hashem’s love. What is solid is Hashem’s love. And what is separate from the world around us is Hashem’s love.

The problem is we seek the answers to these questions from the world around us; and not from the creator of the universe. We are not solid as humans – we are more like a liquid or a gas. We are not separate. We try to be. But we are connected in our humanity. We are not continuous. We will all die; we won’t live forever in the human form.

Just some thoughts connected to the portion today. What about you? What are your thoughts?