Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 29 Shevat, 5785

Good morning! As we close out this month of Shevat, and the blessings which have hopefully arrived these past two weeks, we are getting ready to shift into a BEAUTIFUL celebration in the cycle of Adar.  The holiday of Purim arrives – where we dress up and celebrate the miracle of synchronicity Hashem created in the land of Sushan.  The universe put the right people in the right place at the right time. And. These people chose courage over convenience. More to come on that.

This morning I have been contemplating this idea of “convenience.”   Romance (Beauty) is the antithesis of convenience.  I shared this with a friend who had not considered this reality.

If we want to be romanced by the universe – to feel special – we have to be willing to be inconvenienced.

Because our senses – our taste, touch, smell, hearing, and sight? Bring data into us that may disrupt the trajectory of where our mind has decided it wants to go.

If our mind is wired for survival – the inconvenience of beauty – the inconvenience of disrupted peace in a moment – is going to be a challenge for us.

However, if we shift our belief, and see these inconveniences as mere guideposts for us – and to follow our inconveniences – where might they lead us?

What if the paradox of life is – we believe our worth comes from suffering – the challenges we face and overcome within us – yet we focus our moments on what we see as convenient, and yet the life we truly DESIRE is found in our worth coming from just BEING – from ease – from flow – and THAT comes from being inconvenienced by things we have no control over – and just saying “yes” to those things that may disrupt the trajectory of our minds?

Because have we paused to consider what our minds are doing for us? Are they in survival mode? Are they trying to be strategic? And maybe that worked for a while – but now feels quite like a prison.

And the inconveniences of life are here to free us from that prison?

What if?

What are your thoughts?

Here are my thoughts from last year:

Tyler’s Torah Thoughts for 6 Adar 1, 5784
Parsha Terumah: (Exodus 25:1 – 27:19)
Fifth Portion: Exodus 26:31 – 26:37

Today’s portion is super short. Yesterday we put together the outer parts of the tabernacle. Today, we are dividing it up. Let’s dig in:

31And you shall make a dividing curtain of blue, purple, and crimson wool, and twisted fine linen; the work of a master weaver he shall make it, in a [woven] cherubim design.

32And you shall place it on four pillars of acacia wood, overlaid with gold, their hooks [shall be] gold, on four silver sockets.

33And you shall place the dividing curtain beneath the clasps. You shall bring there on the inner side of the dividing curtain the Ark of the Testimony, and the dividing curtain shall separate for you between the Holy and the Holy of Holies.

So I think we are seeing the formation of the heart here.  The “Holy of Holies.” There is holy- but there is now holy of holies. This would seem to be the heart, and we are to protect it.  Because the Torah now tells us what to put in here:

34And you shall place the ark cover over the Ark of the Testimony in the Holy of Holies.

35And you shall place the table on the outer side of the dividing curtain and the menorah opposite the table, on the southern side of the Mishkan, and you shall place the table on the northern side.

As we discussed the sefirot – the 7 sefirot are in the holy of holies. The Table – with the three (Wisdom, Understanding, and Knowledge) is right outside the Holy of Holies. It’s the way to enter.

36And you shall make a screen for the entrance of the tent, of blue, purple, and crimson wool, and twisted fine linen the work of an embroiderer.

37You shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia and overlay them with gold, their hooks [shall be] gold, and you shall cast for them five copper sockets.

Remember – when we constructed the tabernacle, one side was open.  There is a door to the tent. Five pillars of wood.  Could these connect to our five senses? Sight, Sound, Taste, Touch, Smell? These are the pathways into our bodies?

This is what I am reflecting on. How much do we ignore the senses, and focus on the mind?

What are your thoughts?