COUNTING THE OMER – This prayer is traditionally recited between sundown and sunrise of each day.
Day 21: Malchut she b’Tiferet
The Blessing (Day 21):
Baruch atah Adonai elohaynu melech ha’olam asher kidshanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al sephirat ha’omer.
Blessed are you, G-D, Source of Harmony, You make us holy through your mitzvot, commanding us to count the Omer.
Ha yom echad v’esrim yom, shehem shlosha shavuot l’Omer. Today is the twenty-first day of the Omer, which makes three weeks of the Omer.
Week Three – Tiferet (Harmony, Balance, Beauty)
Day Twenty-one: Malchut she b’Tiferet (Indwelling Presence within Harmony) – BETWEEN FEET/AT MOUTH to HEART
This Indwelling Presence of G-D is an ideal counsel, judicious yet informed by the spirit of compassion in Harmony. It reminds me of the wise leader who understands how to get the most positive from everyone – by using Balanced consideration of all factors. It is the kind of guidance that takes into account not just the goal to be achieved, but the effect each approach may have on those involved. It is guidance without domineering control – a leadership that places dignity of compassion as a main tenet. This is something that I admit I strive to do as a leader. I don’t always hit the mark, I am sure. But I try, always, to be open to hear the other side, just accept that my initial way may not be appropriate, and to try to find the solution to any situation that is best for everyone. I never liked as a volunteer, a student or a child to be told that “it’s just the way we do it” or “because I said that’s how we will do it.” I know that things aren’t always able to be equal, but there needs to be some kind of Balance and Harmony in what we do together. That is what today’s theme makes me consider – how to bring that aspect into our lives to create a world of Balance.
Malchut she b’Tiferet calls us to our role as stewards of the earth: it reminds us to care for the earth, animals, other people. It also reminds us to care for OURSELVES appropriately and with respect. Kabbalistic tradition teaches that humans are in partnership with G-D to help perfect the world and that neither G-D nor humans can do it alone. Today’s theme of Malchut she b’Tiferet reminds us that both our own dignity and the dignity of the one who is benefiting from our action must be considered for Harmony to be achieved.
Many of us are much better at taking care of others than we are at admitting we need help. It is difficult for many of us to graciously receive the caring of others. We must recognize that, by moving past this difficulty, by seeking and accepting counsel and support, we can reach a new state of deep understanding and inner serenity.
Personally, I am fond of guided meditations, and I am most drawn to those that envision an outdoor beautiful natural environment as part of the meditative space. As we imagine a place that is quiet, calm, with outer stillness, we recognize how this mirrors an inner tranquility. My favorite meditative space, both physically when available to me, as well as internally within my minds’ eye, is in a cool forest, at springtime, near a gently moving brook or creek, at midday. This is where I am most comfortable and at peace. It is a space I visited often as a child growing up with a father who loves the outdoors, and for me, this is the space I most connect to the feeling of Indwelling Presence within Harmony.
Today, especially with the current pandemic as well as tragic events that occur too often in our world, it can be hard to find that space of Harmony and Beauty, of inner tranquility. Now, more than ever, we need to reconnect ourselves to our own inner guidance, so we can be balanced and capable of continuing our call to actions that will help sustain, balance, and heal the world. On this day of Malchut she b’Tiferet, take 10 minutes of personal time to sit up straight, breathe in 3 deep cleansing breaths, and imagine a place where you feel most comfortable and peaceful. Remember that there is a Beauty within each of us to be found and to be shared with others, and that we are called upon to participate through acts of healing that will help bring Balance and Harmony to the world, to our community, to our family, and to ourselves.
Yedi'a 