The Jewish New Year
“Use everything for your upliftment and growth’
I approach every event of my life and everything in it with a great sense of practicum. Though I like contemplating on the affairs of the world, events, people’s character or my behaviour, at the end of the day, my question stays the same: So, how am I going to use this for my upliftment and growth? I am not willing to brood over or judge the ‘unfairness’ of life: I KNOW that there are no coincidences and each life event offers an opportunity to gain greater awareness of my existence.
This is why I like observing different spiritually infused or religious celebrations. Today we are celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the New Year, in the Jewish tradition.
Some information on Rosh Hashanah:
The two days of Rosh Hashanah usher in the Ten Days of Repentance (Aseret Yemei Teshuvah), also known as the Days of Awe (Yamim Noraim), which culminate in the major fast day of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The Days of Awe represent the climax of a longer process. Starting at the beginning of the previous month, called Elul, the shofar is traditionally sounded at the conclusion of the morning service. A ram’s horn that makes a trumpet-like sound, the shofar is intended as a wake-up call to prepare for the Tishrei holidays. One week before Rosh Hashanah, special petitionary prayers called Selichot are added to the ritual. Rosh Hashanah itself is also known as Yom Hadin or the Day of Judgment, on which God opens the Books of Life and Death, which are then sealed on Yom Kippur.
The prayer book for the High Holidays is called the Mahzor. Three unique sets of prayers are added to the morning service during Rosh Hashanah. These are known as Malkhuyot, which address the sovereignty of God, Zikhronot, which present God as the one who remembers past deeds, and Shofarot, in which we stand in nervous anticipation of the future.
Each of these sections culminates in the blasts of the shofar, the most potent symbol of the holiday. The shofar is alluded to in the most memorable Torah reading for the holiday, the Akedah or Binding of Isaac (Genesis 22). The story and the shofar serve as reminders of the covenant between God and the people of Israel, carrying with them the message of sacrifice, hope, and continuity.
This is the time of year during which we are to atone for both our individual — and on Yom Kippur, our communal — sins committed over the course of the previous year, before God literally closes the books on us and inscribes our fates for the coming year. God’s rule over humanity and our need to serve God are stressed time and again over the course of the holiday.
In my interpretation, by observing Rosh Hashanah, the 10 Days of Awe and Yom Kippur, we can look at some past events and move into forgiveness and release with them. If you do not follow the Jewish calendar, you don’t need to assume that these days mark the end of the year. Nevertheless, it maybe a great opportunity to summon some awareness of thoughts, beliefs, behavioural patterns that do not serve you any longer and move into acceptance of the past, forgiveness of yourself, and releasing it all into the nothingness so you can turn to the future with greater Zeal.
So, how am I going to use this – the observation of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur -for my upliftment and growth? Personally, I will spend some time during my mediation-prayer time in contemplation of the above. I will look at and observe recent events that seem to have a tail in the past and see if I can move into forgiveness and release with those that do not serve me any more.
At the beginning of this week, I visited my family of origin and the country where I grew up. Every time I visit, I find myself drawn back to my childhood. I notice the reasons behind our dread and I keep on reliving the past. I had enough! The past is not ‘here’ any more. I do not live under the same circumstances and still I feel the same anxiety and weariness.
It maybe true that the people have not moved on much over there, but it should not stop me moving on. Without forgiving, however, I cannot release the self-protective behaviours I generated as a response to the vile environment I lived in. It is a sword with two edges. On one hand, I still believe in some false-truth that I grew up with that generate my self-protective response. On the other hand, every time I visit there, I turn my focus backwards and relive the horrors of the past. It is all because I have not let go. I am still looking for some ‘resolution’ or ‘fixing’ of what went wrong. There is a part of me who is still outraged by the events and the suffering those caused. But the past cannot be corrected or changed. I need to release the need for revenge or retribution because they poison my present. I relive the anxiety of the past because I have not moved on.
While I am observing Rosh Hashanah. I will observe and attempt to consciously put this sword to rest. I will ask the Divine Presence to support me in my endevour to free myself from the chains of unforgiveness and mistaken beliefs held in the past.