Meditation for the Holidays of Tishrei

The following meditation is based on the correspondence of the holidays of Tishrei to the five parts of the essential Name of the Almighty, Havayah

Crown and Wisdom: Rosh Hashanah

The first two days of the month of Tishrei are Rosh HaShanah, the New Year, literally "the head of the year." According to Kabbalah, there are two spiritual levels that are called "head."

The first, higher "head" is the highest sefirah (Divine emanation), the supernal crown (keter), whose physical image in the Kabbalah is the skull, situated above and encompassing the brain. Spiritually, it corresponds to the power of will. On this first day of Rosh HaShanah, we "crown" G-d, our King, by nullifying our will to His will.

The second "head" is the next sefirah, wisdom (chochmah), or more specifically, the origin of wisdom within the crown itself, which "shoots" its "arrows"--flashes--of insight to the revealed, conscious wisdom of the mind. On the second day of Rosh HaShanah, we continue the service of the previous day, but with the special emphasis of nullifying our "thoughts" to G-d's "thoughts" (by "remembering" Him, for which reason Rosh HaShanah is called "the Day of Remembrance"--He remembers us and we remember Him).

The two levels of "head"--"crown" and "wisdom"--are considered one, for in the secret of G-d's essential Name (the Tetragrammaton), they correspond to the yud (wisdom) and the upper tip of the yud: both levels are united in the first letter (the "head") of G-d's Name. (This is why, with regard to certain aspects of Jewish law, the two days of Rosh HaShanah are considered one "long" day.)

Understanding: Yom Kipur

Even though "crown" is the highest sefirah, it possesses an inner dimension, which corresponds to the super-rational pleasure that motivates will. On Yom Kippur, this inner dimension of the "crown" reveals itself in the third sefirah, "understanding" (binah), which corresponds to the second letter of G-d's Name, the first hei. In Kabbalah, binah is associated with the image of the "mother" who "cleanses" her "children" (the emotions, as we will presently explain) from their impurities. On this day, we cleanse our consciousness of all "impurity" by "returning" to G-d ("returning," in general, corresponds to the property of "mother," as explained in the Zohar), and dedicate our lives to His service and the fulfillment of His purpose in Creation.

Knowledge through Foundation: Sukot

The seven days of the festival of Sukot correspond to the next seven sefirot, the attributes of the heart: the six emotions of love (chesed), fear (gevurah), mercy (tiferet), trust (netzach), sincerity (hod), devotion (yesod); and the origin of humility (malchut) within one's devotion to G-d. We are taught by the Arizal that, the seven components of the four species we "shake" on Sukkot (the three myrtle branches, the two willow branches, the lulav itself and the etrog), correspond to these emotions of the heart. These seven levels--days--are all included in the secret of the third letter of G-d's Name, the vav. In our Divine service, these are days to radiate the light of joy (in the liturgy, Sukkot is called "the time of our joy") into each of the emotions of our hearts.

Kingdom: Shemini Atzeret

On the eighth day, Shemini Atzeret, we "absorb" (become "pregnant" with) all of the lights that shone throughout the month of Tishrei. This is the secret of our prayers for rain, to permeate and fertilize the earth, on this day. This corresponds to the final sefirah, malchut, which corresponds to the fourth letter of G-d's Name, the final hei. In Kabbalah, malchut is associated with the image of the "bride," whose marriage to her "groom" is consummated on this day. The service of Shemini Atzeret is to "open" ourselves in full, in humility (malchut), to bring the Divine influx of light and energy into our beings.

Simchat Torah (part of the eighth day in Israel; the ninth day in the Diaspora) is the secret of the statement of Sefer Yetzirah, "the end is enwedged in the beginning." For this reason, we conclude the reading of the Torah and begin it anew on this day. Malchut returns to keter, at its most sublime level of simple, absolute faith (above even the pleasure within will, the inner dimension of keter, as explained above with regard to Yom Kippur). On Simchat Torah, we dance round and round, endlessly, with the Torah scroll. This highest level of keter is mirrored in our focus on the experience of our dancing feet, the lowest level of our bodies. In simple faith, there is no beginning and no end; all is absolutely one.

May it be G-d's will that we be privileged to experience all the revelations described above, and may we all be blessed with a good and sweet year, in all things material and spiritual, culminating in the revelation of Mashiach and the true and ultimate redemption for the whole world.

Summary Chart

1st day of Rosh HaShana	coronation	nullifying our will to do his	tip of yud
2nd day of Rosh HaShana	coronation - with emphasis on remembrance	nullifying our thoughts to his thoughts	yud
Yom Kippur	purification & return	dedicating our lives to his service	hei
The Seven days of Sukkot	the emotions of the heart	shining the light of joy into our hearts	vav
Shemini Atzeret	consummation	humility; opening ourselves to the Divine influx	hei
Simchat Torah	he endless cycle	the climax of joy in the dance of simple faith