In preparing for teaching today I considered several topics related to Sukkot that felt relevant… I was inspired by one of the alternate names for Sukkot- hag haAsif the festival of ingathering –not just the exterior fruits of our harvest but also our spiritual fruits that have been ripening throughout the holy season…and then I thought about the concept of community…moving from a period of t’shuvah, turning toward God…looking at our lives introspectively as individuals and now stepping out from that quiet place to one of noisy, joyful shared Sukkot meals leading us ever forward toward Simchat Torah celebrating our shared stories anew as we rewind the Torah back to the beginning.
But then it struck me during the second day of Rosh Hashannah as I was listening to Rabbi Jon talk about the 100 blessings a day we are meant to recite, and his suggestion of how we might simplify our blessings to Baruch Attah- Blessed are You-a “simplification” that of course expands into a complex web of connection-I saw a way to weave these topics together with one simple word…hodaya…gratitude.
Although Sukkot is the biblical holiday that the American tradition of Thanksgiving is based upon… that’s not why I decided on gratitude for today’s teaching…again, back to simplicity…if I personally had to choose one message in all of the Torah… that points to the essence of what I believe we are meant to understand…it could be distilled back to this one word… Hodayah…gratitude.
It really is simple…thank you. Thank You God …modah ani l’fanecha, melech chai v’kayam shehechezarta bi nishmati v’chemla raba emunatecha…I thank you God, eternal One for lovingly restoring my soul to me, filled with your eternal trust (translated by Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin) The first prayer we say in the morning as we wake up.
And…Thank you God Elohai neshama shanatata bi tehora hi
…for the pure soul you placed in me…for this breath filling me with life.
And…Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu melech haolam shehekiyanu, v’kiyamanu, v’higianu, la z’man hazeh Thank you God, creator of time and space for bringing us to THIS moment!
Our liturgy is filled with words of Thanks… and our lived moments, those rare moments of true awareness remind us on a visceral level that indeed, we have a great deal to be thankful for.
Guided Meditation
I want to spend a few moments of active meditation together…it will be a kind of chesed meditation sometimes called metta or loving kindness meditation in the Vipassana tradtion.
Lets begin with …z’man hazeh…this moment… settle into your physical body…noticing your hands…and any sensations that are present in your hands…(continue with a body scan)
Now that we are all aware of being in our bodies…lets begin to cultivate a feeling of gratitude for this moment of deep awareness…
Can you open to gratitude for being fully present in your miraculous body? In truth, we might not feel well every day. Some of us might be living with ongoing medical conditions…but thank God, our bodies are functioning well enough for us to be here right now. Take a deep breath…and release it…Notice, if you are able, what it feels like to hold an intention of gratitude in your flesh and bones. Are you able to pinpoint a specific sensation somewhere in your physical body that “speaks” gratitude to you? Is there a more global experience filling you? Maybe you don’t feel anything at all, except annoyed that I keep saying the word gratitude. What ever it is you are aware of in this moment…peace, thanksgiving, discomfort, annoyance…be with that. You might become aware that your mind is wandering off into a story…as soon as you notice that that’s happening come back to your breath and allow your breath to direct your awareness to sensation in your body. Dwell in this place for a few more breaths…
Now bring into your awareness someone you love…someone you feel deeply grateful toward. Keep it simple, as simple as being grateful toward this person for being in your life. You don’t even have to have a specific event or deed in mind. Dwell here in this heart space...in this Sukkah of hodaya…a fragile hut of gratitude…Allow this feeling to expand. Let it spread out to someone else in your life. Someone you don’t know quite as well… another person you feel gratitude toward. Allow yourself to experience feelings of thankfulness in this sukkah…in this heart-space of hodaya. With your next full breath watch this sukkah of gratitude expand yet again to include someone you really don’t know, but who you have had some interaction with at one time…Maybe a clerk in a grocery store who smiled at just the right moment…a nurse at the hospital who was kind enough to offer you a cup of coffee while you waited for a loved one to be wheeled out of the OR…a child whose laughter struck a joyful chord in your heart unexpectedly…someone who elicited a feeling of gratitude from you at one precise moment in your life…bring that memory to the surface…allow a visceral feeling of gratitude to permeate every cell of your being toward this person whose name you might not even know…Invite the memory of this person crossing your path into your sukkah of hodaya. Now permit this experience of gratitude to grow beyond the boundary of people you have had personal contact with…in your next breath expand your sukkah yet again …include grateful feelings toward the person who stocked the shelves at your local grocery store with the food you have eaten this morning…allow thanks to arise in your heart and spread toward the people who packaged your food….now include the many people who were involved in processing your food…picking…growing…planting the ingredients that were a part of your breakfast this morning…allow your gratitude to flow out…and in…direct your feelings toward the Creator…for without the Source of all Creation we could not be here and none of this goodness would be possible…be present to your entire physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual being allowing the fullness of who you are to be saturated with gratitude for z’man hazeh…for this moment of grace…of awareness…, round and whole like the harvest moon that ushered in this festival of Sukkot.
Notice any sensations that might be arising in your physical body right now. Come back to the boundaries of your flesh…of your skin…noticing the rising and falling of your chest and belly with your next breath. Gently returning to the shared space of this room…slowly opening your eyes…
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Part of yoga, the part most Americans are familiar with is the series of movements, asanas (in Sanskrit). Each movement is essentially a gesture that embodies a certain quality that we desire to bring into the world…kind of like middot (soul-qualities) in motion.
Since our theme today is Hodaya – gratitude, I’ve combined some movements that I hope you will experience as physical gestures or expressions of gratitude.
Gratitude implies relationship…whether it is a relationship between each of us and God…or between each of us and our loved ones, or other community members…there is an element of connectedness…so some of our movements might appear to be solo, from the outside…but I would like us to approach each asana with an awareness that we are indeed connected. So when practicing a solo movement…do it with God consciousness…”…an awareness of Shekhinah, God’s indwelling Presence. We will also be attempting a couple of asanas, as partners in the spirit of creating community… and as we do this I ask that we all hold an intention of thankfulness, curiosity and friendliness, bringing the spiritual fruits, the insights we have gained these past few weeks to our practice.
Asana Practice
• Warm ups-Neck-shoulders-ribs-
• seated twist (look over your shoulder at the other people in this room…and then refocus on your breath…on feeling chiyyut. Life force…the same life force that flows through you flows through me and everyone else in this space…everyone else on the planet…it is the same neshima, breath that the Holy Blessed One breathed into ADAM the first being and it continues to flow through all living things.)
• 6 movements of the spine-Marvel with gratitude at the miracle of your body…at the flexibility of your spine to move so gracefully in 6 basic directions and all of the micro movements in between.
• Child-pausing for a moment of stillness…bringing awareness to your breath. Cultivating gratitude for the ability to just stop, rest and enjoy this moment of stillness.
• Standing in mountain…Allow a feeling of gratitude to rise up from the souls of your feet…aware that you have a place to stand…here in this community…here on this earth…Your presence is valuable and there are people in this room who feel grateful that you are here.
• Barchu pose- Bending your knees –straighten them and bow forward-leading with your heart. As you bend and bow in this traditional “Jewish Asana” think about humility and how a gesture of humility might be intertwined with gratitude.
• Partnered tree pose- Hold an intention of gratitude toward your partner for “being there” to support you (each partner stands so that straight leg is on the inside-reaching out palms flat against each other, creating support through our outstretched arms)
• Mountain step feet apart-go into “full moon” – half moon with straddled feet-reaching with outside arm up and over reaching palm to palm creating a “full moon” arc with arms and side bend (in honor of the full moon of Sukkot . Please consider what the words “full” and “whole” mean in the context of gratitude in the context of community)
• Mountain-hands in prayer- turning towards partner bowing head in gratitude
• Back to back breathing (back of heart to back of heart-shoulders touching shoulders) Feel the warmth and support of your partner-heart to heart-breath to breath…connecting soul to soul…this is an unusual opportunity to feel close to another human being. Just breathe together.
• Lifting opposite arm overhead and pressing palms for shoulder and chest opening stretch. (Be aware of what it means to reach toward another person with an open heart)
• Coming to floor laying on back…bridge-being a gesher…what does is mean to BE a bridge?
• Coming down to rest completely on the floor in Sivasana
But then it struck me during the second day of Rosh Hashannah as I was listening to Rabbi Jon talk about the 100 blessings a day we are meant to recite, and his suggestion of how we might simplify our blessings to Baruch Attah- Blessed are You-a “simplification” that of course expands into a complex web of connection-I saw a way to weave these topics together with one simple word…hodaya…gratitude.
Although Sukkot is the biblical holiday that the American tradition of Thanksgiving is based upon… that’s not why I decided on gratitude for today’s teaching…again, back to simplicity…if I personally had to choose one message in all of the Torah… that points to the essence of what I believe we are meant to understand…it could be distilled back to this one word… Hodayah…gratitude.
It really is simple…thank you. Thank You God …modah ani l’fanecha, melech chai v’kayam shehechezarta bi nishmati v’chemla raba emunatecha…I thank you God, eternal One for lovingly restoring my soul to me, filled with your eternal trust (translated by Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin) The first prayer we say in the morning as we wake up.
And…Thank you God Elohai neshama shanatata bi tehora hi
…for the pure soul you placed in me…for this breath filling me with life.
And…Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu melech haolam shehekiyanu, v’kiyamanu, v’higianu, la z’man hazeh Thank you God, creator of time and space for bringing us to THIS moment!
Our liturgy is filled with words of Thanks… and our lived moments, those rare moments of true awareness remind us on a visceral level that indeed, we have a great deal to be thankful for.
Guided Meditation
I want to spend a few moments of active meditation together…it will be a kind of chesed meditation sometimes called metta or loving kindness meditation in the Vipassana tradtion.
Lets begin with …z’man hazeh…this moment… settle into your physical body…noticing your hands…and any sensations that are present in your hands…(continue with a body scan)
Now that we are all aware of being in our bodies…lets begin to cultivate a feeling of gratitude for this moment of deep awareness…
Can you open to gratitude for being fully present in your miraculous body? In truth, we might not feel well every day. Some of us might be living with ongoing medical conditions…but thank God, our bodies are functioning well enough for us to be here right now. Take a deep breath…and release it…Notice, if you are able, what it feels like to hold an intention of gratitude in your flesh and bones. Are you able to pinpoint a specific sensation somewhere in your physical body that “speaks” gratitude to you? Is there a more global experience filling you? Maybe you don’t feel anything at all, except annoyed that I keep saying the word gratitude. What ever it is you are aware of in this moment…peace, thanksgiving, discomfort, annoyance…be with that. You might become aware that your mind is wandering off into a story…as soon as you notice that that’s happening come back to your breath and allow your breath to direct your awareness to sensation in your body. Dwell in this place for a few more breaths…
Now bring into your awareness someone you love…someone you feel deeply grateful toward. Keep it simple, as simple as being grateful toward this person for being in your life. You don’t even have to have a specific event or deed in mind. Dwell here in this heart space...in this Sukkah of hodaya…a fragile hut of gratitude…Allow this feeling to expand. Let it spread out to someone else in your life. Someone you don’t know quite as well… another person you feel gratitude toward. Allow yourself to experience feelings of thankfulness in this sukkah…in this heart-space of hodaya. With your next full breath watch this sukkah of gratitude expand yet again to include someone you really don’t know, but who you have had some interaction with at one time…Maybe a clerk in a grocery store who smiled at just the right moment…a nurse at the hospital who was kind enough to offer you a cup of coffee while you waited for a loved one to be wheeled out of the OR…a child whose laughter struck a joyful chord in your heart unexpectedly…someone who elicited a feeling of gratitude from you at one precise moment in your life…bring that memory to the surface…allow a visceral feeling of gratitude to permeate every cell of your being toward this person whose name you might not even know…Invite the memory of this person crossing your path into your sukkah of hodaya. Now permit this experience of gratitude to grow beyond the boundary of people you have had personal contact with…in your next breath expand your sukkah yet again …include grateful feelings toward the person who stocked the shelves at your local grocery store with the food you have eaten this morning…allow thanks to arise in your heart and spread toward the people who packaged your food….now include the many people who were involved in processing your food…picking…growing…planting the ingredients that were a part of your breakfast this morning…allow your gratitude to flow out…and in…direct your feelings toward the Creator…for without the Source of all Creation we could not be here and none of this goodness would be possible…be present to your entire physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual being allowing the fullness of who you are to be saturated with gratitude for z’man hazeh…for this moment of grace…of awareness…, round and whole like the harvest moon that ushered in this festival of Sukkot.
Notice any sensations that might be arising in your physical body right now. Come back to the boundaries of your flesh…of your skin…noticing the rising and falling of your chest and belly with your next breath. Gently returning to the shared space of this room…slowly opening your eyes…
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part of yoga, the part most Americans are familiar with is the series of movements, asanas (in Sanskrit). Each movement is essentially a gesture that embodies a certain quality that we desire to bring into the world…kind of like middot (soul-qualities) in motion.
Since our theme today is Hodaya – gratitude, I’ve combined some movements that I hope you will experience as physical gestures or expressions of gratitude.
Gratitude implies relationship…whether it is a relationship between each of us and God…or between each of us and our loved ones, or other community members…there is an element of connectedness…so some of our movements might appear to be solo, from the outside…but I would like us to approach each asana with an awareness that we are indeed connected. So when practicing a solo movement…do it with God consciousness…”…an awareness of Shekhinah, God’s indwelling Presence. We will also be attempting a couple of asanas, as partners in the spirit of creating community… and as we do this I ask that we all hold an intention of thankfulness, curiosity and friendliness, bringing the spiritual fruits, the insights we have gained these past few weeks to our practice.
Asana Practice
• Warm ups-Neck-shoulders-ribs-
• seated twist (look over your shoulder at the other people in this room…and then refocus on your breath…on feeling chiyyut. Life force…the same life force that flows through you flows through me and everyone else in this space…everyone else on the planet…it is the same neshima, breath that the Holy Blessed One breathed into ADAM the first being and it continues to flow through all living things.)
• 6 movements of the spine-Marvel with gratitude at the miracle of your body…at the flexibility of your spine to move so gracefully in 6 basic directions and all of the micro movements in between.
• Child-pausing for a moment of stillness…bringing awareness to your breath. Cultivating gratitude for the ability to just stop, rest and enjoy this moment of stillness.
• Standing in mountain…Allow a feeling of gratitude to rise up from the souls of your feet…aware that you have a place to stand…here in this community…here on this earth…Your presence is valuable and there are people in this room who feel grateful that you are here.
• Barchu pose- Bending your knees –straighten them and bow forward-leading with your heart. As you bend and bow in this traditional “Jewish Asana” think about humility and how a gesture of humility might be intertwined with gratitude.
• Partnered tree pose- Hold an intention of gratitude toward your partner for “being there” to support you (each partner stands so that straight leg is on the inside-reaching out palms flat against each other, creating support through our outstretched arms)
• Mountain step feet apart-go into “full moon” – half moon with straddled feet-reaching with outside arm up and over reaching palm to palm creating a “full moon” arc with arms and side bend (in honor of the full moon of Sukkot . Please consider what the words “full” and “whole” mean in the context of gratitude in the context of community)
• Mountain-hands in prayer- turning towards partner bowing head in gratitude
• Back to back breathing (back of heart to back of heart-shoulders touching shoulders) Feel the warmth and support of your partner-heart to heart-breath to breath…connecting soul to soul…this is an unusual opportunity to feel close to another human being. Just breathe together.
• Lifting opposite arm overhead and pressing palms for shoulder and chest opening stretch. (Be aware of what it means to reach toward another person with an open heart)
• Coming to floor laying on back…bridge-being a gesher…what does is mean to BE a bridge?
• Coming down to rest completely on the floor in Sivasana
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