BHBW - THE ALEPH-BET                            KISLEV 5784  / 2023   SAMECH - סמך A day's light fluxes in tides: pale and gleaming at dawn, the glare of noon, the gold of evening, the promise of twilight -- every second of every day has its own magic.  Anthony Doerr - The Shell Collector THE SHAPE AND MEANING OF THE SAMECH Samech depicts the endless cycle. Negatively, a circle can be a cycle that goes nowhere. Psychologically,  a circle can be compared to a rut - the mindless cycle of

BHBW - THE ALEPH-BET                            CHESHVAN 5784  / 2023   NUN If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, will make Myself known to him in a vision. I will speak with him in a dream. Numbers 12:6  THE SHAPE AND MEANING OF THE NUN The letter Nun, like the Mem, has two forms. At the start or within a word it has a bent shape and at the end of a word it is extended downward in a straight line. In Torah script both forms have three

BHBW - THE ALEPH-BET                            TISHREI 5784  / 2023   MEM Shout for joy to Adonai all the earth; burst into song, sing with joy, make music to Adonai. Psalms 98:4 THE SHAPE AND MEANING OF THE MEM The letter Mem has two forms. The regular Mem is like a square with a small opening at the bottom left corner. The final Mem, or Mem sofit, is a complete square.  The Mem is associated with water - mayim The word is written with a Yod between the two Mems

 BHBW - THE ALEPH-BET                            ELUL 5783  / 2023                            CAF- LA’MED   Who shall ascend the mountain of the LORD? Or who shall stand in His holy place?  He that has clean hands, and a pure heart.   Psalms 24:4 THE SHAPE AND MEANING OF THE CAF / CHAF Caf is the first letter that changes form when at the end of a word. If at the start of a word, such as kapit -

PSALM 27 THERE ARE EASIER PSALMS: Some ring with “HalleluYah” or feature nature’s joy in field and tree; others darker, give us short and piercing cries of the heart. But not Psalm 27. Not this poem that Jewish tradition bids us read for fifty consecutive days each year. Here, we encounter something more nuanced: the psalm of spiritual struggle, the heart that sings and weeps, the intimate wrestling match between faith and doubt that characterizes our existence… Psalm 27 knows our pain and our joy…It is the voice of stubborn and challenged faith…it is for the obstacles without and the

ELUL - The Sixth Hebrew Month BLESSING OF THE NEW MONTH – BIRKAT HA’CHODESH May it be Your will, O LORD, our God and the God of our forefathers, that You inaugurate this month of Elul upon us for goodness and for blessing. May You give us long life, a life of peace – Shalom a life of goodness – Tovah a life of blessing – Bracha a life of sustenance - Parnassa a life of physical health – Hilutz Atzamot a life in which there is a fear of heaven and fear of sin – Yirat Shamayim ve’ Yirat

Man needs difficulties; they are necessary for [ mental, physical, and spiritual ] health! ~ Carl Jung THE SHAPE AND NAME OF THE ZAYIN The letter Zayin is in the shape of a Vav whose head extends in both directions ’crowning’ the letter, as it were. In the Torah, the Zayin is given three tagin or crowns. There are seven Hebrew letters that are given three tagin - Shin - ש  , Ayin - ע , Tet - ט , Nun - נ , Zayin - ז , Gimmel, -  ג and Tzaddi - .צ .  Each of the tagin can

  You, imprisoned in the shells in which society, state, church, school, economy, public opinion, and your own pride have stuck you - indirect one among indirect ones, break through your shells, become direct…have [ good and true ] contact. ~ Martin Buber, in What Is to Be Done?  1919 THE SHAPE OF THE TET The letter Tet has its own unique shape. It has two heads. The left head and leg are in the shape of a Zayin, which is adorned with three crownlets or tagin. The right side is curved down into the center of the letter. The letter

BHBW - THE ALEPH-BET                            SIVAN 5783 / 2023 HEI - VAV   Not with toil and not with struggle, but by the word of His mouth did the One Above create His world. Not with toil and not with struggle, but with wisdom and kindness does He require we sustain it. ~ Tzvi Freeman The two Hebrew letters Hei and Vav carry special significance in that they are included in the ineffable Name of G-d - HaShem - Yod Hei Vav Hei.  Hei - ה - is the

  We are over halfway through our counting of the Omer.  May you be blessed through the remaining days and weeks as we draw nearer to Revelation. H-I OMER - WEEK 4 pdf  

BLESSING OF THE NEW MONTH – BIRKAT HA’CHODESH May it be Your will, O Lord, our God and the God of our forefathers, that You inaugurate this month of Iyyar upon us for goodness and for blessing. May You give us long life:a life of peace – Shaloma life of goodness – Tovah a life of blessing – Bracha a life of sustenance - Parnassa a life of physical health – Hilutz Atzamot a life in which there is a fear of heaven and fear of sin – Yirat Shamayim ve’ Yirat Chet a life in which there is no humiliation – Ein Busha u’Chlimah a

BHBW - THE ALEPH-BET                            IYYAR 5783 / 2023 GIMMEL - DALET   Don’t underestimate kindness,  Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see. ~ Mark Twain As we saw with the first word of the Torah, Breisheet -  בראשית - ‘In the beginning,’ the letter Bet is the letter of beginnings. The Gimmel steps forward from Bet, like a person leaving the house, the bayit,  to take action. It is the letter representing g’milut chasadim - גמילות חסדים - acts of