Make Yourself into a Menorah

B"H
The doing is the ultimate.
Make yourself into a menorah.
How?
Take a hammer and start pounding.
The menorah in the Beit Hamikdash
was formed from one lump of gold.
The branches, cups, and decorations
were all formed from beating
and refining that lump.
So should we do with our middot,
our character traits, emotions and personality.
By making our will G-d's will,
we shape ourselves into a divine luminary.
Just as the flame leaps to return to its source,
so should we leap to unify with our source.
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Heard from Rabbi Eli Friedman
Machon Alte Tzfat Israel 1996
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All rights reserved.
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What do you need to do to choose G-d?

B"H

Happy Birthday World!

Every birthday and especially Rosh Hoshana
is a day of introspection.
It's never too late to look inside yourself
and see what you need to change.
Even at the very, very, very last moment.
On Rosh Hoshana, the world is judged
for the coming year.
Every living soul has to give an accounting
and a reckoning, but...
charity, prayer and teshuva,
(returning to G-d),
temper the judgment with mercy.

Charity/tzedakah means righteousness.
We don't give to the poor
because we are nice people,
we give to the poor because we owe them.
G-d gives us everything we need and we,
being made in G-d's image,
are supposed to do the same thing
by giving the poor everything they need.

Teshuva is the return to the essential self.
It doesn't just mean taking on a new resolution.
It also means doing something
that you are already doing,
and doing it even better in a special way.
Tefillah, prayer, is not just a shopping list of requests;
it is a union with G-d.
We are spiritual beings in a physical world.
Our job is to unite the two.

When something is written in stone,
if you cannot see the letters,
it isn't because they've disappeared,
it's because they are filled with dust.
On Rosh Hoshana, we blow away the dust.
When the shofar is blown,
we are trying to bring G-dliness into the world.
On Shabbos, the world is already full of G-dliness
because it is Shabbos,
so we do not blow the shofar.

In Elul, the King is in the field.
Rosh Hoshana is the coronation of the King.
Isn't it a little bit tacky to ask the King for things
in the middle of the coronation?
Yes, but we do it anyway, to serve G-d.

If you want a spiritual experience,
you have to do the work.
Everything that happens in the physical world
is a reflection of what is going on in the spiritual world.
Look for the spiritual meaning of everything
that happens to you and learn from it.

May you be blessed with a good and sweet year!

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Heard from Rebbetzin Olivia Schwartz
27 Elul 5759 vol. 10.18
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What is hard for you to give?

B"H

There is never a time that you cannot hope.
Tzedaka is the mitzvah that requires you
to move out of yourself.
The mitzvah of tzedaka
is for your perfection.
Listen to the need
not just the words.
Give until the need is filled.
Give with love.
Give with a smile and thoughtfulness.
Tzedaka is what the person is lacking,
not what you want to give.
A decree is a manifestation of the will of G-d.
How do we avert a decree of destruction?
Tzedaka, tefillah, teshuva.
In the mitzvah of tzedaka
lies all of the struggles of the human being.
We are afraid that if we give,
we will be diminished,
but we give anyway.
Don't hold back from giving,
or you will become what you withheld.
G-d is looking for the ultimate kindness,
one to another.
When we give tzedaka,
that is when we are most like G-d.
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Heard from Rabbi Shlomo Holland
3 Elul 5758
Elul 08
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What would you do if you were brand new?

B"H
Chai Elul, the 18th day of Elul
is the birthday of the Baal Shem Tov.
The Baal Shem Tov had a dream
in which he asked Moshiach
when he would come.
Moshiach answered:
When your wellsprings have spread out
and all people can do what you do…
Chai Elul Breathes vitality into the month of Elul.
The secret of living life
is to wake up every morning,
every day,
NEW.
To pray every prayer,
to do every act of service for your family
as if you are doing it for the first time.
NEW!
Whatever you have in your life,
whatever your challenges are,
take a deep breath
before you say a bracha
and bring it down new.
Do the best with what you have.
These are your blessings.
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Chayus:
Filling the new year with life-
Being more alive means bringing down into your life
more levels of your soul.
Faith requires training.
Train yourself in faith like a long distance runner.
Running and returning -
Run up to G-d and bring it down.
Run up to G-d and bring it down.
Faith is a practice that infuses our lives
with limitless divine potential,
an ongoing dynamic bond with G-d.
There is no limit to the amount of vitality
you can bring into your life.
How do you increase the vitality in your life?
Do everything with enthusiasm.
Say Thank G-d!
for everything.
Take every opportunity to spread joy!
These are the last days of the year...
Make the most of your days!
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Heard from Chana Rachel Schusterman
Long Beach, California
Chai Elul 5758
Elul 06

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All rights reserved.
This art page can be purchased for only $1.99
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