Monday Night Meditation during the Omer 2021
Mondays – 7 – 8:30pm
by donation
On Zoom
The last year has been filled with numbers and counting. Every day the newspapers are filled with charts, percentages, rates of transmission, and the haunting specter of the mounting Covid-19 death toll. But what if, instead of counting our losses, we were counting each day as a spiritual gain? Right now, in the Jewish calendar we are in the midst of the Omer Period—an ancient rite of counting each day of the seven weeks between the onset of Pesach and the arrival of Shavuot. Jewish mystics imagined each of these days as a spiritual jewel, each imbued with a unique spiritual attribute drawn from the constellation of: Kindness, Strength, Beauty, Endurance, Amazement, Essence, Presence.
This year during the Omer Period we are focusing our Monday Night Meditation sessions on one of these attributes. Here are the remaining sessions before Shavuot (May 16-17):
April 19—Endurance (with Daniella Salzman)
April 26—Amazement (with Jhos Singer)
May 3—Essence (with Jeffrey Kessler)
May 10—Presence (with Jueli Garfinkle)
May 17—Revelation: The Time is Now (with Daniella Salzman)
Come, let yourself immerse in these qualities with our gifted and experienced teachers Jeffrey Kessler, Daniella Salzman, Jueli Garfinkle, and our Maggid, Jhos Singer. Treat yourself to an hour of silence, chanting, learning, and community. Immerse yourself in the renewal of spirit and body during this time of heightened consciousness.
SCHEDULE
1st Mondays – Jeffrey Kessler
2nd Mondays – Jhos Singer
3rd Mondays – Daniella Salzman
4th Mondays – Jueli Garfinkle
5th Mondays – Jeffrey Kessler
DESCRIPTION
Want to see God (or at least It’s shadow)? Lower your blood pressure? Manage your spiritual confusion? Connect with a deeper Jewish consciousness? Learn about Judaism’s esoteric side? Get a whiff of enlightenment?
Just as healthy foods nourish our body, Jewish meditation nourishes our soul. It has been around for centuries and includes forms such as chanting, visualization, silence, and movement. It can revitalize and transform Judaism from the blasé familiar into a profound and constantly renewing spiritual practice.
As one of the first modern Jewish institutions to teach these forms when we opened our doors in 1995, we invite you to join us in a journey that is both personal and communal, a claiming and reclaiming of ancient pathways that open and deepen our capacity to live in connection.
Some of the teachers are skilled in Classical Jewish styles of meditation, while others are practitioners of other forms but have integrated Jewish wisdom, liturgy, and concepts into their teaching. All provide an interesting, engaging and meaningful experience.
For beginners and experienced meditators alike. No previous meditation or Jewish experience required. By donation.
DONATION INFO
Our meditation program is supported entirely by donations. Each contribution, small and large, allows us to keep bringing you meaningful offerings.
• Donate online chochmat.org/give
• Venmo @chochmat (phone 510-704-1767)
• Paypal shalom@chochmat.org
ZOOM INFO
If you are new to Zoom, join early and follow the prompts to download the free software.
Join with video: https://zoom.us/j/848045873?pwd=bHpOZEpwTGJkbDNRLzNoVjNoZ01vZz09
Join by phone: 1-669-900-6833, or 1-346-248-7799, or 1-253-215-8782
Meeting ID: 848-045-873
Passcode: 847352
BIOS
Maggid Jhos Singer
After many years of practicing several forms of Buddhist meditation, Maggid Jhos Singer completed Chochmat HaLev’s Jewish Meditation Teachers Certification Program and went on to serve as a teacher in that program. Today he uses Jewish meditation techniques to help alleviate stress, anxiety, frustration, and to bring the Divine into everyday moments. He teaches Hitboneinut which is most easily described as a guided or visualization style with some period of silence. Each session begins with a chant or niggun.
Daniella Salzman
Daniella Salzman is deeply committed to revelation and revolution. Having trained as a dance expressive arts therapist, meditation and mindfulness teacher, and community organizer, she is inspired by leaders who dedicate their lives to transforming both our inner and outer worlds towards a lasting and integrated peace.
Jeffrey Kessler
A graduate of Chochmat HaLev’s first Jewish Meditation Teacher Training Program, Jeffrey Kessler has studied many spiritual traditions. With degrees in philosophy, mathematics, and spiritual psychology, Jeffrey has spent his life exploring the many creative disciplines of staying open in order to connect with the Nameless One. He sees Meditation and Mussar practice as key to the renewal of Jewish spirituality.
Jueli Garfinkle
Jueli Garfinkle is certified in Jewish meditation and mysticism and leads ongoing meditation groups, workshops, and retreats throughout the Bay Area. Her classes are based on the Jewish mystical tradition and calendar, and always include meaningful everyday practices to cultivate presence, joy, and connection. She was the founding publisher and editor of Jewish Spirituality: The Magazine, and the co-author of Everyday Adventures for the Soul: 52 Simple and Surprising Ways to Wow Your Spirit.
