by Dr. David Sanders
Today is the 2nd day in the upward count of 50 days from Passover to Shavuot (the holiday of weeks). It is a yearly meditative ritual count with a primary focus on the awareness practice of living in the present moment. Each day is counted to impress on us how precious each moment is, how much each day counts.
The classic question asked is why the ritual was not structured as a countdown (50 to 1). Why do we count up from day 1 to day 50? This reveals a general principle regarding our relationship to time. It is a misnomer to count down because the future in indeterminateâwe can plan but that does not guarantee that what is anticipated will happen. Naturally we do count up for that which we do not know when, or if, it will occur. That is why we ask a pregnant woman what month she is in? She is counting up the days to an anticipated, yet unknown date of delivery.
Today marks another countâthe 202nd day of the hostages held captive in Gaza. The count of the days of war itself, with all its tragic loss of life, has extended far beyond what may have been predicted. Yesterday, on day 201, Hamas released a recorded video of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, the 24-year-old captive whose arm was blown off by a grenade. His outspoken, activist parents were interviewed. Both of them, as they have done from the outset, prominently display on their shirts the number of days Hersh has been held in Gaza. For the first time since he was abducted, his mother saw and heard him. She has reiterated many times âHope is mandatory.â Seeing Hersh alive was not only an injection of hope for his family, it provided hope for so many other families that other hostages were still clinging to life. While I have thought of the many hostages, not a day has gone by when I havenât thought of Hersh. I donât know what has compelled me to focus on him. Perhaps it is his bravery, his will to live, his determination to overcome all obstacles.
This year, the upward count of the 50 days coincides with the counting up of the days the hostages are captivesâ2 and 202, 3 and 203. We can make the most of each day. We can be grateful that we are free. We can dedicate our count to their release.
[For those familiar with the correspondence of the Sefirot from the Tree of Life with the 7-week countâeach week linked to a different energy, this first week is Chesedâthe Sefirah energy of expansive or unbounded love. Day 201, the release of the video of Hersh was on the day of Chesed in Chesed when Hershâs family heard his wordsâAbba (Dad), Ima (Mom), Libby and Orly, I love you so much.]
Learn more about the counting of the Omer with Kabbalah Experience’s Omer Journal
0 Comments