Feeling the Love in the month of Elul

ELUL – FEELING THE LOVE

We’re almost in the middle of the Hebrew month of Elul, a time of introspection before the High Holidays. What did you think of when I said introspection?

Most of us think of introspection as a time to be self-critical. We could have done better. We shouldn’t have acted that way. We acted poorly.

Well, I’d like to reframe your thinking a little bit and go into the deeper, spiritual meaning of this month.  

It’s helpful for you to be in the present moment, so just notice your breath….on the inhale and exhale, notice your chest rising and falling…relaxing into the rhythm of your breathing….and do this a few more times.

As you let thoughts go through you…begin to listen to the quiet. Not the quiet around you, but the quiet of your own inner voice. Listen to your own inner being. Send loving and warm thoughts to your inner being. Think about the person you are and all your good qualities.

Feel that you are loved. This is not as easy as it sounds. You may need to try this a few times to truly tap into that feeling of acceptance and love.

Elul is a month that the spiritual masters say we can feel our connection to a Higher Presence the most. You might want to think of your own way to describe the Oneness of the Universe…The One, Hashem, Creator…there are many choices.

But focus on the fact that in your inner core, you may feel part of something greater. And that something Greater is a connection through love.

The Hebrew letters that form the word for ELUL are Aleph, Lamed, Vov, and Lamed. Some say that these letters are an acronym for an expression of love for the One of Creation: Ani L’dodi V’ dodi Li

….I am for the One I love, and The One loves me.

Love is within you and also emanates outward from you. But the love that is around you, can enter you as well…

Every morning in Elul the shofar is blown as a stark reminder of waking up to that reality…And we can wake up to the idea of making the coming year better than the past.. Elul is the month that we need to feel the love in order to do the work of elevating ourselves to a higher level.

No one feels like undergoing a transformation in an environment of criticism…even self-criticism. So it’s helpful to feel love for yourself.

And then you can begin to think about change. But change doesn’t happen without intention, and without a degree of self-love.

The idea of changing ourselves, even for the better, is so overwhelming. I mean, we’re barraged with ideas for change every day…healthier food, better ways to exercise, ways of tracking our sleep, our steps, our heart rate. There’s even ways of tracking the nutrients that are in every bite we take. We’re so overprogrammed. It’s crazy.

So, if we’re already doing or at least trying to do so much, aren’t we living with a certain amount of change exhaustion?Our daily lives make sure that there is no room for thinking. The noise comes from everywhere and prevents us from paying attention to what we really need to. Often, our immediate response to stress is to ‘zone out’ in front of a device, or TV. But we’re no better off afterward because we’ve avoided connecting with our inner core.

But the reality is that all the scrolling, all the tracking, all the following…doesn’t make us any happier. What makes us happy is a feeling of connection. Meaning in our life. And that comes from engaging with our deepest reality, our soul, in the spirit of love.

There is a yearning that you might feel, a feeling that you are more than your outward reality. Rabbi Simcha Zissel Ziv says that the way to train ourselves to grow spiritually is to pay attention to trivial matters.

When we grow from each minor life event he says, we will eventually reach higher levels of perfecting ourselves.

But in this process, be careful.

Don’t allow the voice of the critic to barge in. Only focus on the goodness that you are. The love that is inside you. Your pure entity. Your good self. And that you are loved.

As you feel this love, imagine that you are emanating this love outward….and think about what trait of yours would allow you to more readily give this light of love to others.

Is it patience? Honoring others? Comparing yourself to others less? Having more gratitude? Pick only one thing that you’d imagine would allow your love to flow more freely.

Imagine yourself with this trait that you have within your control.

This is from a place of love, not criticism, not negativity, not derision.

Think of how you might take one tiny, small step, every single day, to be able to master this trait.

What is one very small tweak that you can make that over time, will imprint on your soul. I hope you feel a little uplifted after taking this in.

Thank you for listening and for involving yourself in the spiritual path of engagement, and seeking out the deeper meaning Judaism has for you.

I’d like to know about you. Won’t you fill me in? What have you liked or not liked? What can I do better? Please write to me at innerjudaism@gmail.com.