Abraham and the Universal Sounds of Healing Peace: Kabbalah of The Mother Letters

Transcription

1 Abraham and the Universal Sounds of Healing Peace: Kabbalah of The Mother Letters by Yitzak Ahron The Hebrew letter Mem has four sides. The letter Shin is a triangle, and the letter Alef suggests circularity. Mem humms, Shin hisses, and Alef is the Breath of Air deciding between them. Sefer Yetzirah Sheikh Yusef Abu Sneina, Imam of El-Aksa Mosque, told Bruce Feiler, that if Muslims, Christians, and Jews follow what is said about Abraham in their respective holy texts, then we can reach unity. You have a true heart, you have to believe there is one God. Maybe we have different approaches, but the destination is the same. (Feiler, 2002:182) There are many different stories about Abraham and more about his descendants. Most Muslims identify with Ishmael; Isaac is my namesake. For me, Torah suggests that God s blessing to Abraham inured to all his descendants. Our contentious interaction with the blessing began with Sarah asking Abraham to expel Hagar and Ishmael from their tents. Each tradition claims they are the only real descendants of Abraham. As a descendant of Isaac, I apologize to the descendants of Ishmael for how he was treated and then regarded by our rabbis since then. The American Muslim Editor, Sheila Musaji said, Abraham the friend of God is spiritually the shared ancestor of half the people alive today Jews, Christians and Muslims. In the story of Abraham we can find justification for continued suspicion and mistrust, or we can find in Abraham the point of contact, the cornerstone for a new relationship. (Musaji, 2002) Our mystical teachings may be key to achieving this new relationship. Sefer Yetzirah, or the Book of Creation, which contains teachings attributed to Abraham, may be translated in the third person, past tense, describing the creative process. Or it may be translated in the imperative, suggesting a meditation or guide to inner work; something

2 we are to do now. This way, the text is an instruction manual for empowering the reader with an inner framework for receiving inspiration. I believe that Torah s teachings are for all beings, and should be read in a manner that sheds light upon our inner-self in this day. Inner-Torah enables us to see traditional religious doctrines in a new light. The concept of inner teaching, espoused by Joseph Campbell and a number of others, contemplates religious and mythological stories as metaphors for personal experience. Instead of the outer-torah question as to whether the God of Torah intended the disinheritance of Ishmael, consider the inner-teachings. What must I do now as a Jew to make peace between my Isaac and my Ishmael within? Can we now share God s blessing to Abraham s seed with all who claim to be his descendants? Can Christians and Muslims today accept Jesus/Mohammed as their path yet not the only path for all people? It s the outer teachings we fight about. They define our separateness, whereas the inner teachings are universal. If we embody the inner teachings of Abraham, we may cease fighting. In our hearts, and out there in the world. Inner listening brings us to sounds and silent meditation. Shema means listen. As a Jewish prayer expressing divine singularity, its commonly accepted translation is, Hear, O Yisrael, God is One. But suppose we translate it, Listen, Yisrael, to God s Oneness, to your Oneness with God. Where might this lead us? What might we hear? Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan suggests Shema as a meditative focus (Kaplan, 1985: , ) In his commentary on Sefer Yetzirah (Kaplan, 1977) he draws our attention to the Mother Letters, three primal and transcendent forces associated with fire, water and air, suggesting that they are creative inner-listening practices. Shin and Mem, the Fire and Water, are the sounds of Shema. Alef is our connection to the Silent Oneness. The sounds of Shema are in the common greeting Manishma? meaning, How are you? But it means literally, What do you hear? At a deeper level, we are asking, What are you listening to? What are you attuned to? Rabbi Kaplan taught that lowest part of the soul interfaces with the physical body. Here a person gains awareness of the body as a receptacle for the spiritual. This is only possible, however, when one is able to isolate himself from the constant stream of internal and external stimuli that occupy his thoughts. Awareness of the spiritual thus necessarily begins by quieting down the awareness of the physical. (Kaplan, 1990:18) 2

3 Most sounds wake us up. Two quiet us down. The sounds of Shin and Mem shhh and hmmm contain universal messages that quiet our minds and evoke listening. Shushing calls upon the stream of thoughts to cease. Mem, pronounced mmm. is the only letter we pronounce without opening our mouths. It implies, I m listening. It is the only sound we make that doesn t interrupt someone else s train of thought. Notice how just thinking these sounds affects you. The sounds of Shema. They are contained in the word neshama, which means soul and also breath. Psalm 150 says, Every soul (breath) praises God s name. Breath is a universal in meditation practice. The sounds of Shema beckon us to pay attention more deeply. Shalem means healthy, complete, whole. Shalom and salam are the sounds of (universal) peace. Hashamayim (fire/water) is Hebrew for the heavens. They are also the sounds of Hashem, the ineffable Divine Name. The word shem also refers also to our name, and the very concept of identity. The letters Shin and Mem also correspond to the Yud and Hey of the ineffable Divine Name and are associated with the basic interplay of divine expansion and contraction. Kabbalah teaches that Mem and Yud are of the sphere (Sefirah) of Wisdom, representing right-brain consciousness, intuitiveness and the awareness of similarities. Shin and Hey are in the Sefirah of Understanding, the left-brain that does our ordinary thinking, involving language, distinctions, and reasoning. Mem and Yud are associated with water, Shin and Hey with fire. Alef, Breath of Air, is in the Sefirah of Tiferet, the heart-center. Here, in silence, we are One. Since Mem and Shin relate to Yud and Hey, listening to these sounds can focus our attention on the Divine Name. The third letter of the Divine Name, Vav relates to The Mother Letter Alef. He chose three letters from among the elementals in the mystery of the Three Mothers, Alef, Mem, Shin. Sefer Yetzirah (1:13) The Mother Letter Alef teaches that the shape of our oneness is infinite, and that it is silent. As quoted at the beginning, Mem humms, Shin hisses, and Alef is the Breath of Air deciding between them. Shushing and humming oscillate our minds back and forth between Understanding and Wisdom. Alef lies in between. 3

4 Undertand with Wisdom Be wise with Understanding Examine with them and probe from them. Sefer Yetzirah (1:4) The following words used in prayer or meditation, or as a context for silent meditation, may be followed by breaths that carry just the sounds. It may suffice just to shhh and hmmm. Perhaps only the thought. The sounds are always present. It s the awareness that we are developing. Shema Hashem Shalom Salam Shalem Shalom (Shhh, hmmm shhh, hmmm) What are you listening to? To what are you attuned? Manishmah? Hear the sounds, the sounds of peace, the sounds of healing peace. The words comprise a prayer of peace and healing and a chant leading into meditation. (Melody, movements, and additional material on this subject are available by request to yitzak@greenermediations.net) In Arabic, the refrain also plays on sounds of The Mothers. Issmao issim, issim il salam, issim shifa il salam. The transition from Understanding to Wisdom involves progressive changes of our thoughts and awareness. The sounds of Shin and Mem by themselves allow mind to step back from the complexity of words and meanings, opening more and more to the universal awareness of silent unity. There s a running and returning in the mind-spirit relationship. 4

5 The universality of these images is astounding to me. In Siddha Yoga, I learned from Swami Muktananda that HamSa/SoHam (containing the same sounds,) the Great Mantra, in many Shaivite traditions are the sounds of the breath that is given no audible sound. In Sanskrit, these inner-sounds of breathing mean, I am that I am. And I am a body. All beings are connected to the Earth s core by gravity. We all live on one planet. We actually perceive gravity in our ears! And Sefer Yezirah s universality grounds us in our whole bodies. Three Mothers, Alef Mem Shin in the soul, male and female, are the head, belly, and chest. the head is created from fire, the belly is created from water and the chest, from breath, decides between them. (Sefer Yetzirah, 3:6) I learned in Aikido that it is with breath that we align ourselves with Ki, the energy that creates all things. The founder of the art also spoke of Spirit in terms of three basic shapes. (Dobson, p.10, 1993, 1978) The circle represents adaptability and unity. Both Kabbalah and Aikido associate the triangle with the head, the square with the belly (pelvis) and the circle with the breath (chest.) The triangle is focus and direction, and the square is balance and stability. Shin is a triangle, and the number 300. Mem is a square and the number 40. Aleph is the number one, whose geometry is a circle. Listening (shema) brings our attention to our ears, into the perception of sound and our sense of space and balance. This increases our awareness of both the inner sounds of our breathing and our kinesthetic sense of oneness. Follow the sounds of The Mother Letters into silent breathing. They are opposite qualities, and thus contain all sounds. On an oscilloscope, Shin consists of many vibrations, like white noise. Mem is a pure tone. May they be for us a gateway into The Silence. Manishma? 5

6 References Dobson, Terry, It s a lot like dancing.an aikido journey, North Atlantic Books, Berkeley 1993 Dobson, Terry, Aikido in Everyday Life: Giving in to Get Your Way, North Atlantic Books, Berkeley 1978 Feiler, Bruce, Abraham: A Journey to the Heart of Three Faiths. New York, Morrow, 2002 Kaplan, Aryeh, Inner Space, Moznaim Publishing, Brooklyn, 1990 Kaplan, Aryeh, Jewish Meditation. Shocken Books, Random House, 1985 Kaplan, Aryeh, Sefer Yetzirah. Boston S. Weiser, 1977 Musaji, Sheila, The Legacy of Abraham in The American Muslim, Dec The forgoing article will be published (without the following Appendix) this Fall in Tiferet, Journal of Spirituality ( The cover of the issue will contain in color David Freidman s Primary Letters, Colors & Embodied Shapes: David writes, In the circle is an Aleph, a silent letter that represents Breath, and is associated with our chest. Breath, which is not cold like Water and not hot like Fire, moves Air in and out of our bodies. The yellow diagonal part of this circular Aleph balances between the blue part with horizontal lines (representing the inhale) and the red part with vertical lines (representing the exhale). Yitzak Ahron/Jerry Green is a mediator and somatic practitioner, creator of TUNING IN to the Body, a somatic conflict resolution seminar that brings principles of Aikido to pressure management and interpersonal communications. As a healthcare practice management consultant, he has written pioneering articles on role clarification and shared decision making, available at MedAgree.com. His mediation, pressure management work and related writings are available at GreenerMediations.net Shin and Mem: Gateways into The Silence Shema Hashem Shalom Salam Shalem Shalom Hear the sounds, the sounds of peace, the sounds of healing peace. Issmao issim, issim il salam, issim shifa il salam. 6

7 Circle Sq uare an d Trian gle, A lef Mem an d Sh in When Abraham s children sit in a circle, their unity is formed in their uniqueness. The Mother Letter Alef teaches that the shape of Our Oneness is Infinite. And that it is Silent. Our Oneness, known only in extraordinar y ways. Ways that are mysterious, ways that are mystical. Abraham taught, Mem humms, Shin hisses, and Alef is the Breath of Air deciding between them. We know Our Oneness through diversity and connection. We communicate through quality and quantity, letters and numbers, See context through colors and shapes. These are the Circle Square and Triangle, Alef Mem and Shin. By Yitzak Ahron 7

8 APPENDIX Universal Spiritual Forms Regardless of technique or form, the regular practice of meditation trains the development of universal skills; concentration, relaxation, breath awareness, sensory awareness, visualization, centering and grounding. Traditions offer common images in a cultural and religious context which have meaning for large populations over many generations. Skills learned in one tradition may be developed and practiced in another. However, it is also true that striking similarities exist between esoteric traditions of different religions and spiritual practices. Let s consider other expressions of these universal concepts. Buddhism Tibetan Buddhists visualize a purified state of existence in which everything is dissolved into the nature of emptiness. This is sought through the integration of the practice of Method and Wisdom. In Kabbalah, the mystery of Infinite Oneness is known in the interplay between Chochmah and Binah. Chochmah (Wisdom) represents right brain consciousness, or the awareness of similarities, intuition, and our sense of connection. Binah (Understanding) is the left brain which does our ordinary thinking, that of language and distinctions, and reason. The term Method also seems to fit the idea of Binah. Compare also the Chinese Trigram #1. The Creative / Ch ien, (Heaven,) which suggests Chochmah with the Trigram #2 (suggesting Binah) The Receptive / K un (Earth.)1 Left Brain Right Brain Buddhist Method Wisdom Emptiness Jewish Understanding Wisdom Infinite Oneness (Binah) (Chochmah) Shin Mem Aleph Chinese The Receptive / K un Creative / Ch ien 1 Wilhelm/Baynes, The I Ching, p

9 Yoga Another universal spiritual practice from Eastern cultures teaches the interplay of these sounds on the breath. Siddha Yoga draws the So ham mantra from the teachings of Kashmir Chaivism. The sounds of Ham and Sa are the inner sounds of breathing - the sounds when the breath is given no audible sound. They translate from Sanskrit as I Am That I Am, the name of the Infinite One. Every breath praises God s name (Psalm 150.) The practice teaches awareness of the sounds in silent breathing and attention to the infinite spaces in between the breaths. In Aikido, Kotodama, sound-spirit, holds that su (Word) is the mid-point of being, giving forth ka-mi, fire/water, yin/yang, spirit/matter. Su and Om are complements, leading us to unity. The Three Mothers Mem Water Chochmah Yud Shin Fire Binah Heh Alef Air Breath The Six Vav And statements that suggest: Shin boundaries, judgements, channels, diversity, triangular Mem grounding, connecting, fluid, merging, quadrangular Alef inspiring, enlightened, awake, awesome, bright, circular 9

10 The Six Directions Shin Fire (aysh) UPWARDS (ma aleh) place of climbing sprouting beings Mem Water (mayim) DOWNWARDS (mahtah) the tribal place still beings, stones, mountains Alef, The Silent Oneness, is the seventh direction, and it is within. Air (avir) NORTH (tzafon) vision eagle Uriel WEST (ma arav) EAST (mez rach) blending, healing bull Raphael shining, balance lion Gavriel SOUTH (negev) reflection human Michael 10

11 Shin Mem Words Common words that bring us from Shin to Mem and suggest a focusing of awareness or an elevation of consciousness: shema Hashem shalom salam shalem sham shem geshem shamayim shomer sim shamash manishmah mashmia ahimsa listen The Name peace peace healing, wholeness there identity, name blessings, rainshowers heaven to watch to give or put server hearing what causing to be heard non-violence Shin Mem Relationships: SHIN fire heat limitation judgement Binah/Understanding mother left brain reason distinctions sound exhale HEY MEM water cold expansion loving-kindness Chochmah/Wisdom father right brain intuition similarities weight inhale YUD 11

12 Embodied Thought Maps Alef Mem Shin statements are statements that come from: Shin Alef Mem left center right head heart hara distinct holistic similar diversity totality connection quality unity quantity power light expansion fire air/spirit water shapes context colors red yellow blue hot temperate cold tip core root up within down May I speak in right angles, think in three, emote in spirals, and remember that I am One with Thee. Yitzak 12

13 Greens are blues Containing yellow Light of the sun. Supernal Light Is Ever-present Always implied. Red is above Fire burns up Blue sinks low As waters flow. Wishh is in my head Humm in my belly. And the Breath of Spirit Decides between them. Yitzak 13

14 Sounds of Healing Peace Healing Chant in G By Yitzak Ahron B B B C C B Shema Hashem Shalom D D D E E D Salam Shalem Shalom D E D C Hear the sounds. C D C B The sounds of peace. B C B A B G A GF# G The sounds of healing peace. B B B C C B Shema Hashem Shalom D D D E E D Salam Shalem Shalom REPEAT ABOVE, until ending with: B B B C C B Shema Hashem Shalom B B B A B A G Salam Shalem Shalom 14

15 Meditation in Movement Attunements: Shema suggests inner listening, or attuning by sound and feeling to soul/spirit. Inner listening also involves feelings in the inner ear, where we sense body weight, feeling ground & balance. Shema is Hebrew for listen. Hashem literally means The Name and refers to the name of God, YHVH. Here, Shem also alludes to our own identity, and to the name of peace. Shalom is the name of peace in Hebrew. Salam is peace in Arabic. Shalem is healing. It also means health and wholeness. The meditation plays on the common sounds in these words, shh and hmm, universal sounds of quieting in the mind and centering in the body. Shh connotes light. Aysh means fire. Exhaling projects light up in all directions. Inhahing beams light down, into the heart. Hmm suggests water, mayim, flowing down Inhale also brings up chi. Hmm reflects Wisdom, our undifferentiated right brain; Shh is Understanding, or our thinking left brain. The practice of listening to the inner sounds of breathing develops our attention in the Silent Space between the breaths. In the inner ear, we feel body-weight, and sense gravity. It is from this place that we sense the light at Earth s core, which speaks equally to all beings on the planet. Shema, hands in front of face, self-contained & reflecting chi & sound to ears. Hashem extending the arms and spine, attention in hands holding an infinite space. Shalom crossing hands over heart, supported by breath. Salam, random encounters, as the spirit moves you, arms extended. Shalem Shalom crossing hands over heart, supported by breath. As English refrain is sung, spin, slowly opening and extending the spine and arms out and upwards, then returning to cover eyes with hands. Shema, hands in front of face, self-contained & reflecting chi & sound to ears. Hashem extending the arms and spine, holding an infinite space. Shalom crossing hands over heart, supported by breath. Salam, random encounters, as the spirit moves you, arms extended. Shalem Shalom crossing hands over heart, supported by breath. Shema, hands in front of face, self-contained & reflecting chi & sound to ears. Hashem extending the arms and spine, holding an infinite space. Shalom crossing hands over heart, supported by breath. Salam, random encounters, as the spirit moves you, arms extended. Shalem Shalom arms cross over kishkes (hara, dan-tien.) 15

16 1:4 Ten Sefirot of Nothingness ten and not nine ten and not eleven Understand with Wisdom Be Wise with Understanding examine with them and probe from them Make each thing stand on its essence and make the Creator sit on His base. Eight Verses from Sefer Yetzirah 1:13 Choose three elemental letters and place them in His great Name: YHV With them, seal the six extremities. Seal above. Face upward and seal it with YHV. Seal below. Face downward and seal it with HYV. Seal east. Face straight ahead and seal it with VYH. Seal west. Face backward and seal it with VHY. Seal south. Face to the right and seal it with YVH. Seal north. Face to the left and seal it with HVY. 2:1 Twenty-two Foundation Letters: Three Mothers Seven Doubles and Twelve Elementals. The Three Mothers are Alef Mem Shin. Their foundation is a pan of merit a pan of liability and the tongue of decree deciding between them. Mem hums, Shin hisses and Alef is the Breath of air deciding between them. 3:2 Three Mothers: Alef Mem Shin a great mystical secret covered and sealed with six rings and from them emanated air, water and fire and from them are born the Fathers, and from them everything was created. 16

17 3:4 Three Mothers, Alef Mem Shin in the universe are air, water, fire. Heaven was created from fire Earth was created from water and air from Breath decides between them. 3:5 Three Mothers, Alef Mem Shin in the year are the hot the cold and the temperate. The hot is created from fire The cold is created from water And the temperate, from Breath, decides between them. 3:6 Three Mothers, Alef Mem Shin in the soul, male and female, are the head, belly, and chest. the head is created from fire, the belly is created from water and the chest, from breath, decides between them. 6:7 And when Abraham looked, saw, understood, probed, engraved and carved, He was successful in creation He made with him a covenant between the ten fingers of his hands this is the covenant of the tongue and between the ten toes of his feet this is the covenant of circumcision and when He bound the 22 letters of Torah into his tongue and He revealed to him His mystery He drew them in Water He flamed them with Fire He agitated them with Breath 17