One Big Look
December 4th – December 10th, 2005
This is the week in which we first hear of the famous Biblical story of Jacob’s ladder. As the story goes, Jacob is traveling in the desert to meet up with his brother Esau. Along the way Jacob stops to sleep, and he dreams of a ladder with angels going up and down.
We can look at this as a nice, mythical story, or we can draw lessons for our own life.
The Zohar teaches us that during sleep a part of our soul detaches from our body and travels back to its source, an eternal realm beyond time, space, and motion. Our soul communicates with us from this place, sending us messages about what we need to change, dangerous situations to avoid, methods for removing our fears, opportunities coming our way – everything.
During the waking state we’re usually oblivious to the messages the Light is sending us, but in the dream state we can’t escape ourselves. We step outside and take one big look at our lives - where we’ve been, where we are, and where we’re headed.
That’s why kabbalists do their greatest spiritual work at night. In the nighttime we’re unburdened by the illusions of the 1% world, and we see clearly into the 99% world.
A helpful practice for this week is when you are lying in bed, waiting for sleep to come, start talking. It can be a whisper out loud or inside your head. Many people write into a journal. The point is to begin an honest, truthful dialogue with your soul. Address the issues that are weighing on your mind. Ask your soul to guide you through the night into a place of clarity. Ask questions – but be willing to receive the answer. Most of the time, if we don’t get an answer, it means we are not willing to hear it.
Another beautiful lesson revealed by the Zohar is that our dreams are a result of our merit. The acts of sharing and transformation we do during the day, or lack thereof, determine how pure or impure are dreams are. Let’s not forget the Opponent has many tricks and giving us the wrong messages in our dreams is one of them.
Of course, it’s often difficult to decipher the bizarre language of dreams. The Sages warn us that the interpretation is directly tied to the manifestation, which is why we shouldn’t share our dreams with just anyone. Do you have a Kabbalah teacher? If so, are you talking with them about your dreams? Maybe this is the week to start. And if you don’t have a teacher, speak to your local Kabbalah Centre’s Student Coordinator or call our Student Support Department (1-800-KABBALAH.) It’s really important to have a teacher, someone who cares about you and with whom you can speak about the meanings of your nighttime visions.
And remember, if you are in a mode of sharing during the day, you can expect message-filled dreams at night.
Have a beautiful start to the miraculous month of Sagittarius.
All the Best,
Yehuda