Kis’lev
Attribute: Dream Journeying שינה (Sleep)
Zodiac: Keshet, Rainbow קשת
“This month is the time when we go beyond what is logical and go for what we really want. This may be different than what we feel we want. In determining what we really want, we need to distill our visions to make sure they come from the purest place within us.” -Melinda Ribner
As we step into the season of Thanksgiving and spending time with family, I share with you these gems of the new moon of Kislev. This new moon will be visible in the western skyline all this weekend, along with Jupiter, the Planet associated with Kislev and Sagittarius. It is said that Jupiter invites us to warm ourselves in the glow of positive energy. Jupiter is called “Tzedek” in Hebrew – the same root as the word “Tzadik” (righteous person). Rebbe Nachman of Breslov reminds us to always look for the good point in ourselves, in others, and in every situation, no matter how weird and scary it might be. Jupiter helps us with that effort more this month than any other month!
Kislev can be translated into “pocket“ & “heart.” This refers to the capacity to be a vessel for what your heart REALLY desires. The energy of this month may be hidden in pockets of your heart, in the secret places, the subconscious realms, in the dark nights, and during the festival of lights at the end of this moontime, Chanukah. In her book Kabbalah, Month by Month, Melinda Ribner goes on to say that “the light of our highest soul connection may emerge to shine upon us and guide us during this month.” In the day to day, we may dream and conspire but we do not receive what we want. It is said that during this month we have a greater capacity to actually receive what we want. Miraculous!
How?
Dreams. Pay attention to your dreams. Dreams provide an opportunity to live in another dimension. Dreams and visions are said to connect all realms, Heavens and Hells, your wildest dreams. Dreams are all about interpretations. How and to whom you tell your dreams are as important as the moment you are actually dreaming. It is said that those who have “purified their consciousness” may receive true vision and understanding through dreams.
There are many stories of dreams and dream interpretations and consequences in Judaism, especially this month. Many many years ago I dreamed that my grandfather and I were in an elevator and we stopped on different floors while he showed me what was on each floor. I was aware that we were in a place like a jewelry shop, where there were precious gems, family heirlooms. There was a feeling that what he was showing me had been hidden. He felt it was important to show me. Alas, the dream ended or was interrupted before full revelation or discovery of these gems. Perhaps my dream was signalling that at that time, although curious and exploring my spirituality and ancestry, I was not ready. I’m glad I wrote the dream down and still remember it today, almost a decade later. Perhaps one day this dream or a similar one will come to me again. In many ways it has and does every time I discover a new gem of hidden ancient Jewish teachings, words, & prayers. For years I rejected many of my family’s traditions and ways, among them what I saw as a patriarchal religion. I am just now at an age, in the latter half of my 40’s, that I am stopping the elevator and entering the gates of the gems of antiquity.
Shefa Gold says that “Our inheritance is a treasure chest filled with tools created and refined for thousands of years that can help us to look beneath the surface of our lives to find meaning here and how to act in ways that reveal the essential mystery of creation and interconnection. These treasured tools are language, story, culture, the rhythm of the festivals, music, meditative techniques, and the ancient dreams that were born in the wilderness. These tools are sometimes locked away, hidden behind a great Mystery.”
The ancestral medicine chest of Kislev:
Amethyst Stone —Ach’lamah אחלמה —one of the gems on the breastplate worn by the High Priest in ancient times, the Kohen Ga’dol. In the Hebrew word for this stone, Ach’lamah, the word for dream appears: cha’lo’m חלום. It is the Dream Stone, the stone whose power inspires Dream, Vision, Imagination, the precursors of our life stories, our life choices and actions and how they might unfold within the realm of infinite possibility.
The Sacred Incense Herb for Kislev is קושט ko’shet, or Costus in English, a spiraling ginger. Ko’shet literally translates as “correct,” as in the teaching of the second-century Rabbi Shimon bar La’keesh: “Before you ko’shet someone —meaning, before you correct them —first correct yourself.” This is the herb that guides the smoke of the sacred incense offering to best translate the core truth of intent behind the offering.
Herbal medicine: Echinacea, Wild ginger, Mugwort. Echinacea is an herb of purification that can aid the body’s innate defenses. It is symbolically used for achieving strength through purity, and protecting oneself from heated or angry situations. Wild ginger can be finely ground and burned as a healing aid over one’s belly to aid in circulation and warming or ridding oneself of harmful external energies. Mugwort is also a great aid in warming the belly, the womb, the heart and used externally or internally for vivid/lucid dreaming.
Colors: Look at what colors symbolize in your dreams or in your wardrobe and your daily choices. The colors of the rainbow, which is one of the sacred symbols for this month of Kislev, are:
Red, Earthiness, passion
Orange, which combines the passion of red with the new beginnings, or creativity, of yellow
Yellow, new beginnings, as in the color of the Sun, and about creativity;
Green, which is a combination of yellow and blue, new beginnings from Sun —yellow —and inspiration from sky —blue
Blue, the color of sky and its reflection in the ocean, the kiss of the upper waters and the lower waters
Indigo, an amplified blue like the Sapphire, which is about deepening one’s spiritual awareness
Violet, which is a combination of red and blue, sky and Earth, the dance of physicality and spirituality.
Those born under a Kislev moon:
Jupiter is the Planet associated with Kislev and Sagittarius. Jupiter is called “Tzedek” in Hebrew and Jupiter’s energy focuses on the attributes of generosity and righteousness. Be generous, not judgmental – starting with yourself, and then with others.
“Sagittarius brings us a passionate impulse to radically burst forth in a new direction, to cast off our clothing and shackles, and let our arrows fly. And while there’s a real wind that can lift us to higher ground, we can temper our impulses with a grounded strategic vision to expand in the ways our Soul has deeply desired. It’s the result of genuine healing which allows us to be brave hearts, ready to face whatever challenges may arise, because we are coming from our authentic truth.” -MYSTIC MAMMA
The Hebrew Letter associated with the Month of Kislev is Samech. Samech has the numerical value of 60. 60 is the number the Talmudic sages saw as the minimum manifestation of spiritual into corporeal reality. Samech is a closed, round letter shaped like a womb, it encloses and supports (Somech), it provides a safe, nurturing place in which to dream. Divine protection and shielding from spiritual harm belong to Samech.
Tarot: Read more about Sagittarius & about the Temperance tarot card @ www.astroshamanism.org
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Chodesh Tov!
Check out our Chodesh CHAI YouTube vlog LATER this month (we had to delay our release date 1 week, check back by Dec 6th): https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmh5OOm6fInFslV97pK29dg
& meanwhile put some mugwort under your pillow for vivid dreaming and keep a journal and pen next to your bed!
“When we sleep, we should sleep deeply. When we are awake, we should not be sleeping.
-Melinda Ribner