Av - 5761
(July 21- August 19, 2001)

Av - Tears of sadness, tears of joy

The ninth day of this month is a fast day that is the culmination of three weeks of mourning over the loss of the holy Temple of Jerusalem. This is a sad time of year, and we express our grief through the traditional mourning customs; no meat, no wine, no bathing for pleasure, etc. When a loved one passes away, the mourning customs allow a person to let the emotions that are inside come to the surface. This is part of the emotional healing process of loss. The month of Av, on the other hand, has the same customs but for the opposite reason. We act like mourners in order to cause us to feel the loss of the Temple. It’s been so long since we’ve had the Temple, we’ve forgotten what we’re missing. We feel the loss, and then we pray for its return. By awakening the recognition of what we need and want, we create a greater potential for G-d to bestow it upon us.

If my five-year-old daughter, Esther Menucha, asks me for a piece of licorice on Shabbat, we are both happy after I give it to her. In a simple and pleasurable way we put the dynamics of our relationship into action. She’s dependent on me. I provide for her and want her to be happy. In a similar way we activate our relationship with G-d by requesting to have the Temple back. Arguably, the most powerful aspect of prayer is that it shows that we look at G-d as our provider. The name of this month, Av, is translated as “father.” G-d is our heavenly Father. It’s not a coincidence that the month in which we commemorate as a people our greatest lack, the Temple, is called Father.

One of the well-known prayers in the prayer book is called “Our Father, our King.” Calling G-d our King expresses the awe we have of Him. Calling G-d our Father expresses our love of Him. The “father” relationship is also the one that unites us to a greater degree. A nation under a king is only bound together by practical considerations. A family under a father is connected also by their very nature.

Therefore, we need to pull together and unite as a people, especially during this month. There’s nothing more upsetting to a father than seeing his children not getting along. In fact, the Talmud says the reason for the loss of the last Temple was lack of unity.

Now is the time to do one thing to unite with a fellow Jew. Now is the time to pray to our Father in heaven, to return us to the Temple and the spiritual height we were once on.

In a kabbalistic treatise on the month of Av it is written, “When a contemplates a piece of wisdom and he’s having difficulty, he should think thoughts of repentance, feel the pain of the exile, and pray for the redemption. This will awaken his mind to the idea he wishes to grasp.” The merit of the mitzvah of praying for the redemption is spiritually connected to the need for wisdom. They are really one and the same. The redemption is the reuniting of G-d and man. Our world is not in an ideal state. There is war, famine, ignorance, crime, etc. The redemption will bring and end to all that is un-G-dly in the world. Feeling this loss brings a person back to a consciousness that is elevating.

"Our world is not in an ideal state. There is war, famine, ignorance, crime, etc.
The redemption will bring and end to all that is un-G-dly in the world.."

In another kabbalistic treatise on Av it is written an explanation of the verses from Lamentations “all who chose G-d will grab a hold between the bad times” “This means that people who want deeply to grasp an understanding of G-d’s infiniteness will find it easier in the days known as “between the bad times” – which is from the 17th of Tammuz (last month) until the 9th of Av.” We see that now is an auspicious time for expressing the need and desire for more clarity about G-d.

These two quotes form the foundation of the spiritual quality that exists in Av. There is a potential for clarity in our relationship with G-d and spirituality. This clarity comes from a sincere desire to correct our faults. We must focus on the barriers we share as a society.

"This is why tradition says that the new temple will be built in the month of Av."

This month is known historically for being the time of the Jewish peoples’ greatest tragedies e.g. the destruction of the temples in Jerusalem during Talmudic times. Yet the Kabbalah, which it often does, looks at what lies underneath the tragedies, which is the potential for a greatness that didn’t exist before the tragedy. This is why tradition says that the new temple will be built in the month of Av. This is also why tradition says that the messiah is born in the month of Av. In mystical knowledge good things are often hidden in bad things. Holiness is hidden in impurity. The truth is if you understand G-d’s oneness you’ll see it has to be this way. This is a broader topic that the present format does not allow for. For our purposes it sufficient to understand that sometimes a tragedy brings a person to clarity that they never had before. For example, the passing of a loved one often brings in to sharp focus all the wonderful things about the person that we failed to truly appreciate when they were alive. In a similar vein, when the first temple was destroyed it showed the people clearly that they were not living up to their potential in spiritual endeavors. This wake up call brought out a feeling of repentance, which has a spiritual power that is experienced in every generation. This year you may feel it.

"the passing of a loved one often brings in to sharp focus all the wonderful things
about the person that we failed to truly appreciate when they were alive."

That yearning to correct what we need to correct in ourselves is so powerful that it’s the seed of the ultimate redemption, the foundation of the final temple, and the doorway to a clearer understanding of our Creator.

The ninth day of this month is a fast day that is the culmination of three weeks of mourning over the loss of the holy Temple of Jerusalem. This is a sad time of year, and we express our grief through the traditional mourning customs; no meat, no wine, no bathing for pleasure, etc. When a loved one passes away, the mourning customs allow a person to let the emotions that are inside come to the surface. This is part of the emotional healing process of loss.