A Certain Place

From Be’er-sheba to Haran
Via the well of the Seven Infinite Depths
We come to the land of Auspiciousness

This is story of a person on his path of awakening. We find Yakov (Jacob) having just left his home and family and running for his life. Exhausted and bereft of almost all possessions, he’s crossed the river and in the open countryside finds a place to lie down and sleep.

He comes upon a certain place (makom)
That seems familiar, takes stones of that place
Puts them under his head, sleeps and dreams

A certain place [place, makom, one of the names of God]
Take stones from the places you like and consider them runes
Investigate the 22 stones, 22 letters, 22 power symbols

A dream, a ladder, a stairway
Angels of God ascending and descending
Suddenly Yah (God) is standing beside him
Saying: “I am with you”

Yakov (Jacob) awakens, declaring
God is surely in this place (makom)
How awe-inspiring is this place; it must be God’s temple
This is a gate into heaven (In this temple is the holy of holies)

This place: the very place you are right now
Take off your shoes; you’re on holy ground

He sets the stone up as a pillar (as an altar)
First a pillow then a pillar, declaring:

If I return safe to my father’s house, then
This stone set up as a pillar is God’s abode
And I’ll always set aside a tithe (a tenth) for you
Cut a deal with God; strike a covenant; get into relationship

He goes briskly to the land of the people of the East
Let’s join him and we also will go along on this adventure into
The infinite depth of the East, Dawn, Tiferet
Entrance to the temple

Look, a well in the open and a stone
On the mouth of the well
Do you wonder which stone, which letter, which number?

Friends from Haran (auspiciousness) and Laban’s daughter
Rachel, a shepherdess

Rachel, the shepherdess, and David, the shepherd
In scripture are personifications of the infinite depth of Malkhut
The majesty and kingdom of God, also the mouth of the divine

Yakov rolls the stone off the mouth of the well
And waters Laban’s flock
And kisses Rachel

Giving water to the other’s animals is a symbol-image
Signaling a sacred partnering, lovemaking and fertility
Unasked, Rebekah gave water to Isaac’s camels
Yakov water’s Rachel’s sheep, and later
Moses waters Zipporah’s flock

Laban runs to greet Yakov (his nephew) and kisses him
Declaring: you are truly my bones and flesh
What shall your wages be

Laban’s two daughters: Leah and Rachel
Leah has beautiful eyes
Rachel has beautiful form

Beautiful eyes see beauty everywhere
Beautiful form is an image and symbol of the divine
In Sanskrit, a moorti

Yakov loves Rachel and for her serves seven years
Which seem but a few days because of their love

Give me my wife for my time is fulfilled
Laban gives Yakov also his daughter Rachel as wife

Yakov’s wages are the two daughters of Laban
And their two handmaidens, Bilhah and Zilpah
These are the mothers of the twelve tribes of Yisra-El
For these four wives, Yakov serves fourteen years

Yah (God) sees Leah is unloved and opens her womb
Leah bears a son and names him Ruben –
“A son of seeing!” My husband will love me

Whoever has beautiful eyes surely bears beautiful children
Leah’s world is filled with the glory of God’s beauty
“She walks in beauty,” as the Navahos say

She conceives again and bears Shimon, “God hears”
The highest hearing is two-way hearing
You hear the voice of intuition, perceive the revelation
And like Yakov, also your voice is heard on high

She conceives again and bears a third child
My husband and I are forever connected
Yakov names the child Levi (attached, connected)

Married or divorced, dead or alive, we are always connected
Together having brought these souls to earth
We’ll always share this blessing

Again she conceives, has a son and says
“Let me praise God”
She names him Yehudah (Judah, praise)

As one can see, our mother Leah
Enjoys a rich devotional intimacy with God
To which we each are heir

The practice of Bhakti Yoga gives us beautiful eyes
Yoga means yoking finite awareness to infinite awareness
There are several paths or technologies for doing so
Bhakti Yoga is the path of devotion.
Leah is a master of devotion

More to kome …

from notes on Genesis 28-29 Nov 25, 2007
Lunar month of Kislev (November-December) 5768