Hikuni f’tza’uni nasu
et r’didi me’alai shomray hachomot

They beat me, they bruised me
The watchmen of the walls
tore the shawl from my shoulders. (Song of Songs 5:7)

On this path of love, we become more and more vulnerable, which means that we have made a commitment to feel our pain rather than numb ourselves or erect defenses. Those “watchmen of the walls,” are the forces that stand between us and the pain we have tried to avoid. They strip us of our artifice, take away our well-built strategies of fortifications. We stand beaten and bruised by the vicissitudes of Life: by sorrows (named and unnamable), by losses, by suffering that feels both personal and universal.

This practice allows us to feel bruised, beaten and exposed. We do this practice when we are ready, layer by layer for our egoic defenses to be stripped away. When we are ready to feel in the places that have gone numb, then love can find us. And then love emerges from the depths of our being, to permeate, heal and transform the places of trauma and pain we have carried.

To view context from Shir HaShirim through the Love at the Center project, click Shir HaShirm (Bechukotai).

To hear the chant, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click the note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Beaten and Bruised (melody)  
• Beaten and Bruised (harmony)  
• Beaten and Bruised (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Beaten and Bruised PDF.  For the musical notation, click Beaten and Bruised notation PDF.

K’chut hashani siftotayich u’midbaraych naveh

Your voice in the wilderness calls out to me;
your beauty and power are my mystery.

Your lips like a scarlet ribbon
And your voice so sweet. (Song of Songs 4:3)

These words direct our attention to the lips and to the voice that emerges through that lovely outlet. That voice brings wisdom and inspiration to us.

In creating this practice I couldn’t help but be reminded that the word, midbaraych, that is translated as your voice, or your speech, or your mouth… is a homonym for your “wilderness.” I added the English words of this chant so that the images of the Song might lead us to inquire, “Can we allow the Divine voice to emerge from the deep silence of the wilderness? Can we listen and receive the beauty, majesty and wide perspective that the wilderness offers?”

When I step into the wilderness, the noise of the “civilized” world recedes and I can begin to hear another voice — more subtle, more profound, wider in its scope. It is that voice which asks for a response that is sourced in my depths.

To view context from Shir HaShirim through the Love at the Center project, click Shir HaShirm (Vayikra).

To hear the chant, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click the note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Your Voice in the Wilderness (melody)  
• Your Voice in the Wilderness (harmony)  
• Your Voice in the Wilderness (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Your Voice in the Wilderness PDF.  For the musical notation, click Your Voice in the Wilderness notation PDF.

Uri tzafon u’vo’I tayman, hafichi gani yizlu v’samav

Awake north wind! Oh South wind, come!
Blow upon my garden and let its spices stream out. (Song of Songs 4:16)

There is a natural tendency to resist change, in order to maintain the illusion of control and the fantasy of security. Yet life moves on, bringing with it upheavals, losses, transformations and shifts in perception. What if instead of resisting the winds of change, we surrendered to those powerful forces, as the messengers of expanded consciousness? In the spirit of welcome, those changes that we might resist can become opportunities for adventure, growth, surprise and awakening. The spices of our garden represent the hidden inner strength and beauty that is unlocked through times of tumult and change.

To view context from Shir HaShirim through the Love at the Center project, click Shir HaShirm (Acharei Mot).

To hear the chant, use the audio player. To download the chant, right-click the note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Awake North Wind!: Uri Tzafon  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Awake North Wind PDF.

Shir Delight: A Journey Through the Song of Songs ©2004 Rabbi Shefa Gold. All rights reserved.

Gan Na’ul achoti challah, gal na’ul mayan Chatum

An enclosed garden is my sister, my bride
A hidden fountain, a sealed spring. (Song of Songs 4:12)

There is a mystery at the center of the Beloved and at the center of my experience of love. I can experience that mystery as a secret garden, whose blossoms and fruit wait to be revealed, savored and appreciated. Or I can experience that mystery as a concealed fountain whose waters flow from the hidden depths. Both images lure me deeper, humbling me with the realization that there is so much that I still don’t know. Yet in that awareness, my desire is sparked; my curiosity is kindled. The mystery draws me onward along the path of love.

To view context from Shir HaShirim through the Love at the Center project, click Shir HaShirm (Metzora).

To hear the chant, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click the note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• The Secret Garden (melody)  
• The Secret Garden (harmony)  
• The Secret Garden (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click The Secret Garden PDF. For the musical notation, click The Secret Garden notation PDF.

Nofet titofna siftotayich kalah,
d’vash v’chalav tachat l’shonaych

Your lips, my bride, drip honey.
Honey and milk are under your tongue. (Song of Songs 4:11)

One of the most important spiritual challenges we face is the need to sweeten the bitterness that is in us. Bitterness can accumulate within us, even without our knowing it, made from small or large disappointments, regrets, unhealed grief, grudges, anxieties or resentments. That bitterness forms the obstacle to fully stepping onto the Path of Love.

According to the Baal Shem Tov, here are the steps we must take in order to sweeten that bitterness:

• Hachna’ah: Being humbled, surrendering, yielding
• Havdalah: Discerning God’s Presence in the midst of it
• Ham’takah: Sweetening our bitterness

First we face and taste the bitterness within us, and are humbled by it. Then we look into that bitterness and find the seed of soul-growth. When we focus on that seed and water it with our compassion and awareness, the sweetening begins. Here in the Song of Songs, we can savor the rewards of this journey of transformation. The milk and honey under our tongues are the taste of the Promised Land. That taste inspires us to find voice for the love that is in us.

To view context from Shir HaShirim through the Love at the Center project, click Shir HaShirm (Tazria).

To hear the chant, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click the note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Honey and Milk (melody)  
• Honey and Milk (harmony)  
• Honey and Milk (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Honey and Milk PDF. For the musical notation, click Honey and Milk notation PDF.