Eyes, Hearts, and Hands: V’Ha’ayr aynaynu

09/20/2010 Alia Meira

V’Ha’ayr aynaynu b’toratecha, v’dabayk libaynu b’mitzvotecha
Eyes, Hearts, and Hands Hebrew text
Enlighten our eyes with Your Torah, and connect our hearts to Your Mitzvot. (Liturgy)

When my eyes are really opened, I see your Torah everywhere! And from the deepest place within, I can connect with and embody that heart wisdom. Then the next step is to allow that deep heart-wisdom to flow out across my shoulders, down my arms and into my hands. These are the hands that will do Your Mitzvot with heartful compassion and kindness, instructed always by the Torah that this world reveals to me.

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

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Eyes, Hearts, and Hands PDF. For the musical notation, see The Magic of Hebrew Chant, page 238.

Chants, Liturgy, Psalms

Goodness: Hodu l’adonay

07/21/2010 Alia Meira

Hodu l’adonay ki tov, ki l’olam chasdo

Give thanks to God for essential goodness; His kindness endures forever. (Psalm 106:1)
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 106 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

By giving thanks, we open our hearts to, receive, and acknowledge the essential goodness of Reality itself. As we open to the flow of Divine kindness, everyone and everything becomes our ally. By giving thanks we enter the perspective that sees the whole world as conspiring to shower us with blessings.

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

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Goodness PDF. For the musical notation, see The Magic of Hebrew Chant, page 237.

Chants, Liturgy

Rolling: Golel or mipnay

07/16/2010 Alia Meira

Golel or mipnay choshech, Choshech mipnay or

Rolling away light before darkness, darkness before light (Evening Liturgy)

As evening falls we say a prayer to bless the coming darkness. This practice opens us to the miracle of light and dark as they mix and then roll away from each other in cycles of day and night. These same cycles roll inside us through the rhythms of mood, through the ebb and flow of our daily drama. Through this practice, we raise ourselves up as holy witness to these cycles, so that we may gratefully receive the gifts of darkness in absolute trust. We surrender to the evening, knowing this darkness will lead us back to the light again.

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

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Rolling PDF. For the musical notation, see The Magic of Hebrew Chant, page 244.

Chants, Shir HaShirim

In His Shade: B’tzilo chimad’ti

07/06/2010 Alia Meira

B’tzilo chimad’ti v’yashavti, upiryo matok l’chiki
In His Shade Hebrew text
In His shade I delight to sit, eating His sweet fruit. (Song of Songs 2:3)

This is a practice of reconnecting with and remembering the essential beneficence of Reality. Sometimes when it feels as if the whole world is my enemy and I am struggling with my predicament, I can stop and rest in the blessing of pure Being. With this practice I receive the gift of feeling held by Reality itself. Imagine leaning back against the trunk of a sturdy tree on a hot summer day. This is The Tree of Life, offering protection, inspiration and unending generosity. At the end of the chant, tune into your breath as you receive the sweet fruit of Being. Let each breath nourish, delight and renew.

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

Recording updated and harmony and mix recordings added in 9/2020. To hear the chant, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click the note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

To download the PDF file for this chant, click In His Shade PDF. For the musical notation, see The Magic of Hebrew Chant, page 256.

Chants, Psalms

The Heavens: HaShamayim

05/22/2010 Alia Meira

HaShamayim misaprim k’vod Ayl

The Heavens open up and tell Your Story,
Of sun and clouds and storm, of wind and Glory. (Psalm 19:2)
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 19 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

Where I live in New Mexico, the skies are my great entertainment and inspiration. With this practice, we watch the sky and receive from its wide expanse and changing colors, the story of God’s expanse and the Truth of Impermanence. You can try this practice lying back on a grassy field with your chant-buddies, looking up at the sky and receiving the amazing story that the Heavens tell. (If you do this practice at night you can substitute stars for sun.)

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