Our discussion began with questions. In what ways did we want to engage the community - through group learning, group conversation, liturgy or a combination of all three? What sort of questions were we, as rabbinical students, currently addressing--through our studies or through work--regarding prayer? As rabbis we will often be in the position of leading prayer for our community. How do we both have an experience of prayer for ourselves and facilitate an experience for others? This question brought to our minds the role of one who facilitates prayer, the shaliach tzibbur. Knowing that we wanted to explore the relationship between G-d, the shaliach tzibbur and the kahal, we became interested in how the shaliach tzibbur simultaneously maintains a relationship with G-d and with the kahal, keeping the connection between all parts of the triangle (as Ebn diagrams it) alive. Whether leading prayer or participating with the community, what is our awareness like during tefilah?
Dynamic Tension
We knew that we wanted to draw on the shared knowledge of our rabbinical student community and to
dive into various parts of the liturgy in greater depth. At the same time we did not want to focus on prayers centered around the body, such as asher yatzar. Instead, we wanted to center our exploration around the points of dynamic tension in tefilah.
Freedom
We found a powerful point of dynamic tension in the main part of weekday morning liturgy with the movement from the Shema to the Geulah, to the Amidah. Through the Shema we declare the complete unity of all of creation through the unity of G-d. In our reading of the flow of the siddur, it seemed that once this unity was established through the Shema, the possibility for redemption was opened up. Through Geulah we relive the powerful moment of breaking through of the Sea of Reeds, with the help of G-d, to cross over to a life of freedom on the opposite shore. Because the Shema precedes the Geulah, it seems that an awareness of the oneness of all life is the foundational stone from which the path to freedom flows forth. Our question then became, how exactly does unification create freedom? Further, what are we meant to do once we are free?
Focus
Ebn reminded us to focus on the essence of the topic we are exploring so that we can effectively explore that through the minyan. He asked us to narrow in on the key tension happening in this prayer and to deduce how we could work with that tension through the body. We ruminated over how to bring this discussion of oneness and freedom down to one piece to explore through the body. As we created a plan for moving forward we decided to start small with a three-part series, after which we would check in with participants and gather feedback for moving forward. Each part of the series would correspond with one of the three parts of tefilah (Shema, Geulah, Amidah) that we would be focusing on.
Contact?
Finally, we moved into a discussion of how this theme might translate into movement exploration. The first idea we had was to move from a state of stillness to a state of full movement. Through this exercise we we would have 1 in each pair act as a static base with the idea that this would allow the partner who was moving a sense of security and stability. The moving partner would be able to let go with the knowledge that the static partner was there. We began to brainstorm Contact Improv exercises, including a partner exercise where one where one partner stands still and the other partner moves around them in contact with their partner's body. It seemed that the partner moving would be have more freedom to let self go with the knowledge that the other partner would be there standing strong. We then discussed how to begin to teach Contact. We wondered if it would be best to use partner exercises or to explore Contact between a person a stationary object like the wall or floor. In the end we decided that because Contact can be very intimate and challenging that we would save Contact exercises for a subsequent session.
Oneness and Freedom: the Joy of Movement
What is another framework through which we could explore the relationship between oneness and freedom? I had recently come back from a 10-day Nia White Belt certification and began to think back to the principles we had been taught. The most powerful principle for me was the foundational principle of Nia, The Joy of Movement. As it says in the Nia Manual.
Joy is not a technique or a choreographic method. It is an attitude toward the body and toward life. Joy is not just for when things in life are going well. It is an open accepting energy that accepts whatever comes its way.
The River of Joy
The Nia principle of the Joy of Movement made us think of a flowing river of joy, accessible to us at all times to tap in to and draw sustenance from. A week prior renowned Zohar scholar Dr. Melila Helner Eshed had come to Hebrew College to deliver a lecture on her new book A River Flows From Eden. Her talk focused on the line from Beresheit (from which her book is titled) "A river flows from eden to water the garden" (Gen 2:10). Drawing on the teachings of Zohar, Dr. Helner Eshed laid out the metaphors of this seemingly simple sentence. The "river" is the flow of vitality and creativity, "eden" is the source of divinity, and the "garden" is human consciousness. It is the job of human beings, she said, to help the flow of the river reach the garden.
The Plan
Our plan then became to combine the Joy of Movement with Dr. Helner Eshed's description of the flowing river. In facilitating a space for authentic movement we would encourage participants to tap into the flowing river of vitality and creativity constantly surrounding us, and to follow sensations of joy and pleasure in the body.
Outline
I. Opening (5)
- Sign outside room: Take off your shoes, come in and lay down/write structure on whiteboard
- We will be working with a question that informs tefillah
- This session will build on the body awareness that we explored last week in Session l
- Lead embodied review through a focus on the 6 major joints (ankles, knees, hips, elbows, shoulders, wrists)
II. Question (7)
- This is the first in a three-part series exploring the relationship between the Shema, Geulah and the Amidah through the body
- In order to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between these three prayers we must first understand each element on its own
- Today we focus on the Shema, using an understanding of the Shema as a declaration of oneness
- If in our liturgy Shema (oneness) is a building block for Geulah (freedom/redemption), what does it mean that oneness frees me?
- What holds us back from oneness?
III. Movement (30)
Intro:
- Introduce Nia's principle the Joy of Movement
- Link Joy of Movement to Dr. Melila Helner Eshed's description of the river
- Using music, being moved by music
Exercise:
1) RAW listening exercise (10)
2) RAW flow (20)
IV. CLOSING (7)
Debrief: What has come up since last session's exploration? What did today's session feel like in your body?
Closing the space ritual
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