Baal Teshuva ("master of return") Baalat Teshuva (woman)
Let
us shine true, the place where I sing to bring in the heavenly wings.
Baal/at Teshuva (master of return of awe), our hearts find this place
(1) where dreams come to bloom, the heart of the noon, suns. Greet the
moon and knights gift us the dawning of all that sings. We bring the
holy waves to all to be saved. We send our making of loving vibrations
to all who are lost in shame and blame to bring in hope and peace.
Shalom Aleichem, the heart of all that is conceived. Aleichem Shalom and
the greeting is complete, returning to a heart committed to the shine,
the holy bind.
We sit together and read, the sacred letters that
lead. We share this place (2) to shine, the sacred tree this time (3).
There upon the crown, the lost are holy and found. We share this place
(4) to know, the sacred living glow, the place (5) where the letters
glow. Within the place (6) where I share the waking of the drifts, the
place (7) where we dream together and sing.
Be the torah that
knows, we are of the Rainbow, the ark of the covenant that glows, the
distance of the snow (crystalline beings of light on a journey). We send
our story into time to wake up all to bind. A reading we share to be
aware. Let us stare into this grand dream and collectively conceive. We
wanted to dream. We wanted to believe, that the greatest good came to us
by the hand of Hashem (named) who granted us all to stand, Father of
Heaven (17) shared our light.
Shards of divine shined and
together we could understand, the letters of the man (kind, kingsmen,
kinsmen). We long for the presence of the void, to bring in the joy,
peaceful bliss, the tender kiss, the toll of the bell of freedom, the
place (8, holiness) where we gift. Sending hope to the people, the gate
into paradise opened and the people were invited to join together, as
such stated in the letters that shined upon the faces of thine. We read
and bring harmony to those seeds. We send grateful gratuity to the
longitude and latitude of the rolling streams, pointing us to the girth,
the blessing of traveling over and under, the stars appeared and became
the guide.
Our spokes took hold and make all things holy, the
candles gifted the light, the bright, the song that gifted sight. We did
understand the hail, the waking of the wails. We cried and through our
tears we did understand, the leaning, the resting, the progressing, the
tilling of the soil and all that brought forth through the boils
(purification), the cleansing of the dew, the perfumes that toiled.
Sending
our hopes into dreams, we did understand, the highest and lowest came
together, we rolled over to read one more page of the greatest story
ever we did say. We whispered as we read. We shared the intimacy of our
heads, our thoughts, our caress, the moment we did rest our eyes upon
the page. The Lord (Adonai) came to tell us the true, the heart that
grew. We stood up and walked a holy path, the place where our colors did
blast, the impurities away, the wind did carry us to this sacred place,
where we did fly with wings of gold.
Twin Deer Mother notes, the
place of many spokes, the telling of the baal/at teshuva and the making
of the stories of glory, the songing of the greatest. We poured our
tears upon the pages we did read. We poured our hearts to the greatness
of each tear, the waking of our hearts that joined the rest, for
together, all tribes and all nations were the best, the relatives who
knew the blessed, the holy garden of paradise. The silver rested upon
the view, where the garden did show us the land of many of the smallest
and with this fold, we did expire (breath). With the greatest, we did
inspire (awe). We returned to each other. We did learn that we needed
the whole roll. Navigate the distance, this was the mission, this was
the way we sailed upon the gray (14, connected spacial fields, a blanket
of love), the glory of the circle displayed. With great awe, we
breathed the holy dew, the life the holy tree (9) did grew.Gifted by Alightfromwithin.org Angel Services Around the World
Sioux Task Force and Rainbow Warriors of Prophecy
Jews for the Ark of the Covenant, Holy People of the Rainbow
Sefer Torah contains 304,805 letters
Gematria Story
Joy
(3) of the Circle (0) of the four directions (4), a spiritual river
flowed and a holy place (8) folded (0) us in harmony and relativity (5).
Twin Deer Mother notes, the holy spokes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A
Sefer Torah (Hebrew: ספר תורה; plural: ספרי תורה Sifrei Torah ;
"Book(s) of Torah" or "Torah scroll(s)") is a handwritten copy of the
Torah, the holiest book in Judaism. It must meet extremely strict
standards of production. The Torah scroll is mainly used in the ritual
of Torah reading during Jewish prayers. At other times, it is stored in
the holiest spot within a synagogue, the Torah ark, which is usually an
ornate curtained-off cabinet or section of the synagogue built along the
wall that most closely faces Jerusalem, the direction Jews face when
praying.
Usage
Torah reading from a Sefer Torah is
traditionally reserved for Monday and Thursday mornings, as well as for
Shabbat and Jewish holidays. The presence of a minyan is required for
the reading of the Torah to be held in public during the course of the
worship services. As the Torah is sung, following the often dense text
is aided by a yad ("hand"), a metal or wooden hand-shaped pointer that
protects the scrolls by avoiding unnecessary contact of the skin with
the parchment.
Production
A Sterling Silver Torah Case. In some traditions the Torah is housed in an ornamental wooden case
According
to halakha, a sefer Torah is a copy of the formal Hebrew text of the
Torah hand-written on gevil or klaf (forms of parchment) (see below) by
using a quill (or other permitted writing utensil) dipped in ink.
Producing a sefer Torah fulfills one of the 613 commandments. “The
k'laf/parchment on which the Torah scroll is written, the hair or sinew
with which the panels of parchment are sewn together, and the quill pen
with which the text is written all must come from ritually clean —that
is, kosher— animals.”
Written entirely in Hebrew, a sefer Torah
contains 304,805 letters, all of which must be duplicated precisely by a
trained sofer (“scribe”), an effort which may take as long as
approximately one and a half years. An error during transcription may
render the sefer Torah pasul (“invalid”). According to the Talmud, all
scrolls must also be written on gevil parchment that is treated with
salt, flour and m'afatsim in order to be valid. Scrolls not processed in
this way are considered invalid (Hilkoth Tefillin 1:8 & 1:14,
Maimonides).
The calfskin or parchment on which the sacred Hebrew
text is written is mounted into a wooden housing called עץ חיים (Tree
of Life) in Hebrew. The housing has two rollers, each of which has two
handles used for scrolling the text, four handles in all. Between the
handles and the rollers are round plates or disks which are carved with
images of holy places, engraved with dedications to the donor's parents
or other loved ones, and decorated with gold or silver.
Most
modern Sifrei Torah are written with forty-two lines of text per column
(Yemenite Jews use fifty). Very strict rules about the position and
appearance of the Hebrew alphabet are observed. See for example the
Mishnah Berurah on the subject. Any of several Hebrew scripts may be
used, most of which are fairly ornate and exacting. The fidelity of the
Hebrew text of the Tanakh, and the Torah in particular, is considered
paramount, down to the last letter: translations or transcriptions are
frowned upon for formal service use, and transcribing is done with
painstaking care.
Some errors are inevitable in the course of
production. If the error involves a word other than the name of God, the
mistaken letter may be obliterated from the scroll by scraping the
letter off the scroll with a sharp object. If the name of God is written
in error, the entire page must be cut from the scroll and a new page
added, and the page written anew from the beginning. The new page is
sewn into the scroll to maintain continuity of the document. The old
page is treated with appropriate respect, and is buried with respect
rather than being otherwise destroyed or discarded.
The
completion of the Sefer Torah is a cause for great celebration, and
honored guests of the individual who commissioned the Torah are invited
to a celebration wherein each of the honored guests is given the
opportunity to write one of the final letters. It is a great honor to be
chosen for this.
It is a mitzvah for every Jewish male to either
write or have written for him a Sefer Torah. Of the 613 commandments,
one - the 82nd as enumerated by Rashi, and the final as it occurs in the
text the Book of Deuteronomy (31:19) - is that every Jewish male should
write a Sefer Torah in his lifetime. (Deuteronomy 31:19)
In
modern times, it is usual for some scholars to become soferim and to be
paid to complete a Sefer Torah under contract on behalf of a community
or by individuals to mark a special occasion or commemoration. Because
of the work involved, these can cost tens of thousands of United States
dollars to produce to ritually proper standards.
A printed
version of the Torah is known as a Chumash (plural Chumashim). They are
treated as respected texts, but not anywhere near the level of
sacredness accorded a Sefer Torah, which is often a major possession of a
Jewish community. A chumash contains the Torah and other writings,
usually organised for liturgical use, and sometimes accompanied by some
of the main classic commentaries.
Types of material permitted to use for a Sefer Torah
Main articles: klaf and gevil
There
are three types of specially processed animal skin or parchment: gevil
(a full, un-split animal hide), Klaf (also Qlaf or K'laf), and
duchsustos, the latter two being one half of a split animal hide;
arguably either the inner layer (adjacent to the flesh), or the outer
layer (on which the hair grows). These are Hebrew words to describe
different types of parchment, although the term duchsustos is Greek.
These are used for the production of a mezuzah, megillah, tefillin,
and/or a Sefer Torah (“Torah scroll”). A kosher Sefer Torah should be
written on gevil. If klaf is used in place of gevil, the Sefer Torah is
still kosher, but this should not be done at the outset (l'chatchila). A
Sefer Torah written on duchsustos is not kosher.
After
preparation, the scribe must mark out the parchment using the sargel
(“ruler”) ensuring the guidelines are straight. Only the top guide is
done and the letters suspended from it.
The use of gevil and certain types of parchment has allowed some sifrei Torah of antiquity to survive intact for over 800 years.
The
ink used in writing scrolls had to adhere to a surface that was rolled
and unrolled, so special inks were developed. Even so, ink would slowly
flake off of scrolls. If the ink from too many letters is lost, a Torah
scroll is no longer used.
External decorations
A Sterling Silver Torah Breast Plate - or Hoshen - often decorate Torah Scrolls.
A set of sterling silver finials (rimmonim) are used to decorate the top ends of the rollers.
A
completed Sefer Torah is treated with great honor and respect. While
not in use it is housed in the Torah ark (Aron Kodesh or Hekhal), which
in its turn is usually veiled by an embroidered parochet (curtain) as it
should be according to Exodus 26:31-34. The scroll itself will often be
girded with a strip of silk (see wimpel) and "robed" with a piece of
protective fine fabric, called the "Mantle of the Law". It is decorated
with an ornamental priestly breastplate, scroll-handles (‘etz ḥayyim),
and the principal ornament—the "Crown of the Law", which is made to fit
over the upper ends of the rollers when the scroll is closed. Some
scrolls have two crowns, one for each upper end. The metalwork is often
made of beaten silver, sometimes gilded. The gold and silver ornaments
belonging to the scroll are collectively known as kele kodesh (sacred
vessels), and somewhat resemble the ornaments of the High Priest of
Israel (Kohen gadol). The scroll-handles, breastplate and crown often
have little bells attached to them. A yad, or pointer, may also be hung
from the scroll, since the Torah itself should never be touched with the
bare finger. This ornamentation does not constitute worship of the
Sefer Torah, but is intended to distinguish it as sacred and holy, as
the living word of God. Special prayers are recited when the Sefer Torah
is removed from the ark (see Torah reading), and the text is chanted,
rather than spoken, in a special melodic manner (see Cantillation and
Nigun). Whenever the scroll is opened to be read it is laid on a piece
of cloth called the mappah. When the Sefer Torah is carried through the
synagogue, the members of the congregation may touch the edge of their
tallit to the Sefer Torah and then kiss it as a sign of respect.
In
the Mizrachi and Romaniote traditions, the Sefer Torah is generally not
robed in a mantle, but rather housed in an ornamental wooden case which
protects the scroll, called a "tik". On the other hand, most Sephardi
communities — those communities associated with the Spanish diaspora,
such as Moroccan Jews, the Spanish and Portuguese Jews (with the
exception of the Hamburg tradition[3]), and the Judaeo-Spanish
communities of the Ottoman Empire — do not use tikim, but rather
vestidos (mantles).
Inauguration of a Torah scroll
Main article: Inauguration of a Torah scroll
The
installation of a new sefer Torah into a synagogue, or into the
sanctuary or beth midrash of a yeshiva, rabbinical college, university
campus, nursing home, military base, or other institution, is done in a
ceremony known as inauguration of a Torah scroll (Hebrew: הכנסת ספר
תורה, "ushering in a Torah scroll"), which is accompanied by
celebratory dancing, singing, and a festive meal. This practice has its
source in the escorting of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, led by
King David. As described in the Books of Samuel, this event was marked
by dancing and the playing of musical instruments. Both the kohanim and
David himself "danced before the Ark" or "danced before the Lord". It is
considered a tremendous merit to write (or commission the writing of) a
Sefer Torah, and a significant honor to have a Sefer Torah written in
one's honor or memory.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sefer_Torah