A spiritual high!!!!!!!!!

I feel I am at the most special place in the world. I am truly on a spiritual high and don’t want this feeling to end. If you haven’t noticed already, one of my greatest intentions of my trip has been to explore spirituality and learn the tools, philosophies,and connections that I resonate with best. Southeast Asia deepened my understanding of Buddhism, India and Nepal about Hinduism, and now in Israel I have the privilege of learning more about Judaism. Ahhhhh….. what an amazing spiritual journey. I am so grateful for all of the experiences and teachers that have come into my life during these last 4 months. And at this very moment, I feel truly connected – I have found my path – I have found the spiritual connection I have been seeking, and that ultimately is Judaism. Well, you could imagine how happy I am since I was born a Jew it feels amazing that the religion I most resonate with is my own! J But I have always wanted to choose to be a Jew rather than be told I am one. Today, I know why I want to be a Jew! I am proud of my religion. Although Buddhism and Hinduism will always have a place in my heart, I have found Judaism to encompass everything I have been seeking in a spiritual connection in my life.

I have been staying in a town called Tsfat for the last week of my trip. It is in northern Israel near Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee. It is a mystic town where Kabbalah, Jewish Mysticism, originated (Yes, Madonna made Kabbalah part of pop culture in the US – but it truly has a deeper meaning than anything she might have ever spread). This place radiates with spiritual energy from all corners of the town. Deep thinking and spiritually connected people are attracted to Tsfat, so there is NEVER a dull conversation! (I LOVE THIS!) The people I have met here have been some of the most significant people so far on my journey. They truly have touched my heart and changed some of my perspectives in life.

The place I am staying, called Ascent, offers free classes around the clock on Judaism and Kabbalah. I am a sponge taking it all in!!! My curiosity has been exploding and I have so many teachers, books and personal time to get my questions answered. I feel so blessed to be here right now. Two of the Rabbi’s agreed I should be “student of the week” if they were to have such a thing. I was flattered ;) I just can’t help myself. When I am curious about something nothing can hold me back from asking question after question!!! Can you just imagine me, at the edge of my chair, neck extended to get as close to the teacher as possible, and my notebook in hand writing as many significant points as possible. I was in my element. I learned so much about Judaism. I have wanted to do this for so long now. My time has come!

I am impressed with myself in how I am approaching my questions and attaining new knowledge. I find myself being skeptical at first, always inquiring more and more about the source of religious texts, the credibility and reliability of the origin of Jewish laws and always try to understand the reason behind them. I believe my medical education has helped me learn the importance of this approach and I believe it has helped me to connect even deeper every time I receive a thorough answer. I am not just accepting this information, rather I am truly connecting with this new information and understand the meaning behind customs, traditions, and ways of thinking I have never understood before. I am so happy with this newfound knowledge and blessed that so many people here want to help teach me. No one here cares how religious or non religious I am, no one judges me. They teach anyone from their heart and just want to share and spread Jewish knowledge with those who are interested.

I look forward to continuing to learn more knowledge and deepen my spiritual connection when I return home. I now feel like I have more of a structure to follow, have new teachers to help guide me, have an endless amount of books to offer lifelong learning, and most importantly have the will and faith to continue growing spiritually. What a perfect way to close my trip. I have one more week in Israel, heading to Jerusalem soon which is probably one of the holiest cities in the world. I wonder what else I get to learn?!

A few other things to mention while here to remember:

-       I wasn’t aware of this before I decided to come to Tsfat but this last weekend was a workshop on “Finding one’s Soulmate”. I don’t believe in coincidences, so I participated with open ears and a wide opened heart. I believe he is coming soon… I can feel it ;)

-       One night a few friends I met decided we wanted to visit this cave nearby. It was an all night adventure as we enjoyed a bonfire inside the cave, followed by lying underneath the stars and watching the morning sunrise. I haven’t stayed up all night in a long time. I was shocked that I didn’t feel tired at all. I believe this spiritual high I am feeling helped me enjoy the special night with new friends. Was a wonderful night.

-       A group of us took a really nice hike nearby where there were all sorts of fruit trees in sight!! I got to see pomegranates, figs, capers, olives, and loads of herbs like rosemary, marjoram (zatar), oregano - all out in the wild! You can imagine how giddy I was!

-       I had a wonderful Shabbat dinner with a religious family here is Tsfat. They welcomed us into their home, fed us delicious vegetarian food, and we stayed till 2am talking and connecting. Was a wonderful experience.

And to end this post I must include the significant people I have met while here in Tsfat. These new friends have truly brought a lot of meaning to my time here, through conversations, sharing one’s perspectives, answering questions, and supporting each other through some difficult days. I am grateful to each one of these new friends.

Firstly, Shmule. I have never met anyone in my life so deeply connected and passionate to God. He radiates with passion just by looking at him. Shmule had a similar path as I, starting with a strong interest in Eastern philosophy. Meditating at first, doing Qi Gong, looking into studying Chinese medicine, interested in the macrobiotic diet until he reached Israel and figured out that Judaism is his passion. Shmule patiently answered my questions with so much love in his heart to share. I am so impressed with the amount of knowledge he has at such a young age and admire greatly his dedication to God. He is a good friend. Thank you Shmule.

Barry really took the time to help me with questions I had and always encouraged me to “bother” him with as many as I had! He helped give me a big picture of Judaic texts, explaining to me the significance of each, and history behind them. There are so many books!! So many! So you can imagine that this was an ongoing conversation for many days. Thank you so very much Barry for happily answering my questions and sitting with me numerous times. I look forward to meeting again in NYC and learning more!

Daniella, who too was a wonderful teacher. She grew up in a non-religious family and came to Israel at the young age of 18 not thinking much of Judaism. She very quickly found a connection with Judaism and now excitingly shares her knowledge and enthusiasm for it. Thank you Daniella for sharing.

Natalie, another passionate young woman. Her story was so great to hear and her spiritual path is inspiring. Natalie is so very sweet she has offered to keep in touch with me to do weekly meetings discussing anything I want to learn. Such a good heart. I look forward to our meetings together! So grateful.

Alex. A wonderful guy who I automatically had a connection with. I mentioned the word meditation upon first meeting him and we were set. He shared with me books, we did yoga and meditated together and had wonderful conversations. So glad we met. Hope to keep in touch.

And then there were others – all with their own unique contribution to my life. Benjamin, such a smart guy with an amazing knowledge of spirituality, David who had an amazing voice with a true connection to God who really inspired me, Nechama who is a very memorable person with a wonderful heart, Shula with a history I will never forget – I hope for her a successful future, and Charlotte who is a dear young woman on a similar journey around the world as I, seeking out a spiritual connection.

I am grateful to all of these people along with various Rabbi’s at Ascent for bringing much meaning to my trip and ultimately to my life.

I will truly miss time spent at Ascent. This week will always hold a special place in my heart. 

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