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Tag: meditation

Meditating mindfully

Or Shalom is hosting one of the leading innovators in the field of Jewish meditation next weekend – Rabbi Jeff Roth of the Awakened Heart Project will lead a half-day retreat at the synagogue on Dec. 4.

Roth, who has been practising and teaching meditation for decades, teaches his own synthesis of Eastern techniques with a Jewish heart, which he calls Jewish mindfulness meditation.

photo - Rabbi Jeff Roth of the Awakened Heart Project will lead a half-day retreat at Or Shalom on Dec. 4
Rabbi Jeff Roth of the Awakened Heart Project will lead a half-day retreat at Or Shalom on Dec. 4. (photo from Jeff Roth)

“I was already a rabbi when I started studying Asian meditation,” he explained. “Everything I learned, I learned through a Jewish lens. I never took on a practice without altering it slightly.”

When asked if anyone has objected to his synthesis of Jewish spirituality with Asian contemplative techniques, the rabbi said, “What I integrate is the truth of the nature of mind and no one has any objection to that. I ask questions like, What is the influence of conceptual thinking on the mind? What are the effects of different thoughts?”

Roth teaches a type of meditation that involves experiencing the mind and body with a healing, nonjudgmental awareness. It is rooted in the mindfulness movement first brought to North America in the 1970s, which has steadily grown in popularity, even finding a significant place in new medical treatments and corporate environments. And Jews have played a large role in the movement, demonstrated by leading teachers like Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, Jon Kabat-Zinn and others.

Drawn to the mystical teachings of Judaism as a young rabbi, Roth said they remained “intellectual” for him until he began practising meditation. “In the quiet, in the silence, I became a mystic,” he said. “It became a direct experiential realization.”

Among his students now are many rabbis. “I teach rabbis they need to come to the silence, the witnessing, to have a deeper spiritual experience,” said Roth, referring to the practice of “just witnessing” that characterizes mindfulness meditation. By just witnessing thoughts, feelings and sensations, say its exponents, mindfulness meditation calms the body and mind and allows deeper, non-conceptual awareness of experience. “From a Jewish perspective, ‘just witnessing’ is not enough, however,” he said. “You need to be the compassionate witness.”

Roth said he draws his central inspirations from the teachings of the Chassidic masters, especially the Baal Shem Tov – Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, 1698-1760, founder of the Chassidic movement.

“The Baal Shem Tov said ‘everything is God and nothing but God,’” Roth explained. “The whole thing to do is to align ourselves with the truth of being, which in the Torah is expressed as ‘ein od milvado’ (‘there is nothing else besides God’).”

A turning point in Roth’s development came in 1981 when he received teachings from Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, the founder of the Jewish Renewal movement, which became the scaffolding of his theology of contemplation.

“Reb Zalman taught me about the four worlds, or levels of manifestation, that occur within the Holy One of Being,” said Roth. The contemplation of how the four levels of manifestation happen in our minds and bodies can guide our mindful exploration of experience, he said. “The four worlds have become a central metaphor in my teaching. I have been working out that teaching for the last 35 years.”

book cover - Me, Myself and GodRoth’s latest iteration of that “working out” can be seen in his recent book, Me, Myself and God: A Jewish Theology of Mindfulness (Jewish Lights, 2016), from which he will be presenting practices and Torah teachings at the Dec. 4 session.

“We’re trying to understand the fundamental forces that alienate us in our experience of life, in order that we might live more from a place of awakened heart, which is connected to all experience and allows us to manifest with more love and compassion in our daily lives,” said Roth. “I want to emphasize that acting with love and compassion – that’s where we’re going with the whole thing.”

For more information on the retreat, which will take place from 2:30-5:45 p.m., and be followed by a potluck meal, visit orshalom.ca.

Matthew Gindin is a freelance journalist, writer and lecturer. He writes regularly for the Forward and All That Is Interesting, and has been published in Religion Dispatches, Situate Magazine, Tikkun and elsewhere. He can be found on Medium and Twitter.

Posted on November 25, 2016November 23, 2016Author Matthew GindinCategories BooksTags Judaism, meditation, Or Shalom, spirituality, theology
Searching for my ohmmmm

Searching for my ohmmmm

I’ve never really been able to meditate. At least not in the formal way most people depict meditation. There have been no ohhmmmm moments for this guy.

Oh, I’ve tried – with the most patient teacher I’ve ever known. But “calm” doesn’t seem to help me clear my mind. It actually opens the door for every possible thought to prance around like they own the place. Instead of walking out of a meditation session with a sense of peace, I’d walk out with a long to-do list of things I just remembered I had to do.

That said, several years ago I realized that I do have meditation’s version of a best friend (for me anyway) … ice hockey! While going through a challenge-filled time in my life I discovered that no matter what was going on in my noggin all day, the moment I stepped onto the ice to compete my mind immediately focused on one thing and one thing only – the game in front of me. My focus became singular for that minute or so shift.

I mean, who has room to think about stresses at work or home when your heart is being pushed to 170 bpm while being chased down the ice by a 235 lb dude on sharp blades? I was grateful I had that escape.

I found that kind of focus again recently when I took on the infamous Grouse Grind – Greater Vancouver’s natural supplement for addicts of torture and misery.

Other grinders looking happy!
Other grinders looking happy!

Prior to this summer I had avoided the Grind for several years. With the exception of the cold beer that awaited at the top, I never enjoyed a darn thing about past climbs. However, now 25 lbs lighter and in much better shape than I was in my “why can’t we have nachos for breakfast?” days, I was actually looking forward to seeing how it felt this time around.

OK, well, it still seemed like a fairly torturous way to spend a Sunday morning (you were expecting me to love it, weren’t you!?). I pushed myself hard enough that throughout the final quarter I wasn’t sure if I’d die of an exploding chest or simply by passing out and falling backwards.

However, guided by pride (rather than beer), I creamed my old times with a solid 46-minute scamper. Aside from the personal sense of accomplishment and still-functioning lungs, what I really took from my excursion up Grouse Mountain was that discovery of another personal form of meditation.

Not more than 10 steps into the trek, my mind narrowed in on two simple things until the very end. I saw only the next step/rock I needed to take and heard only my breath – I don’t even remember the music playing in my headphones.

The half-way marker. Which arrives when most expect the finish to appear.

For 46 minutes I thought of nothing except what was right in front of me and the life that ran through my body.

I do wish I could find such life clarity in a less strenuous environment from time to time – say, bearing down on a bowl of chicken wings or buying shoes (don’t judge) – but I think it’s important for everyone to find their meditative niche and connect with it when time permits. Despite complete exhaustion and tight quads, I came off of the mountain feeling mentally refreshed in a way I hadn’t been in a long time.

Go out and find your cup of refreshing ohmmmmm. It’ll be worth it!

Format ImagePosted on July 23, 2015July 23, 2015Author Kyle BergerCategories It's Berger Time!Tags focus, Grind, Grouse Grind, hike, Hockey, meditation
A week of rest and Recharge

A week of rest and Recharge

In my last post I shared a vision for 2015 being a year of growth, exploration and the pursuance of excitement and inspiration.

I invited you all to join me or help me with ideas or opportunities for new or interesting things to try out. And you did! I received all sort of suggestions, ideas and offers and it looks like this is going to be an interesting year, indeed!

So far I took a tennis lesson with Steve Nash Fitness tennis pro Max Brown, started taking a free meditation class in hopes to re-open another door I had closed long ago and took an Israeli folk dance lesson –  something I really had absolutely zero interest in. More on the meditation and dancing below.

My biggest adventure outside of my comfort zone in 2015 so far took place last Sunday when I shared my personal story of conquering life’s demons with 120 open-minded people at the Recharge Conference (Ted Talks, here I come!).

Here is a summary of some of those events, which some key points I learned:

Recharge Conference:Recharge logo

The Recharge Conference was a full day of unique, dynamic speakers filling participants’ minds with creative perspectives on the topics of mind, body, spirit, career, relationships and money (or lack thereof).

Founded and organized by Mike Dirks and Justine Levenberg, the event was a ton of fun and kept the participants engaged all day – they even had the energy in the afternoon to dance with DancePlay for a few minutes, which was quite the site to see!

Kyle at RechargeI was essentially the morning warm-up act, sharing what changed when I proved my adult-self wrong, accomplishing things I had personally written off as undo-able for me. To be honest, as a first-timer, I wasn’t entirely sure that anything I had to say would be of value to the audience. It turned out a lot more people than I anticipated related to my personal confrontation with my own potential. Speaking to them was an incredible high and, by the end of the day I had a room full of friends. When some incredibly educated speakers that followed me referenced bits of my story in their own presentations, the validation I received from that was incredible. My warm-up act was a success and a blast! I look forward to staying connected to the Recharge movement.

Here are a few nuggets from the other presentations that day that stood out for me (more detailed posts to come about some of the other speakers):

On productivity: Your time should be considered in 3 equal pieces of the pie. Play, preparation and execution/work time should be pretty close to equal. The key there being that time to play is just as important, even though many of us feel that we are being unproductive just having fun or relaxing. And if you are working more than that, OUTSOURCE!

On debt: Stop wasting time feeling crappy about your debt or waiting for the answer to magically come along. Stop making excuses and own your financial decisions.

On reaching your loftiest long-term goals: Imagine where you’d like to be 10 years from now. Then think backwards about the steps that would likely take place to have you arrive at those goals. Write it all down (that was repeated many times) and focus on each step from the beginning, one at a time. That 10-year goal may seem too daunting on it’s own. But the first step right in front of you may be quite simple. 10 years from now you’ll be glad you started now!

On relationships: Don’t expect to ever have a productive relationship with another human (dogs are always exempt) if you don’t have a good one with yourself. Oh, and Mark Groves (@CreateTheLove) can make love – or lack thereof – funny.

About nutrition and body health: One of the worst things you can eat is worry, if you aren’t in bed before midnight you will pay the price the next day, and if you dream vividly it actually means you didn’t sleep well … making the wish for “sweet dreams” to be kind of harsh, actually.

Quote of the day: “A bad attitude is like a flat tire. You can’t go anywhere if you don’t change it.”

Meditation class:

To create some context, I’m one of those guys who doesn’t get yoga. I HAVE tried at least 10 different times with 10 different teachers (no, I haven’t tried YOUR teacher, who is simply the best), but I just haven’t been able to wrap my head around the whole namaste, heart-centre mumbo jumbo.

Meditation pretty much fit into that same category. The difference was that I had never really tried meditation. All I knew was that in the yoga classes, when they would ask me to clear my mind and meditate I’d start thinking about all the things I had to do. Or, I’d start to ZZZZzzzzzzzz………

I didn’t imagine I could meditate. I also imagined it wasn’t much more than a bunch of wishy-washy hoopla. Then I met Lloyd Baron. Lloyd, who visits the JCC regularly, is one of those unique people who have “peace” written all over their face. “How are you, Loyd?” “I’m fannnntastic!”

So when Loyd offered a free meditation class at the JCC, I decided it was worth investing my time and trying something new for me.

I’ve only attended two of Lloyd’s classes so far. In class #1 the comfortable position I assumed was laying on my back. After playing a late night hockey game the night before this was the perfect position for me to sleep. And sleep I did. In and out between mantras. When I was awake I really struggled to focus, or not focus, as was suggested at times. My mind wandered. Which is apparently normal.

In class #2 I sat in a chair right next to Lloyd. I was determined to stay awake and really follow his lead. My mind still full of day-to-day garbage, I discovered that following sounds was my closest path to zoning in or out on one thing. I’m going to work on that, play to my strengths as Lloyd suggested, and keep trying. Making an effort to spend a few minutes practicing each day. This is going to be a long haul effort for me!

Lloyd’s classes take place Tuesday mornings at 11:30am and 10am Thursday mornings. New participants are always welcome.

Israeli folk dancing:

Me...dancing...
Camera came out and everyone ran….

I had posted on Facebook that I had a free night and wanted to fill it with something new. I had a few interesting responses – most of which included things that can’t be repeated on this website. But I was challenged by a friend to try out Israeli folk dancing. She was half joking, offering me money to try it, knowing full well that this was not something anyone would expect Kyle to do. Which was exactly why I felt compelled to do it!

I joined the beginners class of the Vancouver Israeli Folk Dance Society taught by Naomi Taussig. It was probably the most mentally challenging hour and a half I have had in a long time – this being what happens when you join a class half way through the year and they all know the dance steps. By the time I caught on to each dance we moved on to the next. I had the opportunity to feel like the bumbling idiot in a room full of strangers, which was a lesson in humility. But, I learned what the Yeminite Step is, that folk dancing can be as much of a workout as it is a social event and that I have more balance on skates than I do on my dancing feet. All in, a good night!

Intermediate Israeli Folk Dancing
Intermediate Israeli folk dancing selfie!

Israeli folk dancing was probably a one-time event for myself given my schedule, but I’m glad I Yeminite-stepped in when I did. Watching the intermediate dancers was quite impressive as well!

Check it out Wednesday nights, 6:30-10pm at the JCC. They provide free cookies and candy!

Format ImagePosted on January 15, 2015Author Kyle BergerCategories It's Berger Time!Tags DancePlay, goals, inspiration, Israeli Dance, Meditate, meditation, nutrition, Recharge, Ted, Ted Talks
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