Be the Change in Cheshvan
New Moon Meditations by Dr. Terry Segal
Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan is observed on two days: Tuesday, Nov. 1, and Wednesday, Nov. 2.
Cheshvan is sometimes called Mar Cheshvan, meaning bitter, because there are no holidays to celebrate.
Psychologically, it’s the perfect time to create white space on our calendars. The slew of holy days has passed, and there’s a small window of time before Thanksgiving, Chanukah and the secular new year consume us.
Holy days provide opportunities for growth and spiritual connection. The other holidays, not so much. Let’s review those plans made between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and decide how we’ll implement them. Our task is to rearrange the mar to ram (elevated) Cheshvan.
Water is an important element during this month. Our focus can be on the flood rains, decreased hours of light, tears from the loss of our matriarch Rachel and the deterioration of Mother Nature’s glory as it becomes dormant.
On the flipside, we lost Rachel but gained Benjamin, her son. The flood was devastating but was followed by renewal and growth.
We’re about to experience a change in leadership, as the presidential election is upon us. We can choose to remain a nation divided, or we can unite on the issues that matter to us most.
Before entering our votes, we must strongly consider who is more aligned with tikkun olam (repair of the world). We must rise above the petty, low-vibrational bitterness and envision what the world could look like elevated. We ask ourselves, “Who is most able to help us achieve that?”
Cheshvan’s zodiac sign is Scorpio: Hebrew letter, nun; tribe, Menasheh; sense, smell; and controlling organ, intestines.
Scorpio is represented by the scorpion. People born under the sign are loyal, resourceful and passionate. With no gray area, they are also manipulative, controlling, obsessive and jealous.
We must monitor those qualities in ourselves and watch for the sting of the scorpion’s tail. The debates and leaked information have revealed the worst of scorpion energy.
The facts about actual scorpions tell of some qualities that metaphorically can be seen in people.
Scorpions have six to 12 eyes but poor vision. They’re informed by vibrations in their environment. All are venomous. They live around rocks, sand and trees. They’re nocturnal and sensitive to light.
They can consume only a liquid diet, so they inject their prey with venom that turns the insides to liquid, which they then can suck out. The females consume the males after mating if they don’t move quickly enough.
I’ve read stories of scorpions in the Garden of Eden that, initially, ate only vegetation.
The Hebrew letter is nun. It resembles a scorpion with its tail raised.
The tribe is Menasheh, the firstborn son of Joseph, who could turn darkness into light. Each of us has this responsibility. We can’t put it all on our leaders to achieve. We must take on the job as bringers of light.
As is written in Pirkei Avot (2:21), “You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.”
The sense is smell, which scorpions use to find food and hide from danger. This is considered the only sense untouched by the transgressions in the Garden of Eden.
The controlling organ is the intestines. Their job is to excrete waste and remove toxins from the body. Accumulated waste heats and congests. Toxic energy not released carries over into the familiar “scorpion temperament” of anger and resentment.
Again, water is important to put out the fire and flush the toxic waste to achieve balance.
Meditation focus: Allow a few moments to quiet yourself. Take a few deep and cleansing breaths in and release. Let go of tension in your body. Clear space in your mind for new thoughts to arrive.
Revisit that picture of our world changed. Visualize a place of peace with equality, prosperity, harmony and justice. Gandhi said, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.”
Vote from a place of ram vs. mar. Get specific about how you can be a light on the path to peace.
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