On billboards throughout Israel, posters announcing the commencement of Shovavim are beginning to appear in an assortment of bright, attractive colors. Shovavim refers to the six-week period which begins the week that the Torah portion of Shemot is read.

The term Shovavim is an acronym of the beginning letter of the six consecutive Torah portions beginning with Shemot. According to Kabbalah, this period is especially conducive to rectifying sexual transgressions (Arizal, Shaar HaYichudim, 4:3). Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook writes of a future time when the world will admire Israel’s quest for sexual purity as highlighted by the special fasts and prayers of Shovavim(Orot HaKodesh, part 3, pg. 296).

During Shovavim, Jews gather on Thursdays in synagogues throughout Israel to recite special prayers, called “Tikun Yesod” to cleanse the deep blemishes caused by sexual transgression, otherwise known as transgressions to the Brit. Tikun HaYesod means rectifying the spiritual channel, called “Yesod,” which brings Divine blessings to the individual and to the Jewish Nation. The foremost Kabbalists emphasize the great tribulations and sufferings caused by sexual transgressions. Joining the list today is watching pornography on the internet, which causes great damage to the Jewish soul, and brings terrible sufferings on the person and his loved ones through the harmful spiritual forces that a person creates and unleashes into his home through his transgressions of the Torah commandments involved in looking at forbidden images.

At risk of oversimplification of esoteric ideas, one who bears the stains of sexual misconduct is like one who is constantly accompanied by n invisible cloud of spiritual pollution, which interferes with all aspects of life. Kabbalists emphasize that usual modes of repentance do not suffice for transgressions which bring about the wasting of semen, and that they can only be rectified by a “great and constant penitence” (Zohar on Shemot, 3b). Thus, Kabbalists formulated special prayers and rectifications (tikunim) for the Shovavim period.

The Sanz-Klausenberger Rebbe stressed that even married men and Torah scholars must make a concerted effort to repent during Shovavim (Halichot Chaim ”Holidays and Seasons,” Shovavim). He gave passionate sermons as Shovavim approached, claiming that wholehearted repentance is more important during Shovavim than during the High Holidays. He exhorted followers to let their broken hearts give way to the joy of deliverance, and not succumb to depression and despair.

He taught that the greatest weapon against the evil inclination was Torah study day and night. Additionally, he prescribed ‘fasting from speech’ (taanit dibur), asserting, based on esoteric works (Chid”a, Ahavat HaKodesh, Tzipora Shamir, 7:101), that anyone who committed transgressions through speech was certain to commit sexual transgressions as well.

The Tikun HaYesod prayers and accompanying repentance are in lieu of the 84 fasts that the holy Kabbalist, the Arizal, prescribed for each transgression of spilling seed in vain (Tanya, Igeret HaT’shuvah, ch. 3; Mishnat Chassidim, Tractate T’shuvah). Rabbi Yaakov Emden discusses different types of fasts in his scholarly prayer book, “Beit Yaakov” (pp. 370-1). Since fasting impedes the body’s production of blood, it is like a sin-offering. Those who are unable to fast, either because of health, or because it impedes Torah study, should give charity instead, along with heartfelt repentance and confession (R’ Schneur Zalman of Liadi, Igeret HaKodesh 3).

During this period, one should avoid anger. A person should also shun cynicism, frivolity and arrogance, and be very humble. Another recommended practice is to learn every day during the Shovavim period at least one complete chapter of Psalms and study chapters of the Mishnaic tractate Taharot.

For more information on Shovavim, check out www.jewishsexuality.com. If you can’t get to the Shovavim prayer gatherings, studying the articles posted on the site is the next best thing to being there. You’ll find Rebbe Nachman’s famous “Tikun HaKlalli”translated into English, along with other recommended tikunim, as well as the most important and definitive Kabbalistic essays on the subject, including essays from the Zohar, the Arizal, the Ramban’s Letter of Holiness, the Baal HaTanya, Rebbe Nachman, Rabbi Yaacov Abuchatzera, selections from “Taharat HaKodesh,” and Questions and Answers covering everything you always wanted to know about Jewish Sexuality but were too embarrassed to ask.

Happy Shovavim!

Today, we are going to examine the relationship between Torah and T’shuva. First, we must understand that Torah is not external, factual knowledge like the knowledge of science, mathematics, or linguistics. Torah is an inwardly-directed knowledge which has the power to influence and change a person, to refine a person’s sensitivities and to connect him to the holy, spiritual foundations of life.

The study of Torah is not a quantitative amassing of information and theories like other knowledges. It is a qualitative experience demanding both moral and intellectual involvement, and a desire to make Torah ideals an essential part of one’s character. When a person learns Torah and discovers the exalted harmony and goodness of Creation, his will is affected, stimulating a yearning for God. Because his will for goodness is enhanced, his desire for t’shuva is strengthened as well.

The Talmud teaches that God created the evil inclination and the Torah as its cure (Kiddushin 30B). Rabbi Kook explains this as meaning that a person’s will cannot be perfected except through the purifying influence of the Torah. The Torah strengthens the will and directs it towards holiness and goodness.

The more an individual learns Torah, especially the deeper wisdom of Torah, the more knowledgeable he becomes about his true spiritual nature and about the nature of his will. He comes to recognize that the entire world is Divinely inspired to attain a purer connection to God. This higher contemplation brings him to a higher level of t’shuva. Rabbi Kook writes:

“True, complete t’shuva demands lofty horizons of perception, in order to be raised to the resplendent world which abounds in holiness and truth. This can only be done by being immersed in the secrets of life found in Divine wisdom and the depths of the Torah. This necessitates physical cleansing and the purification of one’s traits as aids, so that the clouds of lust will not darken the intellect’s clarity. But the study of Torah must precede everything else, especially the study of the higher, supernal Torah, for it alone can shatter all of the iron barriers which separate the individual and the Nation from God” (Orot HaT’shuva, 10:1).

T’shuva and Torah go hand-in-hand. Like bees and honey, you can’t have one without the other. The more a person studies Torah, the more inspired he is to do t’shuva. Similarly, to the extent that a person purifies himself through t’shuva, his study of Torah is blessed and made more clear.

A person who is satisfied with a routine performance of the Torah’s commandments can get by with a minimum of t’shuva, but to enter into the deep, secret wellsprings of Torah, a person must be pure of all unholy influences. To reach this state of cleanliness, a great deal of t’shuva is required. The depth of a person’s t’shuva enables him to understand greater degrees of Torah, for the ability to understand Torah does not solely depend on one’s intellectual skills in clinically analyzing a passage of Talmud — the essence of Torah is when the person has internalized its profound moral concepts into his being, so much so that he yearns for them with all of his might. Only when a person has reached this level, when his will is so refined that it longs only for goodness, can he properly understand the deep secrets of Torah.

For this reason, people who profess to learn Kabbalah without doing t’shuva are not really learning at all. They study the formulas of mysticism, but the import of the teachings does not enter their hearts, for God only unravels the secrets of Torah to one who has prepared his soul to receive them. Rabbi Kook writes:

“It is obvious that it is impossible to learn the secrets of Torah without t’shuva. For in these great matters, the will and the intellect are united. When one understands these subjects with a mighty will for the good, one yearns for them and devises many general and specific strategies to obtain them. However, when sins form a barrier, the will is damaged, and since one cannot rise to the highest, innermost level of the will…wisdom cannot grow in him, and the channels of understanding the secrets of Torah are blocked” (Ibid, 10:8).

Simply put, if you want to understand the inner workings of existence, you have to clean up your act. Just like you cannot purify yourself in a ritual bath while holding a dead mouse in your hand, you cannot learn the secrets of Torah while you are living in sin.

Rabi Moshe ben Nachman, widely known as the Ramban was born in the year 1194 in the town of Gurunda, Catalina. He became famous as a great scholar and sage and wrote interpreta­tions on the Torah and on many Gemaras, and authored many seforim, which are revered to this day. The Ramban was also a philosopher and a physician and his ser­vices were in great demand.

One day, while the Ramban was study­ing, an elderly man was ushered into his chambers. The man was a mystic and well versed in the Kabbalah, He introduced himself to the Ramban and proceeded to urge him to study the Kabbalah. The Ramban avoided this study, as he believed it was unnecessary in this world. When the man became persistent the Ramban ordered him to leave.

“You’ll see,” said the Kabbalist, “how necessary it is to study this mysticism. I am urging you to do this for your sake, because you are a great man and you never can tell when you may need it.”

The elderly man left the Ramban’s house and walking into a church began to smash the statues and do other mischief. He was caught, judged to be a heretic, and sentenced to be burned at the stake that Shabbat.

The Kabbalist Performs Miracles

When the Ramban heard he was aghast. He visited the condemned man and upbraided him for his bad behavior, which served as a reflection upon all Jewry. The elderly man seemed un­concerned and asked the Ramban to please prepare his three Shabbat meals. The Ramban thought he was men­tally unbalanced and left him.

Shabbat morning the man was led to a tremendous burning pyre. As the soldiers prepared to throw him into it, the Kabbalist uttered the Holy name and they were suddenly struck blind. Miraculously a goat appeared on the scene and the soldiers grabbed it and threw it into the fire, thinking it was the elderly man.

Walking home, the Kabbalist entered the Ramban’s home in time to answer Amen to the Ramban’s kiddush. The Ramban was amazed and after hearing the entire story he decided to learn the wisdom of the Kabbalah. He spent many months with this elderly man and then he went to study with the sage, Rabi Elazar of Worms, world-renown Kabbalist and author of the sefer HaRokeach. After a few years, the Ramban became proficient in the wisdom of the Kabbalah.

Ramban Launches A Ship

The following year all of Spain turned out to witness the launching of one of the largest warships of the time, in the city of Barcelona. The king and queen were there as well as the entire court. The leaders of all nations were also present. As the chief spokesman for his people, the Ramban was also invited to attend.

While the trumpets blared, the workingmen released the wedges to permit the ship to slide down into the water. But something went wrong and the boat would not move. The workingmen frantically began to push the boat and used every method but it wouldn’t budge. The pop­ulace began to groan.

The Ramban, seeing this predicament, remarked to one of his pupils that with the use of the Holy Name he could move the boat and if need be, even mountains. A neighbor hearing this rushed to the king and repeated the conversation. The king commanded the Ramban to be brought before him and he ordered him to fulfill his boast.

Realizing his predicament, the Ramban requested a dinghy with a pilot to accompany him in the harbor. This was granted. The Ramban then uttered the awesome Holy Name and commanded the ship to slide down into the waters. Wonders of wonders! The boat began to move slowly and soon with a rush it splashed into the harbor water. The crowd cheered. However, before the king could sum­mon the Ramban to reward him, the Bishop approached the king and accused the Ramban of witchcraft.

Ramban Escapes

Hearing this the Ramban wrote out the Holy Name and the symbol of travel, on a piece of paper and placed it in a corner of the little boat. Immediately, the boat jumped forward as if guided by a tremen­dous power. The pilot had been asleep so he didn’t notice the boat racing through the waters. In a matter of minutes the boat covered half the coast of Spain and he entered a port near his home.

School children, families and communities across Israel celebrated the holiday of Tu B’Shevat on Wednesday, planting trees and eating fruits native to the Land of Israel in honor of the New Year of the Trees.

Tu B’Shevat is one of four “New Years” mentioned in the Mishnah.  Occurring on the 15^th day of the Jewish month of Shevat, it is the first day of the yearly agricultural cycle, and is important in terms of calculating biblical tithes and the appropriate time to begin cultivating fruits for eating.

According to Jewish law, a tree which is under the age of three may not be farmed for its fruits, but must be allowed to grow uninhibited, a law called Orlah.  Only after the tree reaches the age of three may its fruits be taken for eating.  Fourth-year fruits crops are brought to Jerusalem as a tithe, a law called Neta Revai.  Tu B’Shevat is the cut-off date for calculating the age of a fruit-bearing trees, and is important today for maintaining kosher standards  for the religious community, which continues to follow the laws of permitted fruits according to age.

In the 16^th century, the great kabbalist and mystic Rabbi Yitzchak Luria of Tzfat (the Arizal) instituted the tradition of making a Tu B’Shevat seder including fruits grown in the Land of Israel and featuring those which constitute the seven species noted in the Book of Deuteronomy, Chapter 8: “For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths, springing forth in valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig-trees and pomegranates; a land of olive-trees and honey.” The purpose of conducting the seder, which involves eating specific fruits, drinking four cups of wine, and saying blessings would raise people and even nature up to a higher spirituality.

Tu B’Shevat is also the time when members of the Chassidic and Sephardic communities pray for the etrog they will use during the holiday of Sukkot.

Planting a date palm in Hebron with the Kumah organization, 2006

Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin planting a tree with the Jewish National Fund, 2012