People ask us as observant Jews, why do you follow the Lunar Calendar? It is strange to them when they see us celebrating our holy-days and our months are named differently. They also do not understand the difference in the years and why we are currently at 5784 and they are at 2023. So, I wanted to post a source article to explain.....
The Difference Between a Gregorian Calendar and a Jewish (Kabbalistic) Calendar
The Gregorian (traditional) calendar determines the month and year based on solar cycles, whereas the Kabbalistic Calendar determines the month according to lunar cycles and the year by the solar cycles. In a Jewish/Kabbalistic Calendar, a month always starts on or near a new moon and has either 29 or 30 days (a lunar cycle is about 29 1/2 days). -Dinah: The Gregorian calendar began 2023 years ago, based upon the life of the Jew boy from Nazareth. Rome decided that to literally change the times and the calendar to fit their narrative. No longer would the Lunar Calendar of the Hebrews be predominate, of course also with the Julian, but this calendar would now prevail. With the new calendar came a more precise way of celebrating and connecting astrologically as Rome seen it. To say that they changed the calendar to just make the solar time flow easier is not the complete truth. It would take book to explain it all, suffice it to say that the leaders had astrological counselors and where very concerned about 'auspicious times' to do certain things, holidays, sacrifices, rituals, etc. Creating a new calendar was not just about efficiency.
Back to the Jewish/Kabbalistic Calendar, we recognized auspicious times not only in the year itself, but the months of the years, weeks, days and yes, even the hours of the day.
There is such a thing as Jewish Astrology. It is not voodoo, it is Biblical. The tribes of Israel themselves are connected to the 12 Zodiac. The 12 tribes are even corresponded to the stars in those zodiacal months. "And I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars in the sky.." (Gen. 26:4)
With that in mind, let's take a look at some of the Jewish/Kabbalistic auspicious times.
POSITIVE DAYS
Certain days are imbued with the energy of abundance, making them a preferable time to begin something new. These days are an optimal time to plant a seed for new ventures, getting married, buying a home, scheduling important medical procedures and so on. The first day of each month, the New Moon, is a particularly positive day, as it contains the seed of the entire month.
NEGATIVE DAYS
Just as positive days have more energy, negative days have less. Seeds planted on negative days have a harder time bearing fruit.
NEUTRAL DAYS
If we have an important task to accomplish and a positive day is not an option, a neutral day is preferable over a negative day.
LETTERS OF THE MONTH (22 Hebrew Letters Frequencies)
The Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Formation), written by Abraham the Patriarch some 3800 years ago, states that the Hebrew letters are the DNA of the universe. They are the physical representation of the divine energy intelligence that created everything, from the planets to the galaxies. Every month is represented by a sign of the zodiac, and by a planet, both created by a Hebrew letter. The Book of Formation explains that by meditating daily on the Hebrew letters specific to the month, you can influence how your month plays out.
ANA BEKO'ACH (In the Beginning)
The Ana Beko'ach is an ancient kabbalistic prayer built around a sequence of 42 letters that are encoded within the first 42 letters of the Book of Genesis. Each line of the prayer corresponds to the energy of a particular month, and a specific day of the week. By meditating on the Ana Beko'ach daily, you enrich your life with pure spiritual Light and positive energy.
ANNIVERSARIES (Ancestors & Those Gone Before Us)
Every year on the anniversary of the passing of a righteous person, that person's soul returns to this world. The Zohar teaches that all the positive energy revealed by that righteous person is available for us to connect to on this day. Awareness, combined with meditation, allows you to connect to their souls so that you can inject their unique, transformative energy into your life and receive their spiritual assistance.
NEW MOON (Lunar Calendar)
Rosh Chodesh, which translates as"head of the month," is the first day of the lunar month. Just as the seed contains the DNA of the entire tree, the first day of the new month contains all of the distinct forces that will be revealed that month. Each New Moon, you have the opportunity to tap into the potentially positive aspects of the coming month, and gain the awareness necessary for transforming the potentially negative aspects. This is why Kabbalah Centres and Kabbalah Study Groups all over the world offer special connections every New Moon. During these connections, teachers elaborate on how to maximize the unique opportunities available each month, and lead beautiful, inspiring meditations to celebrate this time of renewal.
SHABBAT (4D Connection with the Holy One)
Every Friday at sundown begins the time known as Shabbat, and it concludes with the setting of the sun on Saturday evening. Kabbalists explain that Shabbat is the only day of the week when the spiritual and physical worlds are united. The Light flows throughout the entire day and is available for you to receive from it as much as you want. Shabbat allows you access to a higher level of your soul than you can connect to during the other six days of the week. This window in time also gives you the opportunity to change your personal destiny at the seed level for the coming week.
HOLIDAYS (Portals in Time)
Holidays are not just about tradition. They are one of the most powerful technologies available to you for improving your life. Holidays are cosmic windows in time that allow you to connect to different frequencies of spiritual energy. These forces activate and enhance your ability to remove certain types of negativity and chaos, thereby increasing your personal fulfillment. Each holiday provides its own distinct channel to the Light.
CHOL HA'MOED (INTERMEDIATE DAYS)
These days are still part of the framework of the holiday; however, work is optional.
Dinah Says: Make no mistake, the Torah Holy Days and Auspicious Times are not just some flippant holidays a religious people do. These times where created by the Infinite Creator who in its blueprint of creation designated these times as portals of connecting the Infinite to the Finite. Times of 'refueling' if you will this world with It's Life Giving Light. You show up on these days, amazing things happen....Try it!
Notes:
Zohar: Beersheet
Kabbalah Center: Jewish Calendar
Torah: Gen. 24
Sefer Yetzirah: Chapter 5