The Tabernacle

bandit - I posted this on the parsha for the Book of Numbers Bamidbar .... but I also wanted to post it here because it is so connected with the tabernacle .... the Camp of Israel, how the twelve tribes are laid out around the tabernacle ....

.... I was reading an article by Rabbi Shranga Simmons about Shavuot .... which is coming right up and is the "single most important event in Jewish History - the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai" which also makes this particular parsha Bamidbar very important .... the reading of Baidbar takes place on the Sabbath before the Shavuot holiday and Rabbi Nosom Weisz did a great job in his thesis on the Book of Bamidbar which establishes the norms of a Jewish society. (www.aish.com/torahportion/mayanot/bamidbar) .... he says that this book begins to describe the social contract that binds together the individuals that comprise the Jewish people just as the Covenant of Sinai sets the seal on this contract .... the internalization of the system of ethics is a necessary prelude to the receivinb of the Torah."

so bandit, the first part of this relates to the naming and the placement of the 12 tribes around the tabernacle (we have that diagram in the wilderness of the Camp of Israel) .... which you already know I associate with the 12 pairs of cranial nerves that operate the internal system of the seven energy centers that must move the energy into the place of the altar in the portable tabernacle to reach the place in which we meet g-d face to face .... this would be equivalent to the receipt of the torah which will take place on Shavuot .... a most important holiday that is celebrated within one's self, there are no outward signs of this celebration .... one typically would read and study the Torah all night long by him or herself ....

I'm really excited about what I read by Rabbi Shraga Simmons (www.aish.com/shavuotfeatures/shavuotfeaturesdefault/abcs_of_shavuot.asp) because he said that "on Shavuot morning, we read the biblical book of Ruth and Ruth was a non-Jewish woman whose love for God and Torah led her to convert to Judaism. The Torah intimates that the souls of eventual converts were also present at Sinai, as it says: 'I am making (the covenant) both with those here today before the Lord our God, and also with those not her today.' (Deut 29:13)." While I've read before that some have translated this to mean the Jewish people that had not been born yet were also present, this is the first time I've seen the possible interpretation that it could have meant the souls of future converts. Since I have now decided that I want to convert (if anyone will have me .... I'm going to try with the reform group who seem more open to this) this whole period of the 50 days following the Passover has special significance in all its symbolism.... I even hung a Mezuzah on my door on Mother's Day (given to me by a friend) even though I had no special permission or blessings to do this .... but it is there for me to see every day and for all my friends and family to see ....

In the parsha today the placement of the Jewish people outlined by the Torah gives us the message that we are souls and not bodies and our placement is based on our soul .... "the accedptance of Torah amounts to the accedptance of oneself as a soul" and "as a soul there is no reason to display any reluctance in accepting one's assigned position in the encampment of the Israel. This brings one into perfect harmony with all the other souls in a way that still allows for self-definition. Parshat Bamidbar is truly a proper prelude to the Shavuot holiday."

Although I do not know for certain, I believe my placement may be with the tribe of Levi because this is the name carried by my grandfather who never claimed to be Jewish .... or I might belong to another tribe, another placement .... one day I will know in my heart where my soul is placed and accept whereever it is as perfect and balanced .... this Friday I will attend my first synagogue .... will let you know how it goes .... he hawai'i au, poh
 
(Exodus 25:40) And see to it that you make them according to the PATTERN, which was SHOWN YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN

bandit do you remember that you posted the above sometime back in the beginning of our discussions ... we are now into the parsha's for the Book of Numbers and we are right on the edge of the celebration of the day that Moses received the Torah on Mt. Sinai .... if the mountaintop is symbolic of our own head and skull, the patterns would begin to fit .... remember that the whole system is operated by the 12 pairs of cranial nerves (the endocrine system that moves the energy through the seven energy centers in the body) .... we must move this energy up the spinal column into the center of the brain (the altar) to bridge the three hemispheres ....

in the book "In the Wilderness" by Mary Douglas she says that the Book of Numbers is organized in a ring with distinct units in parallel pairs "the pairing so organized that the last one matches the first and arranged so that the ending comes back to the beginning" .... if the 12 tribes are also symbolic of the 12 pairs of cranial nerves in the skull, their placement around the portable tabernacle is part of the pattern ....

when we are able to realign the whole internal system through deep prayer or meditation (moving the spiralling energy upward into the skull) we in effect "die to the old ways of living" and are "reborn to the new world" .... if the Hopi Indians are correct in their prophercies that this is the "time in which we meet ourselves", then we will awake from the deep sleep and remember who we are and what our full potentials are .... the return of the mosiach would occur because the 12 tribes have regathered and in effect we enter the promise land, the land of milk and honey (milk and honey are also symbolic of chemicals that are released in the skull and brain which move us toward the process of revelations and visions .... we go behind the veil (the arachnoid that covers the skull .... the system of vibrating strings that connect the twelve) within the tent and there we are at the mountaintop ....

in the hawaiian chant of creation, the Kumulipo, at the end of the seventh "wa" or section of the chant we begin to move out of the world of darkness (the world of the gods) or "po" into the time of light (the world of man or enlightnment" or the time of "ao" and the chant says

O kau ke anoano ia'u kualono
He ano no ka po hane'e aku
He ano no ka po hane'e mai

One translations is:
Fear falls upon me on the mountaintop
Fear of the passing night
Fear of the night approaching

But the first line is also translated in various ways as:
The solemn stillness on my hills
Ove the mountain silence reigns
Awe comes over me on the mountaintop

Even Jesus in the christian religions dies and is reborn on the mountain top called Golgatha .... which means "the place of the skulls"

Even the Tibetians have symbols of the cave with the human skulls and Kali (the goddess of darkness as some say) wears a necklage of skulls ....

All symbols in the numbers and objects .... the entire taberncale in the wilderness (the portable one that we all carry) is to be read with the inner eyes or with the soul to understand its inner meaning or the essence of its message, from my point of view .... we exit (as in exodus) the wilderness when we reach that place of freedom or sovereignty and that occurs when we reach the mountaintop and accept the deepest meanings of the Torah .... we begin to see behind the veil, or beneath the outer garmnents .... the queen (the torah) and the king (the energy that is annointed as it moves into the brain stem by the two olivares) are reunited and we form the human cross or the ultimate meeting of heaven and earth ....

I've spelled some of this out in previous posts .... but it appears that our tabernacle project is coming to closure because there are no other posts .... so as we approach the 50 days after Passover and reach Shavout it is appropriate that we are at the hem of the Jubilee (the real freedom of the slave) .... I'm feeling very philosophical and sounding very esoteric right now, but I'm trying to best to spell out what I see and sense .... and yes, I do feel very euphoric .... I feel very passionate .... and I feel a great sense of peace and harmony .... I wish everyone a wonderful adventure when they go inward at the time of Shavout ....

I'm leaving for Wisconsin on the 1st for my nieces wedding and to visit my youngest sister .... I will celebrate Shavout, the receiving of the Torah, there ....

What is amazing to me is that all religions seem to lead us to the same mountaintop .... our paths may differ, but "when we get there we will see the same moon" .... yet even now we see our differences and do not yet celebrate our links because we have yet to find our way through the darkness of our human emotions .... it really is true that unconditional love, agape, is needed to remove the veils and peer deeper into the depth of who we really are .... isn't that what "jihad" is suppose to be all about, and we reach the promised land or the wedding place of the male and female energies, not through war but through love .... not the love of the material world, but the love of the spirit of god .... how wise were those ancient ones that left us the seeds or messages of understanding, but how deeply we sleep that we cannot see them clearly .... well now I'm starting to ramble .... so will close out with He Hawai'i Au which means "I am Hawaii" or I give breath and life to my culture by the way I live my life .... poh






 
my friend and co-walker on the ancient path has chosen to leave our site for awhile .... I will miss him but always carry him in my heart .... take care bandit and I will see you on the path....

a new thread was started on the Judiasm section regarding the twelve tribes and I thought it would be an excellent addition to this thread on the tabernacle because the twelve tribes play a significant role in the whole structure and function .... so I though I might try to post some thoughts on the tribes (and I really hope others will join in because I am not the expert on this and may make many mistakes .... but at least I will try) .... here is the posting I did on the other thread about the twelve tribes:


"there is a reference above to a book entitled "Collapse of the Bronze Age and the Rise of Ancient Israel" which is suppose to speak to the tribes .... I can't vouch for how accurate it is, but looks like an interesting source .... I also was reading a thread from early in 2005 on this site entitled "Twelve Tribe Table - Rastafari" in which our moderator bb stated "jewishly, you're either 'cohen' or 'levi' (in which case tribe of levi) or 'yisrael' in which case you're either judah or benjamin. other tribal affiliations will only be worked out when the Messiah can do it."

a discussion on the tribes might be a great addition to the "tabernacle in the wilderness" dialogue in the interfaith parsha .... I was reading in Mary Douglas's "Leviticus as Literature" that "Exodus recounts how beautifully the tabernalce was made, the psalmist extols the house of God. Leviticus honours it in its own style. The book opens with God calling Moses at the entrance to the tent of meeting, and the tabernacle remains throughout not just the ground and pivot of all its teaching, but the actual structure on which its literary form has been projected." She goes on to speak of the "tripartite architecture of the tabernacle, itself modelled on the three-zones proportions of the holy mountain" I was thinking that this information in addition to the placement of the twelve tribes in the camp of Israel and the significance of the twelve on the breastplate of the high priest may take us to a better understanding of the significance of each tribe and its origin ....

I'm going to post this in both this thread and in the tabernacle thread and try to get started on the twelve tribes in relationship to the portable tabernacle in the wilderness .... aloha nui, poh"

GRACIOUSNESS, ELEGANCE, TRUTH .... what does this have to do with the tabernacle? I don't know, but the words are entering my brain so thought I would share them. I was told yesterday that I would inherit two properties which was interesting to me because I cannot think of anyone that would be leaving me any property .... but it is possible that the two properties are not physical, but spiritual and they are connected to a deeper understanding of the tabernacle .... gotta leave for work, but will return .... aloha nui, poh
 
although this thread has probably gone into exile because of lack of participation, thought I would post a few additions to bring it full cycle .... I just received a new book "Secrets of the Future Temple" by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (written in 1729 and recently translated into English) .... it is translated by Avraham Yehoshua ben Yakov Greenbaum and published by The Temple Institute and Azamra Institute in Jerusalem .... I'm only going to post a quote from the opening page and the ending which I think are very relevant to this thread:

"You, son of man: Tell the House of Israel about the Temple .... Let them see the measurements of the plan .... Let them know the form of the Temple and its structure, all its forms and all its laws ... Write it before their eyes,and they will guard all its forms and all its laws and do them" (Ezekiel 43:10-11)

Ezekiel said to the Holy One blessed-be-He: 'Master of the World: We are now in exile, and You tell me to go and inform the Jewish People about the plan of the Temple? 'Write it before their eyes, and they will guard all its forms and all its laws and do them.' How can they 'do them'? Leave them until they go out of exile, and then I will tell them.' The Holy One blessed-be-He said to Ezekiel: 'Just because My children are in exile, does that mean the building of My House should be halted? Studying the plan of the Temple in the Torah is as great as actually building it. Go and tell them to make it their business to study the form of the Temple as explained in the Torah. As their reward for this study, I will give them credit as if they are actually building the Temple" (Midrash Tanchuma, Tzav #14)"

Hmmmmm .... got more studying to do and hope to earn a few credits .... we can and will rebuild the temple .... just open our eyes and see with our souls .... I have come to the conclusion that the time of the Masiach and the rebuilding of the temple will take place simultaneously .... then "all the lights will shine with a radiance unlike anything ever known." He Hawai'i Au, Poh
 
Kindest Regards, Poh!

I've been extremely scarce of late, but I wanted to take a moment to let you know your efforts here (CR in general, but this thread in particular) are much appreciated, by me anyway. It is sad to see this one lose it's steam, but one can hope it will resurrect one day soon. Thank you, very much, for your time and trouble, for your participation.
 
Thank you for your precious and kind words .... while the thread may be quiet for a while, I suspect it will not be that way for too long .... aloha nui, poh
 
Hi juan and poh--Peace

pohaikawahine said:
Thank you for your precious and kind words .... while the thread may be quiet for a while, I suspect it will not be that way for too long .... aloha nui, poh
Click to expand...

I suspect you may be right. Please don't think that just because no one is posting means that no one is participating. Perhaps just quietly learning...;)

InPeace,
InLove
 
aloha nui in-love, I meant to write back and say thank you for your kind words of support ....

In the book "Secrets of the Future Temple" by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (which was written in 1729 and just translated into English) he speaks of the third temple in depth and said that it will be different from the first and the second and he also says (and this is really important) "I will reveal a very great secret, so apply your intelligence resolutely in order to descend to the depths of the matter. Know that this future Temple is the one that Ezekiel the Prophet saw immediately after the destruction of the First Temple. You have already heard that the Temple above never ceased to exist even though the Temple below was destroyed. For the Temple in this world could only be built through the great power of the lights (the Sefirot) which radiated from level to level until they reached this world, producing the Temple. In the absence of this power the Temple could not remain in this world. But this did not mean that the Heavenly Temple had to be destroyed. It simply became darkened and did not shine as at first."

Two more very important statements are found in this book (in the overview) related to the third Temple starting with the question: "Does the Third Temple come down ready made and complete from Heaven, or do actual people have to build it?"

"According to Rashi, "The future Temple for which we are waiting will be revealed and come down from heaven fully built and complete, as it is written (Exodus 15:17): 'The Santuary, G-d, that Your hands established."

On the other hand, Rambam states that the main identifying sign of the Mashiach will be that he will physically build the Third Temple in its proper place (Hilchot Melachim 11:4).

Ramchal helps us understand how both opinions express different aspects of the process by which the Third Temple will come into this world..... a spiritual emanation of the Temple will come down into this world from the Upper World, and around it the physical reality of the Third Temple will be built."

In other words as "more people study and grasp the Temple idea, the nearer will they bring the day when humanity will come to its senses, cease its futile cycles of war and destruction, and join together with one accord to worship the One God in the Third Temple."

Isn't it ironic that this also answers the question I originally posed about the reference from the Song of Songs to "a well of living waters that stream from Lebanon" .... it is related to the flow of light or blessings that come from the rebuilding of the Third Temple (spiritually) .... and also seems to answer the question which comes first the Masiach or the Temple .... they arrive simultaneously .... and I am awe that they both sit right at the edge of our own consciousness just waiting for each of us to open the door ....

I'm also reading a book called "The Return of Quetzalcoatl" by Daniel Pinchbeck .... in it he speaks of September 11 and its impace on the level of the collective psyche which was measured in the Global Consciousness Project at Princeton University which is an ongoing experiement to measure psi as a worldwide phenomenon. "The Princeton project documented strong deviations from normal patterns of randomness which were registered on the morning of September 11,2001. Even more interesting is the following: Although perturbations in the pattern peaked several hours after the planes hit the World Trade Center, deviations from the norm began a few hours before the catastrophic events. " The project director noted "We cannot explain the presence of stark patterns in data that should be random, nor do we have any way of diving their ultimate meaning, yet there appears to be an important message here. When we ask why the disaster in New York and Washington and Pennsylvania should appear to be responsible for a strong signal in our world-wide network of instruments designed to generate random noise, there is no obvious answer. When we look carefully and discover that the (data) might reflect our shock and dismay even before our minds and hearts express it we confront a still deeper mystery."

If, as speculated by this project, that we may be witnessing the early phases of a self-organization of a global brain .... are we nearing the possibility that if we change our minds, we can change our world .... if we change our minds, do we begin the fulfilling of the prophecies and the return of the Mosiach as well as the return of the Third Temple (which has always been there) .... just some thought to share as we pass the date of September 11 and move closer to the celebration of Rosh Hashanah which has as part of its meaning a focus on the theme of birth after a long period of barrenness or the deliverance of Israel from exile .... and could be related to the rebirth of our own consciousness .... I grow more positive each day in my belief that our world is changing for the better and our children will be able to live in harmony and in balance .... he hawai'i au, poh
 
aloha nui, pohaikawahine!

mahalo (sp?) for your wonderful thoughts on this subject. The way it is explained here gives me such hope. Not just for Israel, but for everyone everywhere.

I think we truly are seeing a global phenomenon, if we really look. I have been wanting to read Pinchbeck's book. Now I know why!

InPeace,
InLove
 
pohaikawahine said:
In other words as "more people study and grasp the Temple idea, the nearer will they bring the day when humanity will come to its senses, cease its futile cycles of war and destruction, and join together with one accord to worship the One God in the Third Temple."
Click to expand...

Poh,

I totally dig this. This is where it's at.
 
This has been quiet for a few years, but I think there is a reason it has opened again. In my opiniion, the recent events in the world are so exciting in terms of people seeking new freedoms and a compassion for each other that has been missing for a long time. If 2012 is indeed the year in which "we will meet ourselves" (Hopi saying) then all of the events, as chaotic as they seem, may be the steps to the "regathering", the coming together of people to find a common path to the mountaintop. I'm reprinting this entire conversation that was started by Bandit on 1/10/2006 and will re-read all the comments. I have always believed that the rebuilding of the temple is both an external and internal process. All ancient religions and cultures have a thread that binds us together if we open our eyes and see with our souls. Even in the U.S. the unions are coming together for the first time in a long time, a re-energized building of common goals. I want to go back and look at threads, prophecies, and inner meanings of our stories and legends. Dauer started the Interfaith Parsha Project and I still feel this has great merit and possibility. I don't think I did much to enhance it because my words don't always describe what I feel and think I see. I hope to do better this time and hope that others will join in the discussion (or kukakuka as we would say in Hawaiian - a dialogue). me ke aloha pumehana, poh
 
I really should have asked if anyone else feels that the events in the world are positive - I've been told I tend to be very pollyanna. Does anyone else see a connection with The Tabernacle and the events or not? me ke aloha pumehana, poh
 
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