New Moons, the Kabbalah, Judaism and the Fourth Way

Tomorrow we'll be experiencing the first new moon of 2016, which marks the start of the Jewish month of Shevat.

Recently we've been thinking about the cosmological significance of Christmas, the Solstice, and other traditions which mark the deepest part of winter in the northern hemisphere. We saw how the Earth is closer at this time to the outer parts of the galaxy and therefore receives rare and unique energies from the furthest reaches of space, from the level closest to the Absolute, to use Fourth Way terminology. At present, those influences are waning but are still there, while the Earth moves forward towards the year's next festival, the next special influences, marked by Candlemass and the New Year for Trees.

Throughout this year I want to continue to look at this interaction between the Earth, the planets and the energies they represent, and in particular to consider at how we can benefit from each change in the Earth's position.

So, from time to time, I'll be talking about astrological and astronomical phenomena and relating them to the Fourth Way and to religions which - because they were founded by conscious people - understand and mark these different stages in the Earth's journey round the Sun.

The religion which, today, has developed the best and fullest, most comprehensive, understanding of these matters is Judaism. The Christian religion also understands and marks the passage of the Earth through the solar system, and its festivals celebrate each stage.

Other religions, such as Buddhism and Islam, take into account the relative positions of the planets and the Earth, but they give less importance to their influence on the life of Man. 

The Jewish religion, however, has for more than three thousand years sought to understand and elaborate the meaning and potential of the planetary influences, especially that of the Moon.

In particular, the Kabbalah, the Jewish mystical tradition, gives prominence to cultivating the right attitude to each change in the position of the Moon relative to the Earth, and also to the cosmic atmosphere surrounding each month. There are different festivals to mark the new energies coming to the Earth each month, and at each festival. The Kabbalah understands and explains them so that we can best take advantage of the opportunities (and dangers) each phase offers.

First, though, a word of warning: in these posts I'll necessarily have to over-simplify the teaching of the Kabbalah. Space doesn't permit me to go into the theory and practice of this ancient system more fully here, but I shall try to situate each festival, each new month, within the greater Jewish tradition.

And please be aware: it's really not possible to understand the Kabbalah unless you have a good knowledge and grounding in Judaism. This is a mistake often made by New Age "Kabbalists", who have studied some part of the Kabbalah without reference to the whole, or to its religious setting. When they do this, the New Agers distort the Kabbalah and misunderstand its intent. It's like religious followers who seize on one verse of their holy scriptures and emphasize it to the exclusion of others: it loses context, loses meaning.

The Kabbalah is not simply something - like, say, astrology or numerology - which you can "add on" to any New Age philosophy. It demands a rethinking of our attitudes towards monotheism, towards mysticism, and towards the Jewish and Christian scriptures. It demands a commitment to ethical behaviour and to spiritual growth, and is very practical in its insistence that we must live out our understanding in actions, or mitzvahs, which is sometimes translated as "good deeds", but means something like "following the commandments".

 The Kabbalah is anything but New Age in its orientation towards transforming the world whilst transforming ourselves; it means hard work for those who commit themselves to it, but promises new understanding and insights, and new opportunities for working on oneself,  in just the same way as does the Work.

In its essence, Kabbalah comes very close to the Fourth Way. In fact, someone who follows the Kabbalah and also practices the Way of the Good Householder by living the Jewish or Christian teachings will be to all intents and purposes also following a Fourth Way school.

One writer who makes this clear is the excellent Zvi ben Shimon Halevi, otherwise known as Warren Kenton. Another is the writer Brian Lancaster. 

Yet another is the equally good, but differently oriented, Melissa Ribner.

I would also recommend the writings of David Aaron, Martin Buber, Gershon Scholem and - for a creative, imaginative approach - some of the works of Isaac Bashevis Singer.

Beryl Pogson, whose teachings I honour as part of the Nicoll line in the Work, and who was my own teacher's teacher, placed great importance on knowing the Jewish Bible and the background of the Jewish religion. I heartily recommend those who want to understand more about the significance of the Kabbalah and Judaism in relation to the Work to seek out her teachings on the Bible and Jewish festivals.

All this is by way of introducing the subject of the current New Moon, which on Sunday ushers in the month of Shevat.

Shevat, in Kabblistic teaching, brings new life. In this month, under the astrological sign of Aquarius, we celebrate the wonderful and unique "New Year of Trees", when trees are planted, existing trees tended, and new life celebrated. It is very close in feeling to the Christian festival of Candlemass, celebrated on February 2nd. 

On Tu b'Shvat, the New Year of Trees, fruit is eaten and wine, or fruit juice, drunk, to celebrate the blessings that trees bring us. But also, to the mystic, concentrating on the archetype of the tree suggests the original Trees in the Garden of Eden. What does it mean to us to contemplate the Tree of Life? The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil?

How does the story of the Garden of Eden, with its tale of disobedience, pride and blame, reveal to us our own faults? How have we blamed others for the errors into which our own rebellious I's, our own pride, our refusal to listen to our teachers and the knowledge of our own Higher Centres, have led us? If we are to carry out our Work Aim in the coming year, we need to see what has lured us away from the Work in the past, which habitual thoughts, which negative emotions, which recurring temptations and distractions, keep us from fulfilling our aims and really living the Fourth Way.

We're given the chance this month to become more open to new plans and projects, which will help us in the Work when we formulate our Aim for the New Year and seek to put it into practical form. If you're thinking of keeping a spiritual journal - a highly recommended practice - this month is a very good time to begin it.

The Kabbalah, with its emphasis on practical action, including eating the right food for each cosmic season, reminds us that what we take in is extremely important.

 In the Kabbalah as in the Work, this is not just physical food, but the three being-foods we study in the Work - the quality of the air we breathe, and how conscious we can be in assimilating it; and the attention we bring to incoming impressions. Eating fruit reminds us that our food comes ultimately from God, and our bodies are temples which should be honored as such. As far as possible we try to avoid "non-foods" such as artificial flavorings and colorings, and foods we know are harmful to our health, such as sugar, trans fats and all sorts of junk food. Intuition is essential here, since some food may be of good quality but not suited to our individual constitution. Paying close attention to the effects of different foods on the body and mind will bring rich rewards this month.

There is much to ponder here. Every month we'll look at the changing cosmic situation, and consider how each affects us, drawing on the teaching of the Kabbalah as well as that of the Fourth Way.

And meanwhile, let our Aim include the ideal of continuing to live our lives in sobriety, in appreciation, and gratitude. Those of us in recovery have been given new lives. Those of us in the Work are offered the chance to become fully transformed by following its call. Those of us who have both, are privileged indeed.