#shechina

[ta-chazei]

וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם׃

And let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them. - Exodus 25:8

[conscienciacoletiva]

Homem e Mulher, Divindade Entre Eles - Ep. 01

[progressivejudaism]

This is your friendly reminder that God™ is sometimes referred to as the Shechina, a feminine form that connotes God’s presence in the world, in Jewish tradition.

[ta-chazei]

Day 45 // Beauty in Kingdom // תפארת שבמלכות לְתַקֵּן עולָם בְּמַלְכוּת שַׁדַּי. You will perfect the world by Your sovereignty

- Aleinu, Daily Liturgy 

[progressivejudaism]

Is it correct to refer to God as He or They?

Hi anon,

This is a personal choice.  God, as represented in the Hebrew Bible is always referred to in the masculine singular or masculine plural.  In Rabbinic Literature, the shechina, the feminine presence of God, is first introduced. 

There are many contemporary rabbis, cantors, scholars and lay leaders that still refer to God in the masculine, some make it a point to refer to God in the feminine while others make an attempt at avoiding gender all together.

It is all up to you!

PJ

[yourdailytanya]

Daily Tanya Chapter 35 (conclusion)

Various aspects of Shechinah

To understand the words of the above-mentioned Yinnuka about the Shechinah that rests on the body of the Jew.

A. The Sages said that "the Shechinah rests whenever 10 Jews come together,” even when they are not occupied with Torah study, by virtue of the nullification that is naturally in the soul of every Jew.

B. When a person is occupied with Torah study, then his Divine soul with its two inner garments (which are the power of speech and thought), are included in the light of God and are unified with it, and on them the Shechinah dwells.

The revelation of the Shechinah in the observance of the mitzvot

In contrast to the above, by performance of the practical mitzot, a special aspect of the Shechinah rests on the lower elements of man.

A. On the power of action of his Divine soul.

B. On the very power of the body that is involved in the mitzvah.

C. On the power of the vital soul that is clothed in the performance of the mitzvah.

D. On the generality of the vital soul, which is in the whole body.

E. On the entirety of the body of the performer of the mitzvah.

Clarification of the Yenuka’s words

To preface: according to Halacha, a lamp or candle is specifically when the illuminating body is made up of oil and a wick and the oil is absorbed into the wick. This causes the wick itself to burn slowly, and is included in the shining light.

We see, then, that the words of Yennuka do not refer to all aspects of the inspiration of the Divine, but on the aspect that dwells on the body and on the lower aspects in man.

He explains that in the same way that the flame of a lamp cannot cling to the wick without oil, so that aspect of the Shechinah does not dwell on the human body, that is likened to a wick, except through the special oil (which can connect to the body and illuminate it). That oil is not the essence of the soul and not the study of the Torah, but the practical commandments and good deeds that man does.

[yourdailytanya]

Daily Tanya Chapter 35 (cont.)

Let's preface with a statement of the "Yenuka" in the Zohar

In explaining the virtue of good deeds, the Alter Rebbe brings the words of the Yenuka (quoted in the Zohar, and according to tradition, a sage from the Tannaic period whose real name is not known), as follows (in free translation):

On the verse (Ecclesiastes 2:24) "The wise man has his eyes in his head", Yenuka asks what this verse teaches us - after all, are the eyes of some other kind of person in his body or arm?

Of course, the meaning of the verse goes back to the explanation given in what was learned earlier, that a person should not walk four ambits without a head covering, for the Shechina rests on his head. Thus, the verse before us indicates that in all wise men, the eyes and speech (and all his attention) are "in his head", that is, in what is found on his head (= the Shechina).

Yenuka goes on to say that when his eyes (and interest) are directed there (to the Shechina on his head), he must know that the light on his head (the light on his head (the light of Divinity) needs oil. For the human body is comparable to a "wick" to which light is added from above. And King Solomon warns (in Ecclesiastes, 9:8) "Let not oil be lacking on your head!" For light to be added to his head (to light the wick) he needs oil (and the person must make sure that oil is not lacking).

And what is the spiritual oil through which the Shechina's light will light the human body? Good deeds.

Yenuka ends that this is the explanation for the statement of Solomon: "The wise man has his eyes in his head" In other words, the wise man constantly looks at his head, checking that oil is never lacking, meaning that he will never lack for good deeds, which serve as oil to the light of the Shechina.

[yourdailytanya]

Daily Tanya: Chapter 34 (cont.)

After the destruction of the Temple, an abode for the blessed be He

Our Sages said that "Ever since the Temple was destroyed, the four cubits of the Halachah”—that is, study of Jewish law—"is the only sanctuary and abode which the Holy One, blessed be He, has in His world."

This means that the law before us does not include only the instructions for actual human behavior. Rather, revealed in it and by it, is the Divine unity, which was explained before – the same revelation of unity that was in the Holy Temple.

Don't despair

As in the period after Mount Sinai, when Israel could not bear the superior revelation of His unity, they were told to construct the Tabernacle for the indwelling of the Shechina; so it is today, after the destruction of the Temple. Each individual must make Him a sanctuary and an abode by studying Torah at fixed times by day and by night, to the extent of his free time. One does this by fixing times for Torah study, as stipulated by the law governing each individual’s situation, set forth in the Laws of Torah Study (of the Shulchan Aruch). At a minimum, the requirement is "one chapter in the morning and one at night."

Rejoice and give thanks for his fortune

When contemplating the matter of His Divine unity, and realizing that one is not a "chariot," as were the Patriarchs, one should not be disheartened.

Rather, once he has set times for Torah study, during which he becomes a "a sanctuary and an abode for His Divine unity," his heart will rejoice; he will be glad and offer joyous thanks for his fortune in meriting to be a host to the Almighty twice every day according to the extent of his available time and according to the capacity which G‑d has granted him." Study the original Tanya text