6 Tishri 5779 – Vayelech
Why do we blow shofar on Rosh Hashanah? Isn’t it a strange ritual? And why do we coronate G-d via the shofar? Is there no other way to declare G-d king then by blowing a horn?
So the Maggid of Mezritch (1704-1772) says this. The shofar is just the tool through which my breath is expressed. If I were not to blow into the shofar, no sound would emerge. When I blow air into it, the shofar produces a sound.
This is the story of life. We are the shofar. G-d is the blower. On the first Rosh Hashanah of history, G-d created Adam and Eve. How? “He blew into his nostrils a breath, a soul, of life.” That blowing continues. Every word we say, every thought we have, is really Divine energy coming out through us. We are the shofar that facilitates and expresses G-d’s energy.
What does it mean to coronate G-d? It means to recognise that you are a shofar—every moment, every second of life. Every breath you take, every move you make, every word you create, is an expression of G-d. You are always one with G-d. All of your life is an expression of Divine energy and light. And at every moment, you can allow yourself to become cognisant that you are a shofar: G-d speaks and thinks through you.
The choice to coronate G-d is not choice between if we are a shofar or not; it is a choice if we will be cognisant that we are a shofar.
And this is the secret key to serenity. When at every moment of your life you see yourself as G-d’s shofar. He is just blowing through you. So let go and let yourself just be His shofar.
Wishing you all a Shabbat Shalom and let’s see you all back in Shule this weekend!
Rabbi Yossi and Chana Raizel Friedman