The Magic of Hebrew Chant
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Rabbi Shefa Gold, is director of C-DEEP: The Center for Devotional, Energy and Ecstatic Practice in Jemez Springs, New Mexico. Shefa composes and performs spiritual music, has produced several recordings, and her liturgies have been published in many prayer books. She teaches workshops and retreats on the theory and art of chanting, devotional healing, spiritual community building and meditation around the world. She also trains chant leaders in Kol Zimra, a two-year program for rabbis, cantors and lay leaders. Shefa, who is on the faculty of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, combines her grounding in Judaism with a background in Buddhist, Christian, Islamic and Native American spiritual traditions to make her uniquely qualified as a spiritual bridge celebrating the shared path of devotion. She is author of Torah Journeys: The Inner Path to the Promised Land and In the Fever of Love: An Illumination of the Song of Songs. For more information about Rabbi Shefa Gold, please visit her website at www.RabbiShefaGold.com.
Rabbi Shefa Gold is available to speak on the following topics:
- The Magic of Hebrew Chant
- Ecstatic Meditation
- The Path of Love
- Gratefulness as the Foundation of our Spiritual Practice
- The Power of Intention
Click here to contact the author.
Content
Foreword xiii
Introduction xv
Abracadabraxix
Fundamentals of Chant 1
Chant
What It Is 3
The Sacred Phrase
Or ... How a Chant Is Different from a Song 7
The Ground of a Chant 8
Components of a Chant 9
Entering the Silence 10
Intention 11
Cultivating Four Pathways of Intention 13
Memory 14
Imagination 19
Presence 22
Attunement 24
"That This Song May Be a Witness"
The Power of Chant 27
Entering the Mishkan 28
Developing a Chant 29
Obstacles and Traps 31
Meditative Practice in Relation to Prayer 32
The Lineage of Chant 34
Chant as a Core Spiritual Practice 41
Why We Value This Practice as a Core of Contemporary Jewish Spirituality 41
The Relationship between Chanting and Other Spiritual Practices 42
Meditation as the Foundation for Chant Practice 45
The Functions of Consciousness 46
Rhythm 49
The Secrets of Chant 51
The Inner Dimensions of Chant 53
Eight Functions of Consciousness in a Spiritual Group 56
Power and the Open Heart 67
Longing
Fuel for Spiritual Practice 73
Focus, through Pleasure, All the Way to Basking 77
T he Uses of Chant 81
Chanting as a Healing Modality 83
Chant in Ritual 86
Chanting During Taharah 92
Chant
Transformation, Purification, Healing, and Renewal 97
Inquiry and Shadow Work 104
Ecstatic Practice and the Establishment of Basic Trust 109
Soulful, Wholehearted, Embodied Text Study 113
Gratefulness as the Foundation of Practice 119
Healing the Spirit, Transforming the Mind, Deepening Love 125
Chanting-Alone and Together 131
The Practices 135
Liturgy 137
Scripture 159
Psalms 173
The Daily Psalms 205
Isaiah 209
A Few More Practices
Elements, Directions, Spirit Buddies 220
The Musical Notations 225
Introduction to the Musical Notations 227
Liturgy 231
Scripture 253
Psalms 266
The Daily Psalms 298
Isaiah 305
Acknowledgements 315
Appendix 1 316
Suggestions for Further Reading318
Index of Practices and Notations319
Index of First Lines323