elul 5784 monthly highlight

welcome to elul 5784! this is our first ever blog post and monthly highlight ever, and we are so excited to share our website with you as part of the shtetl shabbos collective!

this month's theme is reflection. elul is a time of deep introspection and gathering of our thoughts. we put the mirror in front of ourselves and begin to ask: what did this year teach me? how can i use those lessons to improve myself? what can i do this coming year to be better?

we’ve decided that in lieu of this theme, we will be posting daily reflective journaling prompts in our discord server. we also will begin posting our intro to jewitchery blog series from those new to this path. we hope no matter where you are on your path, you are able to learn something about yourself this month. now, feel free to check out our monthly highlights below!

- xoxo, the shtetl shabbos staff team

correspondences

season: early autumn

moon: the moon of making space

mazal: virgo

netivah: tzovah/the temple keeper

angel: chaniel

body part: stomach

tree: grape

tarot: the hermit

hebrew letter: yud

holidays and events

rosh chodesh elul/rosh hashana lebehemot + shtetl shabbos site launch - elul 1st/sept 4th @ 6pm est

full moon of making space event - elul 15th/sept 18th @ 6:00pm est

tefukah tisherei (autumn equinox) event - elul 20th/sept 23rd @ 6:00pm est

astrology

september 1st: uranus goes retrograde in taurus - this is a time to purge negativity from you life as the planet of independence helps us stand on our own two feet. try to find freedom and enjoyment, don’t go overboard.

september 1st: pluto retrograde enters capricorn - this will be the LAST TIME IN OUR LIFETIME that pluto enters capricorn. say goodbye to it by reflecting on everything you’ve learned and what’s happened in your life. get ready for a new age!

september 2nd: new moon in virgo - since summer is over, this is an ideal time to get back on track by developing on new routines, focusing on your health, and being productive towards your goals.

september 4th: mars enters cancer - this may be a waterlogged period for us until the end of the year as cancer makes us guarded and protective of ourselves and our loved ones.

september 8th: pallas enters sagittarius - the second time this year! we’re able to expand our minds to new information!

september 8th: mercury enters virgo - mercury re-enters one of the two signs it rules. after the retrograde, we can pick up the pieces and reorganize our lives!

september 17th: full moon lunar eclipse in pisces - stop ignoring your problems and finally get to the heart of them, even if it’s uncomfortable.

september 22nd: sun enters libra/fall equinox - it’s the first day of autumn! the sun is also in its sign of fall as it shines its light on relationships. be fair and generous to others without people pleasing.

september 22nd: venus enters scorpio - we are attracted to the mysteries of life and love as venus enters the sign of the scorpio. relationships can become intense, passionate, and even a little obsessive.

september 26th: mercury enters libra - thoughts become diplomatic as we get a boost of charm in all our social interactions. don’t delay important decisions to make everyone happy, you’ll only hurt yourself.

judaica of the month

the judaica we’re showcasing this month is this beautiful shofar stored at the jewish museum in carnegie hill, new york. this engraved ram horn was made in the 18th century in germany. according to a blog post made by the museum, the verses engraved are “blow the horn on the new moon, at the full moon for our feast day. for it is a statute for israel, an ordinance of the g-d of jacob” (psalms 81:4–5) and “with trumpets and the sound of the horn” (psalms 98:6). see more on the jewish museam website

natural force of the month

this year’s natural force for elul is cows. elul starts off with rosh hashanah lebehemot, or new year of the animals. it is a holiday that in modern times has come to celebrate various animals but has historically been centered around cattle and other farm animals as they had to be tithed for the new year. interestingly, despite the clear association of cattle with elul, one cannot make a shofar out of a cow or bulls horn due to the transgression of the golden calf made by the israelites.

jewish texts note cows as one of many sacrificial animals used in our tradition, with the notable example being the red heifer. the red heifer was a young unblemished and unyoked cow who was sacrificed with hyssop, cedar and scarlet wool. its ashes were mixed with spring water and used to purify those who had come in contact with the dead.

in regards to dybbuk possessions, there is at least one story of a dybbuk who was possessing a cow who was intended to be slaughtered and thus had to flee into the body of a young man.

cows may have also been involved in the making of a magical ring according to a fragment of the cairo geniza. rabbi geoffery w denis states it said to “cover an egg first with semen and then with incantations, bury it in cow excrement for forty days, recover the egg and find an image of a bird on it, the sacrifice that part of the egg over a coin and make the coin into a ring.” we unfortunately do not have enough text to know what the purpose of this ring was, but it is still interesting nonetheless!

cows milk was also used in jewish folk healing. as per marek tuszewicki, “a young, energetic person with colour in their cheeks might be described as “blut un milkh”—blood and milk. In a reflection of this association, milk-based remedies were a second important element of consumption treatment among jews.”

another instance of cows in folk magic comes from a charm in which a mother would recite and then lick the head of her baby three times to avoid the evil eye:

“Te pari, te krii, el espanto i el ayin arah te kiti. La vaka lambe su biziriko por amar, i yo te lambo el espanto i ayin arah.”

“I gave birth to you, I raised you, the fright and the evil eye I remove from you. The cow licks her calf because of love, and I lick [remove] your fright and evil eye.”

supernatural force of the month

our supernatural force is the animal soul, or “nefesh habehamit.” according to kabbalistic idea, it is a part of one's soul. more specifically, it is what animates all living creatures and is the part of the soul that remains in the world after one's death. infact, according to rabbi geoffery w denis “an appearance of the dead in cemeteries, dreams, and apparitions is a manifestation of the nefesh”

it’s said to be associated with the yetzer hara, or evil inclination, though this does not necessarily mean it is evil. its goal is to seek pleasure which can come from positive sources such as torah and mitzvot, being defined as the nefesh hachiyunit, or the life-giving soul in this state.

there’s a parable about this part of the soul that appears in the zohar, involving a king who wanted to test his son by sending a harlot her way. while the harlot must try her best to seduce the prince, deep down she wants the prince to succeed in his test and not become seduced. in this story, the king is hashem, the prince is the soul which is also the nefesh ha'elokit (divine soul) and the harlot is the yetzer hara.

it is also taught in an early chassidic text called the tanya that the nefesh habehamit is located in the left ventricle of the heart. it can spread throughout the body through the blood and even into the brain where the nefesh ha'elokit is said to be located. this idea suggests we must balance our brain and heart.

recpie of the month

this month recipe is honey, pepper and pumpkin seed bread, which we found through neshika’s food blog. you can find the recpeie here

spell of the month

this months spell is a protection spell used to reflect the evil eye! as we approach the high holidays protection is needed more than ever so try this simple spell out and feel free to adapt it to your needs!

you will need...

- a candle (ideally blue or red as these colors are said to be protective against the evil eye)

- a mirror

a tool to carve with

the steps are...

1. cleanse your area with your preferred cleansing method. if you don't have one, we suggest cleansing with salt or incense, both common jewish methods of cleansing and purification.

2. once your space feels sufficiently cleansed, prepare your candle by carving protective sigils and symbols. you can make your own or use common protective symbols such as the hamsa, magen david, and others.

3. put the candle atop of the mirror, you can melt the bottom a bit to stick it to the mirror if need be.

4. with the tools prepared, choose some protective words/a phrase to use in your spell. you could use the hashkiveinu prayer, one of the many psalms such as psalms 91, and others. whatever feels right to you.

5. now light the candle, visualizing or thinking about the mirror either absorbing the evil eye, or reflecting the evil eye away from you as you repeat your protective phrase

sources

encyclopedia of jewish magic, myth and mysticism by geoffery w denis

dictionary of jewish lore and legend by alan unterman

a frog under the tongue jewish folk medicine in eastern europe by marek tuszewicki

ritual medical lore of sephardic women by isaac jack

the paradoxical mission of evil by rabbi yehoishophot oliver