This article on the portion of the week was originally published in 2019.
On the surface, this week’s portion of Chayei Sarah is a simple story about a woman named Sarah, who passes away at the age of 127. Yet, when one sees through the eyes of the Zohar, it becomes something so much more than a story. It becomes a code. For instance, the Bible tells us that Sarah was 127 years. What does it mean she was 127 years? The Zohar explains that at the age of 100 she was as beautiful as she was at 20 and as pure as she was at 7. This is a message to us about the energy of Sarah, about the vibrancy and purity that we are supported to reach in this very special week.
"What is it that I really want? And how can I use it to help others, and help the world?"
The Zohar reveals that the reason Sarah was considered so pure is because she knew the Creator. To know the Creator is to be in affinity with the Creator’s ways – to be all encompassing, to be constantly in a frame of mind that considers the welfare of others. Sarah understood that every day we have the ability to alter the energy that exists in that day for the positive by taking ourselves from the consciousness of “me” to a consciousness of “we.” Even Sarah’s prayers were not for herself alone, but for the world.
"The joy which can be derived from any blessing is directly proportional to how much we are able to share that blessing."
Some of us pray as a community as we do in the Kabbalah Centre. Some of us pray in solitude. Some of us pray standing up, some kneeling down; however we pray doesn’t matter as long as we do. For prayer is a gift we have to connect to and know the Creator. In our prayers we can sometimes ask the Creator for sustenance, for healing, or health, wealth, and blessings. Sarah prayed, but not for herself. Of course Sarah was born with a Desire to Receive, as is every one of us. It is how we were built, we are made to want for “me.” Yet, we learn from the kabbalists that the joy which can be derived from any blessing is directly proportional to how much we are able to share of that blessing. Therefore, in this week, when we have Sarah’s complete energy available to us, it is a perfect time for us to ask the Creator, in our prayers to, yes, benefit us, but perhaps we can ask not for ourselves alone, but so that we may be of benefit others.
In the next seven days, ask yourself: What is it that I really want? And how can I use it to help others and help the world? And let’s not forget about the blessings we already have. No matter how much or how little we have, there is always plenty to share if we really look. This is a powerful week to start sharing those blessings too– and by doing so, we might just experience a little more fulfillment from what we have, and gain more vibrancy, more purity and more joy from all that we ask.
