S’u-y’daychem Kodesh u’varchu et Yah

Lift your hands into holiness
and bless the What is/God. (Psalm 134:2)
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 134 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

The mysterious unpronounceable name of God can be understood as BEING itself. When we bless God, we are blessing “What Is.” And if we are to bless God/what is, in this very moment, we must lift our hands into holiness. Raising our hands in blessing, requires using our earthly instruments to touch the heavenly realms. Our hands then become the channels with which we transmit holiness into the world. Every touch becomes a blessing.

To hear the chants, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click a note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Lift Your Hands (melody)  
• Lift Your Hands (harmony)  
• Lift Your Hands (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Lift Your Hands PDF.

Hinay mah-tov umah-nayim
shevet achim (achyot) gam-yachad

How great it is to be together, to be together as One!
How good and how pleasant it is
that brothers and sisters dwell together. (Psalm 133:1)
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 133 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

When we affirm the value of our inter-connectivity and enter into appreciation for each other, then we are committing to showing up for each other as well. With this practice we are affirming the truth that we are really “in this together.” We depend on each other and are called into a deeper intimacy.

To hear the chants, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click a note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Together as One (melody)  
• Together as One (harmony)  
• Together as One (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Together as One PDF.

Kohanecha yil’b’shu-tzedek,
vachasidecha y’ranenu

Let the priests in you be robed in Justice;
Let the lovers sing. (Psalm 132:9)
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 132 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

As we rise to meet the challenges of this world, we can call on the part of us that is the priest, clothing that aspect in justice, remembering that holiness requires our serious commitment to truth, equality, compassion and integrity. At the same time, we must call on the lover within to raise her voice in joyous song. Only by bringing these two parts together, can we create a world that is in harmony with our highest ideals.

To hear the chant, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click a note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• Advice for Activists (melody)  
• Advice for Activists (round)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click Advice for Activists PDF.

Im lo shiviti v’domamti nafshi

I am a child resting in The Mother’s Embrace (Psalm 131:2)
Is my soul not calmed and soothed?
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 131 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

The essential practice of finding inner calm and of soothing our restless hearts is inspired by the image of a child who has been weaned after being perfectly satisfied and sated by her mother’s nourishment and support. Remembering that the Great Mother is holding us, allows us to relax, find comfort and open to the simplest pleasure of BEING.

To hear the chants, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click a note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• In the Mother’s Embrace (melody)  
• In the Mother’s Embrace (harmony)  
• In the Mother’s Embrace (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click In the Mother’s Embrace PDF.

Al-n’harot Bavel,
Sham yashavnu gam-bachinu,
b’zachraynu et-Tziyon

By the rivers of Babylon,
there we sat, and we wept,
when we remembered Zion. (Psalm 137:1)
[Click (or tap) to see the entire Psalm 137 in Hebrew and English (JPS 1985).]

The experience of exile can illuminate and magnify the power of our longing. Zion represents the mind-state of belonging, safety, connection and the realization that we are at home in God. In exile we feel disconnected from the wholeness of life, and we mourn the loss of meaning that comes from that alienation. In remembering Zion, we receive the Divine promise of returning to the inner truth of our interconnection with all of Creation, remembering that we are home.

To hear the chants, use the audio players. To download a chant, right-click a note and save (or download) the linked MP3 file.

• The Experience of Exile (Hebrew)  
• The Experience of Exile (English #1)  
• The Experience of Exile (English #2)  
• The Experience of Exile (mix)  

To download the PDF file for this chant, click The Experience of Exile PDF.