By: Rabbi Mordechai “BIG MO” Siev
Leah hails from Turkey. Part of her trip to Israel included a Shabbat at Ascent. She was so excited by her Shabbat experience that she extended her stay and attended my Tanya class on Sunday morning.
She was very inspired by the discussion of the concepts in our study text, GPS for the Soul (a book that explores the Jewish text, The Book of Tanya by Rabbi Shneur Zalman), and wanted to explore how it connects with her and her life in Turkey. There was a lot of interaction in the class and she was very energized and moved and looked forward to the next class!! She wanted a meaningful experience and connection.
At the end of the Monday’s class she asked me to bless her and she wanted me to tie a red string on her wrist. I told her it’s more important that she light Shabbat candles, keep a higher level of eating a kosher diet, wash her hands in the morning and say Shema Yisrael! She wanted a blessing for children. I gave her a blessing to meet her soul mate, then she’ll have children.
Leah left Ascent with the book GPS for the Soul and a brand new outlook on her mission in life and her future as a Jewish woman. She has been in contact to report that she is continuing to learn from GPS.
Her inspiration about Judaism spilled over to her mother in Canada, who has ordered a copy of our text and plans on learning with her daughter. Ascent spans the globe.
What did Leah learn about her purpose in life at the classes that so inspired her?
Rabbi Shneur Zalman, author of Tanya, the foundational text of Chasidic philosophy, teaches that we are G-d’s emissaries, revealing Him in this material world by connecting to His will and wisdom – the Torah – and by doing good deeds and acts of kindness. Our work is here in the material world, where G-d is hidden – not up in the spiritual heights. The purpose of creation is to transform negativity to positivity on many different levels, and to uncover the real truth in our world – that G-d is everything.
If you are in Tsfat, please join my GPS for the Soul class every day at 10:30am at Ascent.