Today we celebrated
Rosh Hashannah -- the Jewish New Year. Our favorite ritual associated with this holiday is called "
Tashlich," which means "casting off" in Hebrew.
Tashlich is thought to have originated during the Middle Ages inspired by a verse attributed to the prophet Micah:
God will take us back in love;
God will cover up our iniquites,
You [God] will hurl all our sins
Into the depths of the sea.
(Micah 7:19)
To perform the ritual of
Tashlich, a person throws bread crumbs into a moving body of water. As the bread crumbs are carried away by the water, any regrets or wrong-doings (committed knowingly or unknowingly) from the previous year are symbolically cast off, giving the opportunity for a fresh start in the New Year.
But of course, the best thing about
Tashlich is that it's an opportunity to head off to the beach... Today was a beautiful day and there was much digging to be done!
I wish you Shannah Tova -- a Good Year, a Sweet Year...
Happy New Year! what a wonderful tradition. I think that is a great tradition for everyone, it reminded me of a great blog post by Sheryl Paul (a lovely blogger) last year. and when I looked at her blog for a link to give you (in case you were interested) I found another this year (she does it for the equoinox but iirc last year's mentioned it was tied to her Jewish heritage too. http://conscious-transitions.com/damselflies-and-dragonflies/
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Nina -- I will have a look at the links!
ReplyDeleteI love Micah (tho' I've left my inherited faith far behind). New Year's blessings to you and your beautiful family!
ReplyDeleteHi Peggy I love this! What a moving yet purposeful ritual. I often feel like I would like to sweep the crumbs of last year right away and out the door! And I love your blessing to us readers. A good year, a sweet year. Thank you! This post made me happy!!!
ReplyDeleteBack at ya babe... For us, new year and the beach have always gone hand in hand, next one I'll make sure to take a handful of bread crumbs. xx
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! What a lovely and accessible way to celebrate the New Year with children. I think we'll do it today at our creek!
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun!
ReplyDeletethis is beautiful. this tradition really hit home with Naomi this year. She took it so seriously and really understood it. Today she told me we needed to go back to the mountains because she thought of something else she needed to tell God about. She wouldn't tell me what it was...but, I am so impressed with the way she embraced the meaning of the action. Thanks for putting this together--I hope you had a beautiful day like we did!! Shanah Tovah!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful tradition, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete