Tiny Turtle Steps of Action in the Kabbalistic world of Assiyah—Words to Inspire
Tiny Turtle Steps of Action in the Kabbalistic world of Assiyah
God Said What?! #MyOrthodoxLife
Dear Awesome Person,
Just returned from a trip to New York where I had the chance to speak about my book, God Said What?! #MyOrthodoxLife, at my old school in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. After the 8 year journey of writing it, it’s such a gift to have it out in the world getting read and enjoyed! It’s such a joy to connect with readers and readers-to-be♡ There’s so much magic and energy in words and the connection they bring with others!
A huge thank you to you, dear awesome person, for being on this journey with me 🙂
I’d like to share why the book took 8 years of writing. You would think that with so many hours in the day, for sure, a book could take less time. But that is not necessarily true. Taking action and accomplishing things in this world requires tremendous effort. For me, the writing of this memoir required me to go back in time to my 23-year old self. I could only access that part of me and the memories with complete focus at very early morning times—5:30 am till about 7:30 am when I needed to get ready to do carpool. I took these few short hours as tiny steps to complete a big project.
According to Kabbalah, there are 4 worlds:
The world of Atzilut
The world of Beriah
The world of Yetzirah
The world of Assiyah
We live in the world Assiyah which is the world of action. This world has the least divine light because in order for it to exist, Hashem (G-d), has to contract and remain hidden. Yet, it is our job through action to reveal divine light on this planet so that it becomes a home, a dwelling place, for Hashem.
As I write in my memoir, I had (and still have) a tremendous desire for all suffering to end and for there to be health and peace in this world. I was amazed when the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s message of helping create this divine mission was being broadcasted out to all corners of the universe, through newspapers and new outlets. I loved that Orthodox Judaism was not an isolated approach to healing the planet but an all encompassing one that included Jews and nonJews to work together and make this happen. On May 5, 1991, reporters from CNN came on the Sunday dollar line (Sundays were when the Rebbe would distribute dollars for charity as well as bless people) and interviewed the Rebbe. The Rebbe emphasized that it is only from our part to do something additional in the realm of goodness and kindness.
Acts of goodness and kindness include giving charity, speaking with compassion and understanding to others, and sprinkling the world with nurturing instead of hate and divisiveness. An act of goodness also includes fulfilling your purpose and sharing that with others. A talented artist who paints beautifully can bring that into the world, a talented healer can use their abilities to bring health to others, a talented teacher can share their gifts of knowledge with others. A special saying of the Rebbe’s is: “When you know Aleph, teach Aleph.” This means that even if you know a little bit of something, you can teach others that little bit. You don’t need to wait till you’re an expert, or a scholar. We each have goodness to teach and share with others.
I love the encouragement that master life coach Martha Beck, whom I trained with, gives when she speaks about doing big things in life through taking tiny turtle steps, divided in half.
WE have a huge purpose on this planet—to create a dwelling place for the Divine. When we take tiny turtle steps of action, even divided in half, to accomplish our goals of goodness, the world will be transformed into a completely revealed state of Peace. The best we can do now is to look at everyday with possibilities for kindness and to KNOW that each drop makes a BIG difference.
I’ll finish with a beautiful thought from Tzvi Freeman, Lights of Kabbalah:
“Why are you so surprised to find evil and corruption running amok everywhere you look? This world is the coarsest and harshest of all worlds, the ultimate concealment of the Infinite Light. Almost all of it is darkness and emptiness. Only a tiny spark of good is buried deep within to sustain it.
You could spend your lifetime dwelling on the outrages and scandals, the travesties and the ripoffs…
—or you could take a moment to search for that spark. You could find it, grasp it, fan its flame. From within its aura, you will see the darkness shining brighter than the heavens.
In that moment of light, the night will never have been.”
Love & Blessings,
Miriam Racquel (Meryl) Feldman
Master Somatic Healer, Clarity Coach & Relationship Expert
Author of God Said What?! #MyOrthodoxLife
Haven’t had a chance to get your copy or desire to gift it to a friend? Here’s the link to purchase: God Said What?! #MyOrthodoxLife
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I share more of my writings at MiriamRacquel.com and YourMarriageMagic.com. As a Somatic Healer, Relationship Expert & Clarity Coach, I help empower women to trust the wisdom of their bodies, emotions, and souls as well as blogging about the mystical happenings of an ever-changing world.
What awesome readers are saying 🙂
“I love how the author was able to take me through her spectacular journey as if I was there with her. This fascinating story kept me on edge that I couldn’t even put it down! I loved hearing and learning the beautiful approach to Judaism as Meryl had. I received much insight and light to what this ancient religion is all about. Meryl explains the Torah from inside out from an authentic voice and one that everyone can relate to in their own way. I loved the romance values that were conveyed in the book expressing a beauty and respect that sometimes is sorely lacking in society today. Highly recommended— I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!” – Adele
“I picked this book up on the recommendation from a friend and once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down. Miriam’s memoir of her journey to find faith in God’s love and the wisdom of the Torah is set to the backdrop of connecting to romantic love.
The way she wrote about her struggles to find and accept faith, it felt as if she was pulling me right along with her and I was somehow blessed with a piece of her hard earned wisdom. While I am not of Jewish faith, I felt deeply connected to what she shared. And in the final chapter, her call for everyone of all faiths to do what we can to allow love to transform the world into a place of peace. It is just the salve I feel the world needs right now for deep healing.” – Sherrie Papa
“Well written memoir! The author vulnerably shares her inner thoughts over the years of her personal experience of growth, love and learning. I enjoyed relaxing and reading this fascinating journey!” – EG
