Rosh Hashanah: Honor Your Desire

In a few days, we will welcome Rosh Hashanah and with it a brand new year. The first day of the month of Libra is the anniversary of the day the world came into existence. Not coincidentally, the first day of Libra is also the first day of Rosh Hashanah which means “head of the year.” Kabbalists teach that on Rosh Hashanah everything of the physical world came into existence. The desire the Creator had to bring life and light to this world was manifest.

The month preceding Rosh Hashanah is Virgo, when we are given the opportunity through the practice of tshuva (repentance); in essence, means to “return” to a time before any damage or negativity was created through our selfish actions. Through tshuva, we cleanse the negativity that we created in the past year and emerge anew, ready to receive the blessings meant for us. However, receiving blessings is not a passive action; we must prepare a space for them to rest, a vessel. We create that vessel through desire.

Many of us think that what we desire is the blessing and that the Creator is the one who gifts us that which we pine for—but no. The desire itself is the gift, and it is the greatest gift that we can receive. As my husband Michael says, there isn’t a great gift that we are given in our life than the gift of desire. The only reason we enjoy anything is because we have desired it. The only reason we seek is because we have desire. The only reason we live is because we have desire. Desire is so powerful that it quite literally determines the course of our lives.

At Rosh Hashanah, we are given brand new vessels from the Creator so that we might manifest all that we desire in the coming year. All we have to do is maintain a consciousness of receiving in order to share. That’s the rub.

We desire what we don’t have. If we had it, the desire might wane. And this is where many of us get snagged. We focus on what we lack, which can make us doubtful, stressful, or fearful. When we focus on lack, we are in kabbalistic terms, desiring to receive for the self alone. Suddenly, one of the vessels prepared for us at the new year is wasted, and we have manifested that negativity. This is why honoring our desires and treating them as gifts is so important.

When we understand how strong our desire is and how powerful we are in the creation of our lives, we can begin to take our negative states much more seriously. Our feelings of confusion, lack, doubt, and worry are signals. They are alarms sounding, helping us to see that we have lost track of what we truly desire. They remind us to shift our perspective and refocus our consciousness on gratitude, peace, and joy. When we are aligned with these positive states of being, our blessings flow to us with ease.

And the beautiful irony is, when we are in a consciousness of positivity, we don’t “need” anything. We find our fulfillment through giving, not receiving. When we nurture this perspective of gratitude, we can see that it isn’t the things that we want, it is the experience of those things—the joy, excitement, and delight—that we desire.

You may dream of traveling to Paris, of getting promoted, of buying a home, a new car, or all the clothes you can imagine. But you aren’t dreaming about those things, you’re dreaming about how you believe they will make you feel and you can create that feeling right now. This is the true gift of Rosh Hashanah. The electric thrill a new desire and the vessel with which to create it.

As we ring in this new year, know that everything you desire is already meant for you simply by virtue of your desiring it. The feelings of love and happiness that come from the experience of desiring your blessings will fill your consciousness with gratitude, and you will become like the Creator: creating so that you may share your wealth of joy with others.

What do you desire right now? Can you feel into what it will feel like when that desire is manifest? Can you bring those feelings into the here and now?

These are the questions we can ask ourselves as we connect with Rosh Hashanah. As you hold your desire, set an intention to create beauty, connection, and joy in every moment. In so doing, you will be making space for your most fulfilled and abundant life to manifest before your eyes. All that’s left to do is share.

RETHINK MOMENT

See your desires for what they indeed are; gifts from the Creator. Every time you feel yourself noticing lack, remember that it is a signal to refocus your consciousness on what is already beautiful about your life. And, as always, when in doubt, share.