Tisha B’Av
When a temple is destroyed we have to ask ourselves who built the bulldozers.
Tisha b’av, which is Hebrew for the 9th of Av, is a major fast day during the Jewish month of Av. The ninth of Av commemorates the destruction of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, as well as a series of other tragic historical events that befell the Jewish people on Tisha Bav. In addition to the fast on Tisha B’av, there are other laws and customs of observing the day such as observing other mourning customs, reading Eicha (the book of Lamentations), and reading Kinot. The Meaningful Life Center offers deep, yet accessible, insights into Tisha B’av. Our archive of videos and essays will help you to learn not just what the 9th of Av events were, but what their spiritual and mystical ramifications were and how the spiritual dimension of the 9th of Av can enhance your life. Based on the mystical teachings of Chassidus, the insights offered by The Meaningful Life Center about Tisha B’av offer a hopeful vision of the future redemption.
Comfort My People
Left with no one else to blame, the child erroneously sees himself as the culprit. And this self-loathing and sense of inadequacy further erodes the child’s confidence. It’s not your fault. Don’t allow yourself to be invalidated. You have all the strength necessary to pick up the pieces and rebuild your life.
Read More
Why Is the World Fighting Over the Temple Mount?
What is it about the Temple Mount that causes the whole world to fight over it? Join Rabbi Simon Jacobson for a short talk about the Temple Mount, and learn about its mystical and historical significance.
Read More
Three Weeks of Pain, Seven of Comfort, & Two of Return
Cracks in our systems shake us up; but a crack also exposes what lies within. We can be demoralized by the cracks or we can attempt to look between the cracks and see an emerging larger picture.
Read More
Five Roots of Trauma Revisited
Using the concepts of The Five Roots of Trauma, this article looks at the five tragic events that took place on the 17th of Tammuz..
Read More
The Five Roots of Trauma
The three weeks between the first attack on the Holy Temple and the final destruction are a time concentrate on healing by addressing the root of the issue.
Read More
Tisha B’Av: A Letter From Rabbi Jacobson
Simon Jacobson’s letter from New York reflecting upon Tisha B’Av and the endurance of Jerusalem and the Jewish people…
Read More
Tisha B’Av: Pain and Pleasure: The Birth of the Future in the Belly of the Beast
Tisha B’av at the Western Wall: Do we see the light at the end of the tunnel? will we have the courage and strength to solve the problem at its root?
Read More
What Happened as the Flames Rose? Tisha B’Av Workshop
Our sages tell us that Moshiach was born as the flames consuming the Holy Temple. Learn how the Western Wall, with all its cracks, carries immortality.
Read More
Cracks in the Wall – What Can We Do About Israel? — Three Weeks Workshop
Discover how the Israel within your soul experiences its own battles, and how your actions allow you to bring peace to yourself and to the land of Israel.
Read More
“Firstly, thank you a million times over for the wellspring of wisdom and insight that you have shared with me and the world! I’ve spent the last decade of my life exploring what it means to be alive as a spirit, and over the last few years you have been a continuous refuge and motivational source in my journey. I pray that I continue down the path that you have shown, and that I merit to become a source of inspiration and life to others, as you have been to people around the world.”
-Adam Cohen