ALEPH
The Hebrew letter Aleph connects
the path from Gevurah to Chesed. It is a very holy letter because it not
only represents one, but also its glyph may be dissected into a vav and
two yuds which add up to 26, the same as the gematria of God's sacred name
(yud-hey-vav-hey). It is, furthermore, one of the mother letters described
in the Sefer Yetzirah, and it is connected with the element of air. This
element, in turn, is connected with our mental processes. Who has not observed
how our breathing speeds up when we are anxious and slows down when we relax?
There is a reciprocity between the rythym and quality of our breath and
our current mental state. Since this path is one of the three that connects
the left and right hand sides of the Tree of Life, the association of aleph
with air suggests that we can bring our mental processes into balance through
appropriate breathing exercises.
Exercise:
Next to caffeine, my favorite thing is "oxygen
to the brain." To calm the mind, try taking a deep breath for six counts,
hold for six, and then exhale for six. Repeat. To balance, the left and
right sides of the brain, close the right nostril and inhale for six counts
through the left nostril, hold for six, and exhale for six through the right
nostril. Repeat beginning with the right nostril, and then repeat the whole
cycle several times. Finally, to fully oxygenate your blood, get a Richard
Simmons' "Sweatin' to the Oldies" low-impact, aerobic video, and
work out two or three times a week!