Last month, G-d took us out of Egypt. We shared the haggadah, the stories of leaving Egypt. Now we share the silence as we strengthen our ability to give each other the space to go inside, freed from the pressures of conversing. Last month we received the gift of freedom, now we must work from within to purify ourselves emotionally and physically so that we may prepare ourselves for receiving the Torah.

The right kidney, which acts as an advisor, was formed this month. Our sages write that Avraham learned the Torah through his purified kidneys. Effective Torah learning must penetrate one’s whole being so that we may become complete partners with Divinity. Because of our present spiritual level we need the guidance of the books of Torah to purify ourselves. Yissachar, the tribe of this dimension, was blessed with sitting in the tents and learning. The sense of this month is "herur" thinking, which is based in the heart, in the hidden recesses of the sol.

The figure in this painting is sitting in the tent, introspectively learning Torah. The vav, the letter through which this month was formed, is running down her spine. The vav connects the wisdom of the mind, drawing it down throughout all parts of the soul, to malchut (the physical world). It represents the pulsating life flow of energy that travels up and down.

This month we count the Omer, which is a meditative inner cleansing. The counting of the Omer rectifies the emotive attributes of the soul. Both the figure and the tent have a translucent quality, signifying the reaching of balance through this purification process. One must find a balance between what is shared outside of oneself and what is kept inside. Sometimes, by protecting the place that nobody can share, one can tap the source level of ultimate sharing. However, shutting out too much can lead to coarseness. There is also a balance between going out and achieving things and sitting and attracting what is yours.

The donkey outside of the tent hints to the donkey which Leah heard. As a result she left her tent and approached Yaakov, thus that night Yissachar was conceived. The donkey represents the physical body. The donkey (hamor) of the Moshiach contains the letter vav. It is written that in the times of the Moshiach, the soul will draw its vitality from the body, therefore, the body will be on a higher level. We must realign our thinking and wean ourselves from the dichotomy between the soul and the body. When the Torah sufficiently penetrates the body there will be a balance and harmony between the two.