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Purim – פורים
acrylics & mixed materials on canvas 23 1/2″ x 36″ (60 x 91 cm)
The Mask and the Reality
וְאָנֹכִי הַסְתֵּר אַסְתִּיר פָּנַי בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא
“And I will doubly conceal My Face that day”
(Deut 31: 18)
When we transgress,
G-d seemingly masks his presence,
such as during the period
of Purim and Esther
The name אסתר Esther is cognate
with the verb אסתיר I will conceal.
We also put upon ourselves a mask
pretending that there is
no consequence to our misdeeds.
Doing repentance תשובה removes the mask
and we can see face-to-face
that everything is spiritual energy –
the deep secret of the Purim holiday.
Turn-arounds – נהפוך הוא
One of the important lessons
of the Purim story is that events
and experiences get unexpectedly
turned around and what was on top
is now on the bottom with a
completely different perspective
This idea finds visual expression
in many of my paintings
which when turned upside down
reveal a surprisingly new
form and dimension:
the protruding becoming
the recessive and vice versa
Masculine and Feminine Waters
The triangular form or vector pointing upward
represents what is called by the kabbalah
the “feminine waters” מיין נוקבין
the movement or aspiration from below
to reach a spiritual height, such as in prayer.
Turning the painting upside down:
With the triangular form or vector
pointing downward
transforms it to the
“masculine waters” מיין דוכרין
the vector of bringing spiritual energy
into the “vessels” of the mundane world.
A deeper explanation of above may be found within
Iggeret HaKodesh Epistle 28 of the Tanya
See also the Secret of the Signet Ring
Other examples at the following link:
TurnArounds
Rectifying the KUF קוף Monkey
The Hebrew letter which permeates ADAR
is the KUF קוף which means monkey
or holy “monkeying around”
such as inducing laughter
during the Purim festivities
as suggested in the video art below:
The KUF is composed of a RAISH ר
and an elongated ZION ז and
is rather unstable, even “tipsy”
connecting to the requirement
to get spiritually drunk on Purim
חייב איניש לבסומי עד דלא ידע
One must drink to the state of
“beyond knowing”
which might have been realized in
in the surrealistic video clip below:
Parshat Zachur Remembering Amalek – עֲמָלֵק
acrylics on canvas 26″ x 62″ – 66 x 158 cm
זָכוֹר אֵת אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה לְךָ עֲמָלֵק
בַּדֶּרֶךְ בְּצֵאתְכֶם מִמִּצְרָיִם
אֲשֶׁר קָרְךָ בַּדֶּרֶךְ
בַּדֶּרֶךְ בְּצֵאתְכֶם מִמִּצְרָיִם
אֲשֶׁר קָרְךָ בַּדֶּרֶךְ
Remember what Amalek did to you
on your journey from Egypt.
How they surprised
(cooled you off) on the road.
(Deut 25: 17-18)
Amalek “cooled off” אֲשֶׁר קָרְךָ
the ardour of the Jewish people
after their Delivery from Egypt
causing them to doubt
ספק = עמלק = 240
all the miracles of Divine Providence.
This section is read in the
Sabbath before Purim to remind us
of our long-standing metaphysical
battle with Amalek and his
descendents to this very day
with the “beyond knowing” of Purim
being the antidote and tikkun.
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