Elul: 29 Days to Prepare for the High Holy Days

Welcome to Elul!  The Hebrew month of Elul ushers in the introspective period of time prior to the Yamim Noraim, the High Holy Days. We are given a gift of time in which to move closer to God, to ask ourselves if we have made the most of the year that has passed and to think about what we would like to do differently in the coming year.  During Elul we pray prayers of Selichot, prayers of repentance, each day.  During Elul the shofar is sounded each morning, as a reminder that it is time to wake up and prepare for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The daily prayers include the recitation of Psalm 27, in which we ask that we might “dwell in the house of God all the days of my life.”

Many people follow the tradition of dedicating the 29 days of Elul towards preparing for the High Holidays through study, prayer, and journaling.  We use each day as an opportunity to grow and to be inspired to make each day count.  We have these 29 days to begin anew, to make a change in our lives, to figure out how we can do better in the coming year.

Take some time each day during Elul to consider the past year, to remind yourself of where you were personally and where our world was during the past year and to focus on thankfulness, forgiveness, and repentance.  This may not seem like an easy thing to do given our busy lives, and the emotional challenges that it may present, but it is a practice that has great wisdom in helping us to prepare to more fully experience the High Holidays.

Here are a few resources to help in your Elul spiritual preparations:

Jewels of Elul - Seven years ago Craig Taubman, Jewish composer, artist, performer began publishing Jewels of Elul, a collection of inspirational reflections for the month of Elul. Each year a diverse group of contributors share stories and insights to help us reflect on changing our selves and our world. You can receive Jewels of Elul each day in your email inbox. (If you don’t want to subscribe you can simply go to the page every day and read the new one).

Institute for Jewish Spirituality Podcasts - The Institute for Jewish Spirituality teaches mindfulness meditation and contemplative practice, and offers free podcasts that can be listened to online or downloaded.  Listen to podcasts to help prepare for the High Holidays in the chagim (holiday) podcasts section.

My family and I wish you and your loved ones a Shanah Tovah Tikatevu v’Techateimu!