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Afternoon Prayer; and Jacob, with this very prayer, established the picture of all Jewish history to his own more immediate relationship
Evening Prayer. with his brother. When one ascends, the other descends.
In light of the obstacles inevitably impeding spiritual
advancement (discussed in the previous section), prayer is vital
to Jacob’s successfully completing his mission. Jacob’s prayers at
night represent his turning to God even in the midst of darkness and Awakening From Below – wakening From Below – wakening From Below –
£Awakening From Below – Awakening From Below – Awakening From Below –
uncertainty. Paradoxically, the very times we most need God’s help £ ££AA£
Awakening From Above
are when depression, sadness, or feelings of futility make it hardest Awakening From AboveAwakening From Above
for us to reach out to Him. That Jacob had the presence of mind
to turn to God when things got tough, serves as a precedent for his
descendants in every time and place. The depiction of the angels as first ascending and then descending
alludes to yet another concept, referred to by Kabbalists and
Chassidut as “Awakening from Below.” In this process a human
being “arouses” him or herself, taking the initiative and mustering

££The Ladder in Jacob’s Dream the strength and spirit to draw closer to God. Optimally, we reach
£The Ladder in Jacob’s DreamThe Ladder in Jacob’s Dream
God in this way; however, sometimes we run out of steam, fall into
the rut of complacency and boredom, or worse, into depression and
a sense of utter futility. At this point, if God did not lend a hand,
“And he dreamt and behold a ladder was set [firmly] in the earth we might be stuck in the status quo for a long time or even become
and its head reached the heavens, and behold, angels of God were mired in self-pity and self-destructive behavior. Precisely, at these
ascending and descending on it (Genesis 28:12). Jacob’s dream moments in our lives, God often shows his mercy by jump-starting
contains the powerful image of angels ascending and descending our spiritual cables, granting us an “Awakening from Above.” In
a ladder reaching to the heavens, a vision which has captured the Jacob’s dream, the angels ascend first to indicate the ideal way to
world’s imagination for millennia. The reason for this dream’s unique approach God: by arousing ourselves from below. If we feel that we
power is beautifully alluded to by the permutation of the Hebrew are unable to motivate ourselves sufficiently, it behooves us to pray
word for ladder (sulam; םלס). When permuted, these letters form the to God to arouse us, at least initially. However, sometimes, God, in
Hebrew word for symbol (semel; למס). The ladder in Jacob’s dream His great mercy, does not wait for us to make the first move; rather,
is so powerful a symbol because hidden in its very name is the entire He sends us unmistakable signs or messages that arouse us to new
concept of symbolism! levels of spiritual awareness.
The ladder anchored firmly in the earth with its top reaching the The angels Jacob envisioned also symbolized the protective
heavens suggests both a philosophy of life and a holistic approach angels assigned to each and every person and nation. Jacob’s dream
to orienting one’s self in this world. We need to have both our feet portrayed the broad expanse of Jewish history as evidenced by
on the ground, firmly anchored in the realities of the world, and our the movement of the protective angels. Parenthetically, it should
heads in the heavens, constantly reaching and striving to ascend to be noted, that angels are spiritual energy forces existing in all the
higher levels of consciousness. Most people have a very difficult time created worlds. They help direct different aspects of creation and
balancing this seemingly simple equation. Some tend to not only are intrinsically bound up with the material world, as the Sages

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