“Trauma is undigested experience”

— Ganga Devi.

This instalment of Living Jewishly is an episode of Sacred Time, a podcast devoted to exploring the healing art of the Hebrew calendar. Tammuz is the fourth month of the year in the religious Jewish calendar. It is one of the ‘heated’ months of the calendar, and it holds and commemorates the memory of much of the pain, trauma and destruction we have experienced as a people.

The 17th of this month of the Hebrew calendar marks the breaching of the walls of Jerusalem, which we recognize through fasting. Three weeks later, we observe Tisha B'Av, which commemorates the destruction of two holy temples.

In Tammuz, we descend into the heat. In the following month, Av, we emerge from it. This is a sacred time of reflection and mourning — a time when we give space to anger and despair while also contemplating our own boundaries and violations.

This episode discusses the nature of trauma, the different ways we may approach it, and steps that we can take to heal.

“It’s not just something that lives in the past. It’s something that lives in the present, in our bodies, until we do the work of healing.”

— Ganga Devi.

This‌ ‌episode discusses:‌ ‌

✔ How the Hebrew calendar helps us process and integrate experience through the sacred space reserved for pain and reflection

✔ How to create a level of separation from trauma to help enhance your healing — and how to find refuge in your present moment

✔ The role the act of bearing witness plays in the healing process