Hebrew Calligraphy as a Meditative Practice
Linda Motzkin
The most sacred texts of Judaism have been produced, from antiquity to the present day, by sofrim – scribes – who handwrite each letter using quills or reeds on specially prepared parchment. The writing must be done with kavana - spiritual consciousness and meditative focus - in order for the final text to be kosher. This course will introduce the basic techniques and materials of Hebrew scribal arts, from the cutting of quills to the shaping of individual letters to the uttering of statements of kavana, while exploring how doing Hebrew calligraphy can serve as a meditative practice.
Linda Motzkin is co-rabbi, together with her husband Rabbi Jonathan Rubenstein, at Temple Sinai in Saratoga Springs, New York, and part-time Jewish Chaplain at Skidmore College. She is also a soferet(Hebrew scribe), currently engaged in writing a Torah scroll using parchment she is producing from locally donated deer hides.
Categories
- Arts and Literature
- Spiritual and Religious Life
- Morning Course
