BEIT

The second letter of the Aleph-Beit is the beginning of plurality, its numerical value being 2. Beit is the first letter of the Torah, the story of creation begins with it. The abundance of creation is depicted by the plants and animals in the painting, the pomegranate especially referring to fecundity, a special gift of God to His creatures, allowing them to participate in the act of creation in a wonderful and mysterious way. The name of the letter also means 'house' (bayis), all of creation having the purpose of being God's house. The tent in the painting has 'house' at the top, and two names of God at the entrance. The first name is the Holy Name in a shortened form, (out of respect), this refers to God's transcendence, the second name is Elokim, the name used to signify Divinity revealing Itself in nature. At the centre of the house is the Wife and Mother, who represents the feminine aspect of the soul, receptivity to God's love, as seen in the form of the words (daughter), and (house), the letter yud being a symbol of God's love descending into us, or 'our house'. The openness of one end of the letter beit tells us to have our door open, in imitation of the great example of hospitality shown by Abraham and his wife Sarah. The numerical value of beit, 2, points to dualities in creation. These are symbolized by the images in the circles above the tent.

* We have 'two hearts', one desiring holiness, union with God in love, the other drawing us to sensual pleasures and passions, which can distract us. It is, however, possible to direct even our passions to draw us closer to God.

* The written Torah and the oral teaching passed on from generation to generation are the two sets of teaching received by humanity through the Jewish people.

* Man and woman are the complementary elements of a unity intended by God when creating humanity.

*Studying God's teaching and living a deep spiritual life cannot be separated from living a righteous life, being just and caring towards others. This dual obligation is symbolized by the book and the hands giving and receiving bread.

* Light and dark, the sun and the moon, are symbols on many levels: higher and lower consciousness, concealment and revelation of Divinity, higher and lower levels of energy, both physical and spiritual. The paths leading into the House of God are many. Each path has both joy and suffering (blossoms and thorns). This very personal interpretation is not taken from the sages of the Jewish tradition. The significance of using Australian birds (the laughing kookaburra and the rosella) is that God's teaching, hidden and revealed in the Letters of the Aleph-Beit, is relevant to the here and now, our present world.