Endurance. Eternity. Generative Energy. Direction. Active Force within Beauty. Balance. Harmony.
At the risk of being redundant, I must tell you of scents again. Last night as I counted this new day, there were powerful scents that spoke of Netzach - Endurance, Generative Energy, Direction. The first scent that came wafting through was the scent of manure. Perhaps someone had been fertilizing a nearby garden, or maybe it came drifting my way from a far off dairy. Manure, full of Generative Energy and Endurance. The Eternal cycles of life. This was a striking experience of that particular scent.
Next came, with an uncompromising determination to reach my olfactory nerve, an Intensely fragrant flower of some sort. It smelled like a cross between lilac and wisteria, although these are not yet flourishing in my neighborhood. Rather mysterious. In this case, it was not the scent itself, but rather the quality of its arrival, which told the story of Netzach. Here was an Active Force in delivering the scent of pure Tiferet. Aaaaaahhhhhh....
Harmony. Balance. Manure. Flowers. You can't have one without the other. How can I smell the sweet in the absence of pungent? I read in my daily meditation book this morning, "There is no discord in G8d's kingdom... The difficulties of life are caused by disharmony in the individual..." How apt for a day such as this one in the midst of this week of Tiferet.
May you be blessed today as an Enduring, Active Force for Beauty, Balance, and Harmony in the world. May you receive these in full measure.
Shabbat Shalom.