Rabbi Daniel Siegel

                                                               Machaneh Ayekah

Our Year 10 students recently returned from their six-day Machaneh Ayekah experience. The meaning and purpose of this Camp is briefly presented in the paragraph below which was posted throughout the Machaneh.

In a neo-hasidic tale, a student approaches Reb Yerachmiel and asks:

“We read that God called out to Adam and said: ‘Where are you (Ayekah)?’

How can it be that God does not know the whereabouts of Adam?”

Reb Yerachmiel whispers into the ear of his student: “It isn’t that God does not know where Adam is; it is that Adam doesn’t know where Adam is”.

God’s search for “man” is man’s search for God, which is only undertaken and experienced through a journey of self-exploration and self-discovery.

In being fixated on the absence of God, we ourselves remain hidden. Responding to God’s query, the first human, Adam, says: “I heard Your voice…but I was afraid, for I am naked and so I hid”.

The story of the first human, is the story of us all, we are afraid but we are beckoned to come out of our hiding.

Machaneh Ayekah challenged our students to explore their hiddenness and to become increasingly more comfortable in their own skin.

In family groups, at the end of each day, our students shared reflections regarding themselves and their interactions with their peers, with the following words: “I am checking in”. Their fellow students, gathered around in a circle of support, acknowledged their peer by name and responded that she/he “is checking in”. The same would be repeated after the student said her/his piece and concluded “I am checking out”.

Our students were finding courage within to step out and expose more of themselves to their peers and then withdraw enough to allow others to do the same. This is reflective of the Kabbalistic notion that God’s revealing Himself through creation is at the same time coupled with an act of tsimtsum, withdrawal, to make room for His human partners.

For our concluding Ayekah activity, called Touched, the entire year group gathered together to share an expression of recognition and gratitude. Students anonymously shared with their peers certain personal characteristics that were revealed by them during their Machaneh experience, making these moments of self-disclosure “touching experiences” for them.

Our students were affirming each other for responding Heneni, “Here I am”, to our shared call of Ayekah?

We hope Machaneh Ayekah will be followed by increasing mutual support wherein our Year 10 students will gain greater confidence in searching for and disclosing their hidden selves and in helping others do the same.

I wish all our Emanuel families, students and staff a shanah tovah, a new year of joy and happiness, good health and personal fulfilment.

Kaia Ziman sounding the shofar. Students sounded the shofar after every Machaneh breakfast. Ayekah summoned our students to new beginnings, as does the month of Elul and the sounding of the shofar, when we rouse ourselves to a New Year.