01 May 2017

Chodesh Tov Iyar

Iyar is the second of the twelve months of the Jewish calendar.  Iyar comes at the same time as the secular months April/May. 
The mazal (constellation) for Iyar is Taurus, shor (the ox). Iyar links together the months of Nisan and Sivan. Last month, Nisan, was the time when seeds were planted. In Iyar the ox ploughs the earth, nurturing the new seeds, helping them grow into the harvest of the coming month of Sivan.
Iyar also links the months of Nisan and Sivan through the counting of the Omer. As we count the Omer, we experience our own growth, and the growth of the Jewish people. In Nisan we become a nation, born out of the Exodus from Egypt. In Iyar the Jewish people enters adolescence as we struggle to become a mature nation ready to receive the Torah in Sivan. 

In the Torah, the month of Iyar is called "Ziv," meaning radiance.

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