This coming Monday is "Chai Elul" - the eighteenth day of the Hebrew month of Elul. Chai Elul is the birthday (in 1698) of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of the Chassidic movement as well as the birthday of the Alter Rebbe (in 1745) - Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of the Chabad Chassidim and author of the Tanya and Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law).
A customary Chassidic saying is that Chai Elul injects Chayus - life, spirit and vitality- into the month of Elul. In simple terms this means that Chai Elul reminds us not to go through the month of Elul in a habitual manner. Rather everything we do during this month, can and should be infused with a proper liveliness and enthusiasm in preparation for the New Year.
Saying our daily prayers, giving charity, being kind to others, all must be permeated with a lively energy. In addition, during the month of Elul we sound the shofar every day as a 'wake-up call' to remind us that the time to do "Teshuvah" - return to the proper path - has arrived. This serves as an alarm to awaken us out of our slumber so that we properly prepare ourselves for the new year.
As we all know very well, the greater and more meaningful the preparation, the greater of a transformational outcome we can expect for the new year. Let us therefore resolve to take on positive resolutions and begin to act on them now with vitality and vigour so that we can guarantee for ourselves a year which is radically better than before and one in which we will finally experience true freedom and redemption.
