In this meditation, we consider the practice of Tashlich, of standing by a body of water and casting out our sins. What exactly are we casting out and what are we not casting out? We look at the story of Hagar where the same shalakh root is used to describe Hagar’s casting aside of her son Ishmael so she will not see his distress in the desert, and we consider how we, too, cast aside our most vulnerable parts and feelings, abandoning ourselves and turning away. This is not the Tashlich that God wants. Instead, we offer the holding and embrace to our inner child that the angel instructs Hagar to offer, which leads us to find inside ourselves a deep well of love like Hagar opened her eyes to see. From that place of holding our inner child’s hand, we then turn to do Tashlich, not casting out the child herself, but instead offering her a release of any false beliefs or burdens she has taken on.
Sources:
Tashlich Ceremony (Micah 7:19)
Genesis 21:14-20
Deuteronomy 30:3-4
This meditation is also very much informed by the IFS (Internal Family Systems) therapeutic model and especially by its concepts of exiled parts and unburdening.
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