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Eshet Chayil
2004
Watercolour and pencil on paper
I hadn't done a bleed painting in some time, and this one turned out vibrant, alive, and engaging.
The subject in the piece is the personification of the Jewish concept of
a " Woman of Valour ".
A Woman of Valour, called Eshet Chayil in Hebrew, is a hymn which is customarily
recited on Friday evenings, after returning from synagogue and
singing "Shalom Aleichem" and before sitting down
to the Shabbat evening meal.
Sometimes Eshet Chayil s just the person with whom you want to have pillow talk.
Eshet Chayil is a twenty-two verse poem with which King Solomon concludes the book
of Proverbs ( Proverbs 31 ). The poem has an acrostic arrangement in which the
verses begin with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in regular order.
The poem describes the woman of valour as one who
is energetic, righteous, and capable.
According to Aggadic Midrashim ( interpretation of the non-legal portions of the
Hebrew Bible ), the poem was originally composed by Abraham
as a eulogy for his wife Sarah.
According to Jewish mysticism, Kabbalah, the poem is a reference to the Shabbat Queen,
the spiritual soul-mate of the Jewish nation.
According to commentators, the poem is allegorical. A Woman of Valour has been interpreted
as a reference to the Shechinah (Divine feminine presence), the Shabbat,
the Torah ( Jewish bible ), wisdom, and the soul. Using a Jewish woman
as the vehicle through which to describe these
spiritual manifestations is a tribute to her.
It has become a Jewish custom among some observers of the faith for men to recite
this hymn at the end of the week, and thus to think about, and be thankful,
for all his wife, partner, has done for him and their family
throughout the preceding week.
Then there's the matter of the double mitzvah on Shabbat to consider ...........
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