Today is 15 days, which is two weeks and one day of the Omer

Into the week of Tiferet. Where John Keats would feel right at home:

'Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.'

Of course, the Jews of the Kingdom of Israel during the time of the Maccabees would be horrified at the quote, given that it is inspired by a Grecian Urn. Well, I suppose given the nature of this blog that would be the least thing they'd be horrified by.

But Tiferet is the intersection of Truth and Beauty. It is also known as Compassion, which connects it to the Boddhisatva Kuan Yin, who is female in China and Japan, and known as the beautiful male youth Avalokiteshvara in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Kuan Yin is the expression of today's sefirotic energy, Chesed in Tiferet: Lovingkindnes in Compassion. So I found it rather amusing that at both Andrew Sullivan's blog, as well as on Joe.My.God there was a link to a video of Chinese dancers in an homage to Kuan Yin. And not one to run from the energy of the day, here it is for your pleasure — it's quite amazing: