Peh (פ)

The letter Peh stands for the number 80.

1. Peh (פה) - mouth; the letter Peh actually means 'a mouth.' Here is is drawn as the red lips with the inner tip in white as teeth. Inside the mouth there is a golden heart, representing the treasures we can bring into the world with correct use of our language. We all share the responsibility to speak responsibly, to speak truth, to avoid spreading rumors, incomplete truths and to focus on spreading words of kindness which spread love into our world.

2. Parpar (פרפר) - butterfly; the hearts in the drawings are as butterflies leaving our mouth; they are our positive speech. Kind speech spreads love and kindness that can leave people in a state of greater ease and joy after speaking with us - just as looking at butterflies in some miraculous way elevates our soul.

3. Psiphas (פסיפס) - mosaic; the essence of the actions we make in our own lives is to be able to look at the end of our life at the mosaic of our life's action and know that we did our best to place all the pieces in the right place. We are not all mosaic masters, so we should not expect perfection. By combining the mosaics of all the individuals in the world we can start seeing the larger context of the human story. If we focus on having a mosaic that is rooted in kind and loving actions, we can accept that the larger mosaic will be filled with positivity and love. It is our world's mosaic to create, and every piece we put in matters. You matter. Your actions matter. We are all counting on you.

4. Pticha (פתיחה) - opening; like the opening of our mouth, allowing kind words create a better reality for us all, our hearts should also be open to allow for care and love to connect with others, our eyes and ears should be open to notice and hear where it is we are needed and called to fix something in the world.

5. Peima (פעימה) - pulse; like our heart beat, we are all depended on the rhythm of our actions, oscillating between our errors and our ability to fix them. If you did something wrong or unkind, no matter, just fix it, seek forgiveness, create healing, commit to improving your ways. It is the rhythm that we need to learn to live with, and not attempt to reach perfection. The pulse is also represented by the flight of the hearts and the rhythmic patters of the mosaic.

6. Pacman (פקמאן) - the game; the mosaic and the letter Peh are specifically drawn in a way that also reminds us that life should be enjoyed - like an old computer/arcade game; life can be fun, even with all our challenges.

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In this alphabet art series I explore biblical and Jewish-spiritual ideas, as they reflect through the shapes or associated meaning of each letter.

This project is based on my personal musing and not on any Jewish teachings. Any connection to other teachings is unintentional.

My hope is that through this art we get a deeper glimpse into our realities, our worlds illusions and the hope that can be found in the power of the Hebrew letters.