Cheshvan[1] is a quiet month with no festivals. Chazal call it Marḥeshvan[2] (“Bitter Ḥeshvan,” because mar means “bitter.”[3]). After the high of Tishrei, with High Holidays, Sukkot, and Simḥat Torah, by contrast, the low of the quiet Marḥeshvan evokes the feelings of sadness and bitterness, as Naomi said, “Call me Mara.”[4] It is the only month of the year with no holidays or special mitzvot. Nobody knows exactly why it is called Marḥeshvan;[5] but some authorities suggest, it is called so because it is empty of the joy of holidays and mitzvot connected with a specific time of the year.[6] The word “mar” also means “a drop of water.”[7] So, on the 7th of this month, in Israel, Jews start praying for rain.
The prefix “mar” in Marḥeshvan can also be interpreted as a honorific title[8] because King Salomon finished building the First Temple this month.[9] In fact, the Midrash says Ḥeshvan is reserved for the time when the Third Temple will be inaugurated.[10] This month is not empty; it is a pause pregnant with the anticipation of redemption, may it happen immediately! For now, it is a quiet time for consolidation of all the light and inspiration of Tishrei.
In neuroscience too, memory consolidation doesn’t happen at the time the memory is formed; it happens during the time of complete inactivity, while we sleep. Our short-term declarative memory is consolidated into the long-term memory in the hippocampus during the deepest stage of sleep, called the slow-wave sleep. The emotional memory is processed and consolidated during the rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep. Lasting change is forged not in the noise of the peak, but in the quiet replay that follows. We need the down time to process and consolidate the experiences of the day.
After the emotional spiritual spikes of Tishrei’s festivals, Ḥeshvan is neural consolidation—the off-peak phase when brief bursts become durable neural pathways. Just as in neuroscience, long-term change happens not only during the spike but in the quiet replay that follows, so too, our Avodah this month is to replay, integrate, and wire holiness into habit.
Practice: Honor the stillness of Marḥeshvan by allowing the inspiration of Tishrei to sink in. Process your memories of good times with family and friends as you gathered together for holiday meals or for services in a synagogue. Consolidate your resolutions—break them into small actionable deeds—small drops (mar). And may the blessings of Tishrei rain on you!
[1] While in Tanakh, the month is called Bul (1 Kings 6:38), early Kabbalah sources call this month Cheshvan (or Ḥeshvan). See Sefer Yetzirah 5:4; Zohar 2:275b, 3:260b; Zohar Ḥadash 42a.
[2] Mishnah Taanit 1:3-4; Talmud, Rosh Hashanah 7a.
[3] As in maror—bitter herbs we eat on the Seder night (this is drush, not historical etymology).
[4] Rut 1:20.
[5] Some suggest that this name is of Akkadian origin meaning the “eighth” [month].
[6] Sdei Chemed, Maarechet Chatan U’Kallah 23.
[7] Isaiah 40:15.
[8] Meaning “Master” in Aramaic—this is a homiletic interpretation, not etymology.
[9] I Kings 6:38.
[10] Yalkut Shemoni, Melachim 184.