SoulBalance

17/11/2025

We've been busy and loving it! Find out about our Shabbat+ retreat last weekend (and sign up so you don't miss the next one), and our plans for Winter 5786 / 2025/6:

Winter 5786 / 2025/6 update

10/09/2025

We thought we had sold out for our retreat weekend in November, but sometimes plans change and that's OK and that means that for one (or two if you share) lucky person, there is still space to come!

When it's gone, it's gone...

It's going to be a weekend of soul-filling, nourishing Shabbat and more together.

A time to stop and reflect and sing and cherish and wander (and wonder!) in nature, to make new meaningful connections with like-minded people.

Intentionally small and intimate, we're really looking forward to our Shabbat+ retreat!

https://www.sbmussar.com/event-details/shabbat-retreat-in-november

Love from,

Rabbi Marcia Plumb
and
Student Rabbi Anna Dyson

Shabbat and a little bit more, together, in an egalitarian creative progressive Jewish adult space. Expect ruach (spirit), informal discussions on themes of mutual interest, maybe a refreshing walk - a soul-filling Shabbat+ together!

12/05/2025

We're in the fifth week of the Omer .. Halleluya!

https://sbmussar.com/so/8aPR5zfSq?languageTag=en

05/05/2025

Week 3, Day 1 of the Omer and this week we’re thinking about the relationship between art and faith.

A 19th C rabbi calls a 17th C artist a Tzaddik- a righteous one.

Intrigued? Click through!

Count the Omer with Art and Soul: 5785

04/05/2025

Wow three weeks of the Omer completed already.... what a journey....

And we've just launched a new online course for after Shavuot:

MUSSAR AND ACTIVISM.
4 consecutive Tuesdays, 3.30-4.30pm on Zoom

Sign up below...

This four session course will explore the intersection of Mussar—a Jewish spiritual and ethical discipline—and contemporary social activism. We will engage with classic Mussar texts and practices to develop our determination, persistence, courage and voice in order to fuel meaningful, justice dr...

30/04/2025

Day 17 of the Omer: Yom haZikaron: This mural is part of a series of murals dedicated to the hostages. On Yom Hazikaron, we mourn the loss of so many who lost their lives through self sacrifice defending the State of Israel, and those who died as victims of terror. Enough! Enough lives lost through hatred and fear on all sides. Enough of mothers’ tears. Enough of fathers yearning for their children chained in tunnels. Enough! Release the hostages NOW. Put down all guns, and pick up the plowshares to rebuild. Allow something to grow amidst the rubble of concrete and heartbreak.
77 years is long enough to wait for peace. Written by Rabbi Marcia Plumb

20/04/2025

Discover the ancient Jewish wisdom of Mussar with us.

Learn practical tools for cultivating inner peace and navigating life's complexities with guidance from experienced teachers Rabbi Marcia Plumb and student rabbi Anna Dyson.

We offer occasional gatherings (there's a retreat in November in the Yorkshire Dales) and weekly live sessions online, which are recorded and accessible via a secure link in case you miss it. You'll also receive valuable resources to deepen your learning and connect with a study partner (chavruta) for enriching exploration.

Find out more at sbmussar.com

20/04/2025

Omer Day 7 an Art and Soul Journey;

by Rabbi Marcia Plumb

A Mussar Menuchat Hanefesh (Equanimity) Meditation on a Mother and Child

I have been ill recently (nothing life threatening, just annoying). I had a rough day because of it, and felt low emotionally. This sculpture came to mind. I felt like the strings- tight, compressed, rigid, and uncomfortable.

Join me in this mediation if you wish….
I closed my eyes, and, in my mind, I zoomed in on those strings. I began to move my eye up and down the strings slowly, breathing as slowly as my eyes moved. I imagined I could touch the strings, and play them like a harp. The deeper and slower my breathing became, the richer the notes sounded. It was as if I was playing both the strings of the sculpture, and inside my heart.

After the meditation, I found the balance among my inner strings, just as Moore found the balance between his.

16/04/2025

Week 1, Day 3 of the Omer

Georgia O’Keefe, A Piece of Wood, 1942
from MFABoston exhibit

Sometimes we find darkness and shadow within us. We don’t always notice the beauty within us. We may feel despair, or lost, or in a time of transition, within a dark night of the soul experience. Don’t be afraid it will last forever. Remember our painting from yesterday. The light of the soul is still there, waiting until we can see it again.

15/04/2025

Gillian Holding and I (Anna Dyson) have booked ourselves in for another visit to the Turkish Baths in Harrogate—an evening of gentle, soul-soothing relaxation with a touch of Mussar-inspired calm. We’d be so happy to share the experience with you if you feel like joining us (ladies only)…

You can book your place directly through the Turkish Baths website:

https://turkishbathsharrogate.onejourney.travel/spa/classes

Just make sure to select the *Tuesday 22nd April, 6:00 PM* session.

If you’re coming along, let us know in the comments or drop a message to me or Gillian—we’ll keep an eye out and make sure to welcome you warmly.

12/04/2025

Hag Sameah to you all. I am struck by the horror of another Pesah in tunnels and captivity for the hostages. More empty seats at Seder tables throughout Israel. Destroyed tables in Gaza. Frightened American families at their Easter tables. No wonder my Israeli cousins are too depressed to hold Seder this year.

But I ‘remember’ the first Seder, and I encourage us to enjoy our sedarim. Celebrate and soak up the joy around your tables.
Even in the midst of the aftereffects of the plague of the first born, the Israelites gathered their families close and had the first Seder where they tasted freedom in the form of roasted lamb,etc. Tonight we too eat, digest and nourish ourselves with hope and love. Eat up and enjoy every morsel! We need it for the road ahead. Like for the Israelites, tonight will help us face forward with emunah and zerizut . Tonight reminds us that we walk with soooo many others by our side, and certainly with each other.
I recently taught a Mussar text that likened tikvah with Mikvah. What turns a pool of water into a Mikvah? A few small drops of living water. What turns despair into hope?: A few drops of joy; a few people who inspire us; the individual people we walk with through life that hold us up, make us laugh, and help us feel alive.
Tonight and tomorrow night, gather the drops of life and love toward us, whether they are examples of resistance in the Haggadah, or loved ones around our tables. Little by little we turn ourselves into mikvaot of hope that will nourish others too.
May the hostages be freed; may our souls be nourished, and may our country see another 250 years of democracy,
Hag Pesah Sameah,
Marcia

10/03/2025

If you’d appreciate a non judgemental adult Jewish space celebrating Shabbat and being together with chat about whatever we find of interest, in beautiful countryside, with a relaxed vibe- here it is!

Nov 7-9 2025

Be in touch for more details 🙂