Counting the Omer: A Mystical, Mathematical Poem

To the six directions they would wave it
Through thirteen sifters they sifted it
On the altar they would burn it
And the nations heart was uplifted

Forty-nine gates
Forty-nine days
Forty-nine walls
Forty-nine ways

Turning potential into actual
Entering imagination within factual
Performing fixings in the spiritual
Attempting transformations in the physical

Seven cycles
Seven weeks
Seven rungs
Seven peaks

And though the fiftieth gate is still hidden
It is to that end we are lead in
Beyond time and beyond space
Yet revealed in the most hidden place

Where stillness is just a beginning
An endless spiral which is always spinning
To that mountain we are still turning
By the bush which is still burning

For more on the Omer, join the conversation by visiting the Omer liveblog on HuffPost Religion, which features blogs, prayers, art and reflections for all 49 days of spiritual renewal between Passover and Shavuot.