Teivah: Weekly Practice Group

With Dr. Jes Golden

Thursdays, October 29 - December 17, 2026

At 6.15am PT / 9:15am ET / 2:00pm UK / 4:00pm Israel

45-minute sessions on Zoom

With Rabbi Carrie Watkins

Tuesdays, November 3 - December 22, 2026

At 8am PT / 11am ET / 3:00pm UK / 5:00pm Israel

45-minute sessions on Zoom

Each group will have a maximum of 15 participants

Join the Practice

Join a 8-week Jewish meditation container for practice, connection, and growth

Many of us know the experience of wanting to meditate more often, but finding it difficult to maintain momentum on our own. Having a dedicated time, a shared commitment, and a group of fellow practitioners can make all the difference.

We are delighted to invite you into a new format we are offering for your Jewish meditation practice: Teivah—Hebrew for "ark"—is a group that will meet weekly for 45 minutes over the course of eight weeks with Or HaLev teachers Dr. Jes Golden and Rabbi Carrie Watkins.

The instructions Noah receives from G-d to build the teivah allows him to create a shelter for those aboard through times of change, struggle, and transformation. God also tells Noah to make a tzohar—a luminous opening that lets light into the ark—offering a point of clarity and radiance.

Teivah is envisioned as a space to practice with the same group over a defined period in order to deepen awareness and sustain intention while finding refuge and insight through Jewish meditation. The eight-week structure offers both continuity and manageability: an opportunity to cultivate practice in community for a defined season.

Each meeting will include:

A short teaching
A lightly guided meditation for approximately 25 minutes
Time for reflection and sharing afterwards

Who is it for?
This group is for you if you are looking to practice Jewish meditation with others, or you want support in beginning, sustaining or evolving your practice.

No previous experience of meditation is required, and no particular knowledge of Judaism is assumed.

Join Teivah

“So grounding to have a Jewish meditation space that can hold the complexity and challenge of these times.” - Shira

A few more things to note:

*Sessions will be recorded. For this offering we ask you only to sign up if you can commit to attending at least 5 of the 8 live sessions. This supports the continuity and togetherness of a group practicing and sharing together.

*We thank our friends at HaMakom for inspiring this model.

Meet Your Teachers

**Jes Golden**

Jes Golden, Ph.D. is a Jewish meditation teacher, writer, and researcher focusing on embodied experience in Jewish and Buddhist meditation. A graduate of Or HaLev’s three-year Jewish Meditation Teacher Training program, Jes teaches regularly for the organization, including programs such as the Ground & Center Series and Hadran. Jes is also an Adjunct Faculty member at the Institute for Jewish Spirituality (IJS), an IJS Marbeh Fellow, and a Postdoctoral Affiliate at the Meditation Research Program at Harvard Medical School / Mass General Hospital. They hold a Ph.D. in Philosophy from UC Berkeley.

Rabbi Carrie Watkins

Carrie is a practitioner, organizer, and teacher of Jewish meditation. Carrie received Rabbinic Ordination from Hebrew College and has been teaching meditation and mindfulness for the last nine years - to startups, on silent retreats, for teenagers on backcountry trips, in pubs, in her living room, and in other peoples' living rooms. A systems thinker with a Master in City Planning from MIT, Carrie is attentive to the ways meditation and mindfulness can bring healing both our own internal systems and to the communal, societal, and ecological systems of which we’re a part. Carrie has a certificate in Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy, completed Or HaLev's three year Gates of Awareness: Jewish Meditation Teacher Training program, and is currently part of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality's Marbeh Fellowship: Cultivating Senior Jewish Mindfulness Teachers.

Choose your rate, and then you'll choose which of the two groups to join

At Or HaLev, we believe in the spirit of generosity as an essential part of practice. We also acknowledge that financial abilities differ for everyone and we strive to make this class accessible to those who wish to participate, regardless of ability to pay.
Please consider paying at the highest rate that you are able to. Your generosity will help in supporting Or HaLev's activities and in growing our community.