The 12 Tribes of Israel Collection
Judah from the 12 Tribes of Israel
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Judah - The Leader“This time I will thank G-d.” (Gen. 29:35)
Judah, Leah’s fourth son, was named for her gratitude. The tribe of Judah, which is the tribe of royalty, embodies the quality of gratitude and humility -- the ability to acknowledge one’s wrongdoings, as well as one’s position as a recipient of blessings. The quality of humility is an essential characteristic of a leader who leads from a position of receptivity rather than power. This painting looks down the winding way from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea; from an abundant foreground that places us amid grapevines, olive trees and wheat -- three of the seven species of the Land of Israel. The spaciousness of the landscape reflects the spaciousness of our own hearts, which are gratefully prepared to acknowledge the bountiful blessings in our lives. And it is with this humility that we access our own leadership qualities and can move forward with strength.
The warm browns of the desert sands of Judah’s land reflect the gemstone of carbuncle (or garnet). |
Detailed Explanation
- Essential Quality - Gratitude
- Birth Mother - Leah
- Birth Order - Forth
- Mother's Naming - She (Leah) conceived again, and bore a son and declared, "This time let me gratefully praise Hashem"; therefore she called his name Judah; then she stopped giving birth. (Genesis, 29:35)
- Landscape - The Judaea hills heading east from Jerusalem on the way to the Dead Sea.
- Gemstone - Carbuncle (or Garnet)
- Father (Jacob) Blessing - "Judah - you, your brothers shall acknowledge; your hand will be at your enemies' nape; your father's sons will prostrate themselves to you. A lion cub is Judah; from the prey, my son, you elevated yourself. He crouches, lies down like a lion, and like an awesome lion, who dares rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah nor a scholar from among his descendants, until Shiloh shall arrive and his will be an assemblage of nations. He wii tie his donkey to the vine; to the vine branch his donkey's foal; he will launder his garments in wine and his robe in the blood of grapes. Red eyed from wine, and white toothed from milk." (Genesis, 49:8-12)
- Kabbalah - Judah means acknowledgement. Judah's name also includes the four letters of the Divine name Havaya. Judah is the leader; his descendants would be the kings of Israel, beginning with King David and concluding with the Messiah. Judah is the path of selflessness, the most vital ingredient in true leadership. (Jacobson, Simon from Twelve Tribes - Twelve Paths)