Itai and the Ophanim

Oh Certainly 
There must be 
Spirit in this place and it was not known to me 

Ahen yesh Shekhinah
baMakom hazeh v'anokhi lo yada'ti 
Mah norah haMakom hazeh 
Ein zeh beit Elokim v'zeh sha'ar hashamayim 

Underneath these stones
Where I lay my head 
Where I rest my bones
There was this vision I had 
I see angels rise 
And I see them fall 
On a ladder to the skies,
Tell me what is the meaning of it all 

Oh how great is this place  
What can it be if not the gates of Elohim 
Oh how great is this place 
What can it be if not the home of the Shekhinah 

Every particle of Earth 
Every piece of every land 
Every molecule of water folded under where I stand 
Every stone and every soul 
Every human every tree 
Are connected in an ever-moving web of unity 

Mah norah...

This song is about a story in the Torah in which Jacob rests his head upon stones and had a vision of angels ascending and descending a ladder to the heavens. Among many interpretations of this, a person's mind could be directed towards spiritual pursuit, but one must have one's feet grounded as well. We are the conduits between the physical and spiritual realms. In the plain text, the angels are "ascending and descending it," the "it" being the ladder. Since Hebrew has no word for "it," the Hebrew says that they go up and down at him, him being Jacob. What is this being that is both Earthly and spiritual? The angels are "ratzoh v'shov," running and returning, like the beings in Ezekiel's vision. Everything in the universe runs and returns. It is Itai's belief that every place has Divine dwelling, although not always revealed to us. Expanding one's awareness improves our relationship to Earth. It becomes more difficult to mistreat the land once one experiences her sacredness.