Rainbow Gathering in the Desert
Trip Start
Nov 13, 2006
1
78
80
Trip End
Oct 21, 2008
Negev,
Israel
Saturday, October 18, 2008
The full moon tonight was so bright that it looked more like dusk than midnight. It lit up the faces the faces of the people sat round the fire, and I could almost make out the features on the hill on the horizon. I would easily be able to find my way back to my tent later but on the downside the stars weren't quite the spectacular site I had gotten used to. Finally out of Neot Semadar I was still deep inside the desert but in a different kind of place; it was the Succot Rainbow Gathering.
'Welcome Home' is the Rainbow motto and for one month people of all backgrounds live together in an area 'undesecrated by humanoids' in harmony with nature and with each other (which in Israel is of course no mean feat!). I had stumbled across and enjoyed the two other Rainbow gatherings earlier in the year and so this seemed like the ideal way to round off my journey.
There are two meals a day prepared with donation money by whoever volunteers, and when the food is ready everyone joins hands in a big circle before tucking in. By Friday night there must have been 200 people in the circle - including Bedouin and Europeans mixed in with the happy go lucky Israelis. It was kind of ironic that many of these Israelis would be throwing off their colourful clothes to put on their IDF uniforms and M16 machine guns when they left. Army service in Israel is, of course, compulsory.
The defining feature of Rainbow to me is the music. From the early hours till late at night, from didgeredoos to guitars, there are always people jamming away. Many of the musicians at this gathering were professional (or close to it) and so the quality of the music was often outstanding. I felt quite honoured when one guy asked permission to record a jam with me.
Coming out of Neot Semadar (where there is a kind of music deprivation for most of the day) I had felt very present and in the moment, but kind of dead inside, detached from my emotions, and frequently zoning out of what was happening around me. 'I can be detached and emotionless for all eternity when I'm dead!' I had said earlier to a blonde girl in the kitchen area. You only live once and now I want to feel alive!'
Slowly but surely as Rainbow progressed I found myself reconnecting to reality. It was as if Neot Semadar had emptied me out and Rainbow was filling my soul with joy. On Saturday afternoon I sat in the Chai tent up on the hill and looked around. The word 'desert' in Hebrew is 'Midba' which comes the route of the word 'medaber', 'to speak'. It is no coincidence that all the prophets heard God in the desert. Its pure simplicity leaves the mind free from distraction and open to search. As I looked round at the natural beauty and the clear blue skies it was hard to believe I would be leaving this for grey and cold London in just a few days. But there was one more stop to be made before I left Israel. I was going back to Jerusalem.
