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May. 7, 2021 3:10 PM
Somewhere in the Arava desert, 36 kilometers northwest of Petra and a proverbial two fingers from Israel’s Highway 90, 30 people are sitting in silence. They started on January 8 and most of them will not speak for a year, until January 2022. This workshop of silence is thought to be the first of its kind in Israel. The participants are completely cut off from the outside world. They didn’t vote in the recent election (undoubtedly a blow to the center-left camp); they have no access to phones or email. They are also isolated from one another: Their primary communication is with themselves. For many hours each day, they look inward. These days, when the meditation becomes deeper, it also becomes more difficult.