One day, while living in Brookline, Mass., Levi Ben-Shmuel was flipping through his local adult education course catalog. It was there he saw a 10-week course on Tai Chi, a Chinese martial art that incorporates meditation and defense training. Intrigued, he signed up to learn under Tai Chi Master Vincent Chu.
The first meeting with the master’s father, Grandmaster Gin Soon Chu, changed Ben-Shmuel’s life. “He gave a dramatic demonstration of using chi, the life force energy present in all of creation, in a martial arts exercise,” Ben-Shmuel said. “After seeing what he could do with this energy, I was committed to learning how to work with chi as a martial artist.”
Consequently, while Ben-Shmuel was becoming immersed in Tai Chi, he went to Israel for the first time. There, he had another revelation after feeling the divine presence in Jerusalem.
“During my first visit to the Kotel on a Friday night, I deeply felt my connection to the Jewish people and the land of Israel,” he said. “I knew I would return to Israel one day and spend a significant amount of time there.”
That was the summer of 1991, and Ben-Shmuel’s three-week vacation in Israel turned into 10 years. He became a dual citizen of Israel and the United States and legally changed his name to his Hebrew name. He also studied under a Kabbalah teacher, Hadassah Ben-Yishai, who taught him about how to have a close connection with God. She used the Kabbalah’s Tree of Life as a primary teaching tool to develop a relationship with the Almighty.
“The love affair she had with God was intoxicating to be around,” he said. “I knew I wanted to experience this love myself. She quickly guided me to my own experience of the unconditional love God has for me and each and every one of us.”
After learning this, Ben-Shmuel, along with another student, was inspired to create Sulam Chi, a Jewish movement exercise that incorporates the 10 energies of the Tree of Life.
“I used my background in Tai Chi to intuit movements that correspond to the energy centers called sefirot,” he said. “The sefirot are mapped to our bodies. While doing Sulam Chi, you focus on the part of your body linked to each sefirah.”
Today, Ben-Shmuel, who lives in Los Angeles with his family, teaches Sulam Chi online and in person. The class, which is a complete mind, body and spirit exercise, incorporates meditation and prayer in motion. No background in Tai Chi or Kabbalah is required, and it’s ideal for all ages and levels of fitness. It only takes a few minutes to do it in a small space.
“Given the levels of stress, anxiety and overwhelm of our times, Sulam Chi is an efficient exercise that quickly and easily brings people back into balance through relaxing the body, calming the mind and reconnecting them to their souls,” he said.
Ben-Shmuel is confident that especially during these tumultuous times, practicing something like Sulam Chi and embracing a Higher Power not only have the power to provide stability, but to also give people a moment of peace.
“The gift of knowing that God accepts you as you are and loves you unconditionally is priceless.” – Levi Ben-Shmuel
“The gift of knowing that God accepts you as you are and loves you unconditionally is priceless,” he said. “In these days of uncertainty, rapid change and deep divisions, keeping this knowing close to your heart is a foundation you can count on to navigate your life and thrive.”
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