In Gregorian Calendar

The Gregorian Calendar follows a 28-year cycle. Since there are seven days in a week and leap year occurs every four years; a calendar from 28 years ago is the same as the year 28 years later (i.e. 1980 = 2008). However, this is only true if there have been exactly seven leap days in the time between the two years. As such, 1900 (as well as 2100, 2200, etc.) is not the same as 1872 for the simple reason that 1900 is not a leap year.

In Jewish Tradition: Celebrating the Sun

On the Jewish calendar, Creation took place 5,769 years ago. On April 8, 2009, is Birkat Hachama, the Jewish celebration of the Sun. The ceremony is a ritual of blessing the sun on special day that is little known since it is celebrated only once in 28 years.

In Genesis, it is written: "And God said, "Let there be light and there was light" (1:16-19). Birkat Hachama is actually the most joyful of all Jewish ceremonies, made especially so because of the long time interval between one celebration day and the next. Today begins the 206th cycle of the Sun since its beginning.

Because the Sun and the Moon were created on the fourth day, the beginning of the 28 year cycle is always at the Vernal Equinox at 6 PM or Tuesday evening - the beginning of the fourth day - and so Birkat Hachama always occurs on a Wednesday morning when the Sun is actually visible.

The Torah tells us that on Day One, God created light and darkness. Where did that come from if the Sun was not created until Day four? The Talmud explains that the Luminaries were created on the First Day, but were not set in place until the 4th Day. Why did God do this? To get the message across that the first spiritual light was created before the Sun was positioned to teach us that light and all other natural phenomena are emanations of the Creator's glory.

Birkat Hachama is a special prayer in commemoration of the Sun's creation on the 4th Day. The Talmud explains, that on this day the Sun returns to its original position where it was in Heaven on the 4th Day of the Creation. That was when God set the Sun and the Moon to "serve as signs for the seasons" (Genesis 1:14). So in a sense today, also the eve of Passover, is the season of seasons, the cycle of the birth of all our cycles.

This is the first year after Shmita - the Jewish tradition, every 7th Year one stops all agricultural activities in order to let Mother Earth rest. This is time to replant, to grow anew, and to bring fresh blossoms to the world. We are planting new seeds for a better future and for the renewal of the next 28-Year Cycle.

[Times of India, Apr 8, 2009]