The Month of Cheshvan
According to Sefer Yetzirah

According to Sefer Yetzirah, each month of the Jewish year has a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, a zodiac sign, one of the twelve tribes of Israel, a sense, and a controlling limb of the body that correspond to it.

Cheshvan (or Mar-Cheshvan): the eighth of the twelve months of the Jewish calendar.

In the Bible, Cheshvan is called chodesh bul, from the word mabul, "the flood." The flood began on the 17th of Cheshvan, and ended the following year on the 27th of Cheshvan. The following day, the 28th of Cheshvan, Noah brought his sacrifice to G-d and G-d swore never again to bring a flood upon the earth to destroy all mankind, and then revealed the sign of His covenant with the world, the rainbow.

Cheshvan is the only month which has no holidays or special mitzvot.We are taught that it is "reserved" for the time of Mashiach, who will inaugurate the third Temple in Cheshvan.

Letter: nun.

Nun is considered to be the letter of Mashiach, as is said (with reference to Mashiach): "before the sun, is his name Ye-non [from nun]" (Psalms 72:17). As a verb-root, nun means "to reign." As a noun, it means "the heir to the throne" (from nin). The eighth month is the month of Mashiach, for eight signifies the eternal revelation of the supernatural (the consummate state of rectified nature being the secret of the number seven). Whereas the "harp" of this world possesses seven strings, the harp of Mashiach possesses eight strings. Just as 8 transcends 7, so does 50 (the numerical value of nun) transcend 49, 7 squared. In this world, the nun is bent over, confined by the boundaries of nature. With the coming of Mashiach, the nun "straightens out" (the shape of the final nun), breaks through the boundaries of nature, and descends "below the line" into the subterranean realms of reality in order to reveal there G-d's all-encompassing Infinite light.

Mazal: akrav (Scorpio--scorpion).

Our sages teach us that the scorpion is the most deadly member of the general category of poisonous creatures whose archetypal figure is the primordial snake of Eden. The word akrav derives from the word akev, "heel," as is said: "and you [the snake] shall bite him [man] at the heel" (Genesis 3:15). Thus the akrav symbolizes the consummate "bite" of the snake at the heel of man. While in general, the poison of the snake is "hot," the poison of the scorpion is "cold." The Mashiach is the one and only soul who can overcome, kill, and ultimately revive the primordial snake (in order to convert it to good). (The soul of Mashiach and his continuous state of consciousness manifest the ultimate rectification of "heat," "burning" solely in his love for G-d and Israel, as well as that of "cold"-absolutely "cold" to the false vanities of this world.) This is the secret of the numerical equation: Mashiach (358) = snake (nachash). Akrav (372) = Mashiach (nachash) plus David (= 14; nun is the 14th letter of the alef-beit). The root-letters of Cheshvan permute to spell nachash (in Cheshvan the nun is "straightened out;" in nachash it is "bent over").

Tribe: Menasheh.

Menasheh is the firstborn of Joseph. Deriving from the word "to forget" (literally "to leap, up and away"), Menasheh implies the power of the tzadik (Joseph) to make us forget the hardships, trials and tribulations of this world, with the coming of Mashiach. By the power and sense of Menasheh, all of the pain of this world will transform and metamorphose into the pleasure of the Messianic era. The name Menasheh permutes to spell neshamah, "soul." Menasheh represents the sense to reveal the Divine soul in Israel. In the Bible, Moses is called Menasheh, for Menasheh is Moshe (Moses) with an additional nun (the letter of Cheshvan). Of Moses is said: "he is the first redeemer and he is the final redeemer" (See Shemot Rabbah 4:2; Zohar 1:253a; Sha'ar HaPesukim, Vayechi; Torah Or, beginning of Mishpatim). In his first lifetime (as "the first redeemer") he did not achieve the "50th gate of understanding" (the understanding of G-d Himself, as it were, and His deepest intention in the creation of the universe). When he returns as Mashiach, he will be given forever the "50th gate," the nun of Mashiach, the secret of Menasheh (Moshe-nun. In the Zohar we are taught that when Moses first passed from this world he received the "50th gate" and was "buried" in the Mishnah, another permutation of Menasheh, Moshe-nun. Through the study of Mishnah (in the time of exile) we reveal the neshamah of Israel and thereby merit the redemption of Moshe-Mashiach and the revelation for all on earth of the "50th gate."

Sense: smell.

The sense of smell is the most spiritual of all senses. The Hebrew word for "smell," rei'ach, is cognate to that for "spirit" (ruach). Our sages teach us that smell is the one and only sense that "the soul enjoys and not the body." "Soul" (neshamah) is a permutation of Menasheh, as mentioned above. The sense of smell is the only sense (of the five common senses) that did not participate, and thereby was not blemished or polluted, in the primordial sin of man in the Garden of Eden. It is the sense which saved the Jewish people in the time of Mordechai and Esther, who are called Mor veHadas ("myrrh and myrtle," the two primary sources of fragrance). It is explicitly stated that the sense of Mashiach is the sense of smell. "And he shall smell in the awe of G-d"--"he shall judge by smell" (rather than by sight or hearing. Isaiah 11:3; Sanhedrin 93b). By his sense of smell (his ruach hakodesh, "holy spirit") the Mashiach will know how to connect each Jewish soul to its Divine root, and thereby identify its tribe (branch) in Israel.

Controller: intestines.

The word for intestines (dakin) derives from the word "minute" (dakah) or "particle" (dak). It implies the power to dissect into fine, refined parts. In the process of preparing the incense for the Temple (the consummate expression of the sense of smell in the Temple service), one would say (over and over), "grind well, grind well" (hadek heitev, heiteiv hadek: hadeik from dak). All of the sacrifices in the Temple service are meant to produce a "satisfying aroma" (rei'ach nichoach) and please the Divine sense of smell, which implies the Divine "satisfaction" with the service of His children Israel in particular and with His creation in general. Our sages interpret the phrase rei'ach nichoach as "I am satisfied (nachat ruach), for I have spoken and My will has been fulfilled." This Divine satisfaction with man and creation was first expressed on the 28th of Cheshvan, when Noah offered his sacrifice to G-d. Due to His satisfaction, G-d swore to Noah never again to destroy the world by flood. As is expressed explicitly in laws of the Torah, it is the fats of the intestines that when offered on the altar produce the "satisfying" aroma for G-d. For this reason the intestines are seen to control the sense of smell.