תְּפִלָּה

It is impossible to merit prayer except through Torah study — as it is written: "one who turns his ear from hearing Torah — his prayer too is an abomination" [Proverbs 28:9]. [No source citation in this edition.]

The primary prayer is through awe — for prayer is in place of the offering [korban]; and of an offering it is stated: "all that has a blemish shall not approach" [Leviticus 21:18]. And when one has no blemish — meaning through the awe, through which one merits to completeness: that there is peace in one's bones and peace between one's body and soul — then one may approach to perform one's service with perfection [tamah]. And then one can pray in completeness; and through the prayer one merits the general peace — meaning the completeness of the worlds; for prayer is called offering [korban] on account of drawing the worlds close to their completeness [kiruv ha'olamim lishleimutam] — which is the dimension of general peace: peace in all the worlds. And this is why we conclude prayer with peace [shalom]. [No source citation in this edition.]

Through complete prayer — through which the general peace is drawn down — and through this all creatures have mercy upon one another and there is peace among them — through this Hashem Yisborach has mercy upon them all, in the dimension of "and His mercy is upon all His works" [Psalms 145:9]. [No source citation in this edition.]

There are sufferings that come upon a person from the dimension of holy judgment [dina kaddisha] — which is the dimension of sufferings of love [yissurin shel ahavah], in the dimension of "for whom Hashem loves He reproves" [Proverbs 3:12] — which is the dimension of distancing that is the beginning of drawing close. And there are sufferings that come from the dimension of impure judgment [dina dimesa'ava], Heaven forbid. And the sign by which a person can know whether he is in the dimension of impure judgment or holy judgment — the sign is prayer. When there is no nullification of prayer in him — he knows that the sufferings are from the dimension of holy judgment: the dimension of sufferings of love. [No source citation in this edition.]

Prayer is the dimension of the face [panim] — and the nullification of prayer is the dimension of the hiding of the face [hastoras panim], Heaven forbid — in the dimension of "You hid Your face — I was terrified" [Psalms 30:8]. [No source citation in this edition.]

The matter of the foreign thoughts that come during prayer — particularly to the righteous person who wishes to pray with great attachment — these are from the holy sparks that fell at the time of the breaking of the vessels. And the foreign thoughts are for each person in the likeness of that measure and level at which he stands now. And the Tzaddik must know from which world and from which attribute this foreign thought comes — and also must know with what to elevate it to that world and attribute which he now inhabits. But sometimes the Tzaddik wishes to elevate it and cannot — because this thought is from a higher level that the Tzaddik has not yet reached; and therefore it is impossible for him to elevate it. But why does this thought that is before its time come to him? — because when there is dispute against some Tzaddik, a foreign thought in the likeness of that dispute falls to another Tzaddik; and since the Tzaddik wishes to elevate it — even though he does not elevate it — he breaks through the power of the will all the masters of the dispute. [No source citation in this edition.]

A person must strengthen himself in prayer — whether he merits to pray with attachment or even at a time when he does not merit to pray with attachment and his prayer does not flow fluently from his mouth, Heaven forbid — even so he must strengthen himself even then to pray with all his force and intention. For at the time when he merits to pray with attachment and his prayer flows fluently from his mouth as it should — all the prayers will rise up together with that prayer which he prayed as it should. [No source citation in this edition.]

Every person must take care in his prayer to pray in a manner that can arouse and draw down abundance in the world. And this depends on awe — for all who have fear of Heaven: their words are heard. And there are two kinds of awe: there is a higher awe that comes to a person occasionally whenever it wishes, and for such awe there is no reward. And there is awe that comes to a person from the person's own force — and this awe is in the dimension of "a righteous one who rules through the awe of G-d" [II Samuel 23:3]. And through awe of this kind his prayer is heard and abundance descends to the world, and the sovereignty of Hashem Yisborach is revealed and magnified. [No source citation in this edition.]

All the praises and attributes with which we liken Him, blessed be He, are in the dimension of the imaginative faculty [ha'medameh] — for in the innermost of the intellect He, blessed be He, is entirely abstract from all praises and attributes. And therefore when the imaginative faculty is not clarified and rectified — one does not know at all how to describe Him, blessed be He, as it were, with praises and attributes. Only when the imaginative faculty is clarified and rectified can one arrange praises and attributes toward Him, blessed be He — for all the praises and attributes are in the dimension of the imaginative faculty, as above. [No source citation in this edition.]

Prayer changes nature — and the wisdoms and philosophical investigations that proceed according to nature are nullified; and through this the dimension of Amalek is subdued — which is the dimension of the knowledge of the philosophers [§415] and investigators who say that the primary attainment of the ultimate purpose is through philosophy and investigation. And then one merits to attain the true ultimate purpose: that the prayer should be included in His unity, blessed be He — in the dimension of "He is your praise and He is your G-d" [Deuteronomy 10:21] — which is the true primary ultimate purpose. [Translator's note: The source number תטו [§415] appears mid-sentence in the original, as an internal cross-reference — retained here in its correct position. No source citation appears for this teaching in this edition.]

Everything that Hashem Yisborach brings upon a person — even severe illness and harsh suffering, may the Merciful One protect us — is all only from the side of His mercy, blessed be He; only we do not understand His mercy, and we also cannot receive and endure that mercy. Therefore one must beseech and pray before Him, blessed be He, that He sweeten all the judgments from upon us and draw down upon us great mercies — and transfer, as it were, the mercy into our hands: meaning that the mercy should be according to what we ourselves also understand, which is the dimension of the mercy being in our hands — that we ourselves have mercy upon ourselves; and for us mercy is simply being healed from illness and the like. [No source citation in this edition.]

Even one who studies books of Kabbalah and the writings of the holy Ari, of blessed memory, and knows the mystical intentions of prayer — even so, not every person merits to pray with these intentions. And therefore the primary thing is to intend the plain meaning of the words [peirush ha'milos kifshuto]. And the primary prayer is attachment to Hashem Yisborach — and through praying to Hashem Yisborach about each and every matter and intending the plain meaning of the words with genuine intention as is proper — through this itself one draws close and becomes attached to Him, blessed be He. And for the truly true great tzaddikim of lofty level — for them all the intentions of the Ari of blessed memory, etc., are the plain meaning of the words; for in their plain meaning of the words all the intentions are included. [No source citation in this edition.]

Just as we see that for the convert who converted — it is a great merit for him when he merits to say the words of the prayer even though he does not know how to intend them — similarly it is appropriate for the person to comfort and gladden himself over the fact that at the very least he merits to say the words of the prayer. And through this itself he may afterward merit to intend the prayer — to pray with desire and burning enthusiasm as it should be. And one must also not confuse one's mind at first by wishing to pray the entire prayer with intention — for this will be hard and heavy upon him and through this his entire prayer will be confused. Rather, one should strive each time to say a little with intention — for a little one can pray with intention; and then a little more, etc.: meaning that at first one should strive with all one's force to pray with intention until Baruch She'amar [the opening of Pesukei d'Zimrah]; and after reaching there, strive to pray with intention for yet another portion of the prayer; and so on further. [No source citation in this edition.]

Regarding the foreign thoughts during prayer — one must know that every thought is a complete stature [komah sheleimah]. And when a person stands and prays in order and pays no attention to the foreign thoughts — and thereby defeats them and passes them on — then in the course of his walking, in their downfall, he fells them. And some he kills entirely; and some he cuts limb by limb — cutting one a hand and another a foot and the like. And this is literally like a hero passing through in battle — and in the course of his walking he overcomes and fells his enemies as he can. [Translator's note: The letter ת in the source at the start of "in the course of his walking" — וּבְדֶרֶךְ ת הִלּוּכוֹ — appears to be a typographical mark in the original manuscript. No source citation appears for this teaching in this edition.]

The primary purpose of reciting Tehillim is to say all the psalms as referring to oneself — to find oneself within every psalm. For Tehillim was said for all of Israel in general and for each individual person in particular. And every person — all the battles of the Evil Inclination that are waged against him and all that is done with him — all of it is explained and detailed in Tehillim; for the entire Book of Tehillim was said and established only concerning the battle of the Evil Inclination and its forces — which are the primary enemies and foes of a person — and on this David entreated that Hashem Yisborach save him from them. And likewise every person must apply all of this to himself. And even the verses where King David, peace be upon him, praises himself — such as "guard my soul for I am pious" [Psalms 86:2] and the like — one must also apply these to oneself; for in truth one must judge oneself with the scale of merit and find some good points within oneself — in order to strengthen oneself through this in the service of Hashem. [No source citation in this edition.]

When a person becomes inflamed during his prayer — and begins to pray with great burning enthusiasm and desire, and his prayer flows fluently from his mouth — this is the light of Hashem Yisborach Himself, as it were, which has clothed itself in him and is calling him to His service, blessed be He — in the dimension of "He is your praise and He is your G-d" [Deuteronomy 10:21]. And sometimes a person is praying before Hashem Yisborach — and Hashem Yisborach, as it were, withdraws and distances Himself from the person, Heaven forbid. He must also strengthen himself in prayer — and hurl and throw the prayers, as it were, after Him, blessed be He. [No source citation in this edition.]

When a person prays with intention — binding thought to speech and bending his ear well and hearing what he is saying — then all his powers are automatically drawn in and enter into the prayer; and he merits to pray with great force even without compelling himself to this. For all the powers always watch and look to be drawn and entered into holy words. [No source citation in this edition.]

Sometimes it is a great good that foreign thoughts and ulterior motives come upon him during prayer — since the Examiner of hearts knows that the innermost of his intention and thought is only for Hashem alone. [No source citation in this edition.]

For every small and great thing that a person lacks — one must pray to Hashem Yisborach that He fill his deficiency. Even though certainly the primary thing is to pray for the primary matter — meaning for the service of Hashem Yisborach, to merit to draw close to Him, blessed be He — even so one must also pray for this [the material deficiency]. And one who does not conduct himself this way — even though Hashem Yisborach gives him garments and livelihood and all the needs of his sustenance — his vitality-force is like that of an animal; for Hashem Yisborach also gives the animal its bread, etc. [see Psalms 147:9]. For the person must draw all his vitality and needs from Hashem Yisborach — through prayer and supplication specifically. [No source citation in this edition.]

One must be very careful not to drink kaffe [coffee — Yiddish-Ashkenazic: kaave] or the like before prayer. [No source citation in this edition.]

Just as the voice arouses the intention — so too the opposite: intention arouses the voice. For when one prays [§417] with intention and subdues all one's heart and thought within the words of prayer — then automatically one's voice is aroused to pray with voice as it should be. [Translator's note: The source number תיז [§417] appears mid-sentence in the original as a cross-reference — retained here in its correct position. No source citation appears for this teaching in this edition.]

Even if a person is as he is — even so, let him strengthen and fortify his heart to pray to Hashem Yisborach; and let him think in his heart: is it not so that if he is truly so far from Hashem Yisborach — certainly he must strengthen himself even more to pray to Hashem Yisborach, and to trust in the kindnesses of Hashem that He will hear and receive even his prayer? For on the contrary — specifically through him is the primary completeness of prayer — as our Rabbis said: "any prayer that does not include the sinners of Israel, etc." [Talmud Bavli, Kerisus 6b] — and this is derived from the chelbena [galbanum] of the incense. [No source citation in this edition.]

Before prayer, let every person say: "Behold I bind myself to all the tzaddikim of our generation." [No source citation in this edition.]

The greatness of the level of the holiness of prayer — which surpasses all — is demonstrated by the fact that the Ba'al Tefillah [Master of Prayer] was a very great and holy Tzaddik in all good attributes and all levels of righteousness — and yet even so his primary name was called "the Ba'al Tefillah"; and he composed many compositions on the subject of prayer and arranged for his disciples the correct path in this. And it was specifically he who merited to pass through the places of all the King's people — each of whom was an awesome and wondrous innovation, each according to his dimension and measure. And even so all of them acknowledged and said that the gathering of the King and His people and the world's rectification in completeness — all of it was only in the merit of the Ba'al Tefillah and in the merit of his many holy prayers. And likewise the purification and rectification of the entire world — each group according to its dimension — was only through the above-mentioned Ba'al Tefillah. [No source citation in this edition. This teaching refers to the story of the Ba'al Tefillah in Sipuray Ma'asios, Story 12.]

When the day arrives at its shaking and breaking [i.e., the time of Minchah and Ma'ariv] — then the person must arouse himself with a great awakening and recall to himself how the heart of the world and the spring — upon which the primary sustaining of the world depends — begin to take leave of each other [in Yiddish-Ashkenazic: gizegenen zich] and say to each other wondrous riddles and songs with great love and very intense longing. Therefore he too must join himself with them and arouse himself then with great longing and yearning toward Hashem Yisborach and pray with great attachment. For the creation of this entire day has already been completed and concluded — and who knows what the day will bring forth, as is understood in the inner text. And afterward he must prepare himself to receive the holiness of the new creation of the coming day — and recall to himself well that each and every day as it departs from its place of origin, it departs with very wondrous riddles and songs which contain all the wisdoms. And there are differences between the days — for no day resembles another, particularly the sacred days which are Shabbos, Rosh Chodesh, and Yom Tov. Therefore one must also join oneself with this and pray each day and say before Him, blessed be He, songs and praises, etc. — with fresh desire and very holy burning enthusiasm, and with entirely new mochin; and bind and draw upon oneself the merit and power of the great true man of chesed [loving-kindness] — and in particular the merit and power of the one who engages in this: gathering the acts of true chesed and bringing them to the true man of chesed — through which is the primary formation of time and the riddles and songs and wisdoms above. And likewise the primary sustaining and vitality of the spring and the heart and the entire world, as is explained in the inner text.

One must greatly strengthen and compel oneself with all one's powers and in all the matters pertaining to Hashem Yisborach — particularly regarding prayer. For even very holy and awesome tzaddikim — sometimes they also must literally give over their souls for the service of prayer; and likewise for the other matters of holiness. And they have many obstacles and great heaviness before they perform any act of holiness — as is explained in the words of our Rabbis, of blessed memory. How much more so — by way of kal vachomer [a fortiori], many times over — how much we must toil and exert ourselves and give over our souls each day, particularly at the time of prayer; which at first is very heavy upon the person, and one requires much effort and to compel oneself in many ways and counsels — perhaps one will merit to speak some word in prayer as it should be. For for the sake of a single word of prayer as it should be — it is worthwhile to give over one's soul, for prayer is "things that stand at the height of the world" [Talmud Bavli, Berachos 6b], as our Rabbis said. [No source citation in this edition.]

When a person toils in his prayer and cannot pray with life and burning enthusiasm as it should be — he is then compelled to say the words in complete simplicity: "the great, mighty, and awesome G-d" [Deuteronomy 10:17], etc., and the like. And even so the innermost of his thought and intention should be bound to the words with a strong and firm bond. And if he merits, he can through this itself afterward become aroused to pray with great burning enthusiasm — many words and matters. And sometimes he cools again — and he must return to speaking in simplicity and wholeness, as above; and through this he becomes inflamed again sometimes. And so many many times — even within a single prayer. For upon simple people many ascents and descents can pass even within a single prayer — and therefore usually they must linger in their prayer when they wish to pray with intention, since many matters occur for them in a single prayer, as above. [No source citation in this edition.]

Prayer with force and complete intention — and overcoming all the foreign thoughts that confuse one from one's prayer — this is a rectification for the sins of youth.