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As a hart yearns over the water-brooks, so does my soul yearn toward You, O G‑d. My soul thirsts for G‑d, for the living G‑d — when shall I come and appear before the face of G‑d? [ Psalms 42:2–3 ] — for You, Hashem , alone know Your greatness and Your might and Your glory and Your exaltation and Your loftiness, for Your greatness is without limit and the attainment of Your G‑dliness is supremely and utterly exalted: leis machashavah tefisah bach k'lal [Aramaic: no thought can grasp You at all]. Yet from the immensity of Your compassion and Your graciousness — for You desire to do good to Your creatures — You wrought great deeds and encompassed circumstances, and You contracted [ tzimtzamta ] the attainment of Your G‑dliness through many contractions [ tzimtzumim ] of different kinds: from cause to effect [ mei'illah le'illul ], from the higher intellect to the lower intellect — and You granted power to Your true tzadikim to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness and the knowledge of Your exaltedness, and You graced them with knowledge, understanding, and discernment [ da'as, binah, v'haskeil ] — so that through the very force of their understanding they have the power to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness even into our lowly minds. As You began to reveal the attainment of Your G‑dliness through Moshe Your prophet, the faithful of Your house — who brought us out of Egypt from the forty-nine gates of impurity and brought us into the forty-nine gates of holiness [ mem-tes sha'arei tumah and mem-tes sha'arei kedushah ], and drew us near to You and to Your service, and gave us the holy Torah and commandments — which are all measures and contractions [ shi'urim v'tzimtzumim ] to attain through them the attainment of Your G‑dliness. For through every single commandment and through every single letter of Your holy Torah — written and oral — when we merit to perform them in holiness and in purity as is fitting, we have the power to draw to ourselves knowledge to attain Your G‑dliness through the many measures and contractions of the holy Torah. How great is Your goodness which You have done with us through Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him — who illuminated our eyes, and brought us out from darkness to light, from the dark to a great light, from the depths of exile in body and soul and money, from the forty-nine gates of impurity to the forty-nine gates of holiness. For through the immense greatness of the stature of Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him, he was able to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness even to people who are lowly at the very lowest rung — like us today.

As a hart yearns over the water-brooks, so does my soul yearn toward You, O G‑d. My soul thirsts for G‑d, for the living G‑d — when shall I come and appear before the face of G‑d? [ Psalms 42:2–3 ] — for You, Hashem , alone know Your greatness and Your might and Your glory and Your exaltation and Your loftiness, for Your greatness is without limit and the attainment of Your G‑dliness is supremely and utterly exalted: leis machashavah tefisah bach k'lal [Aramaic: no thought can grasp You at all]. Yet from the immensity of Your compassion and Your graciousness — for You desire to do good to Your creatures — You wrought great deeds and encompassed circumstances, and You contracted [ tzimtzamta ] the attainment of Your G‑dliness through many contractions [ tzimtzumim ] of different kinds: from cause to effect [ mei'illah le'illul ], from the higher intellect to the lower intellect — and You granted power to Your true tzadikim to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness and the knowledge of Your exaltedness, and You graced them with knowledge, understanding, and discernment [ da'as, binah, v'haskeil ] — so that through the very force of their understanding they have the power to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness even into our lowly minds. As You began to reveal the attainment of Your G‑dliness through Moshe Your prophet, the faithful of Your house — who brought us out of Egypt from the forty-nine gates of impurity and brought us into the forty-nine gates of holiness [ mem-tes sha'arei tumah and mem-tes sha'arei kedushah ], and drew us near to You and to Your service, and gave us the holy Torah and commandments — which are all measures and contractions [ shi'urim v'tzimtzumim ] to attain through them the attainment of Your G‑dliness. For through every single commandment and through every single letter of Your holy Torah — written and oral — when we merit to perform them in holiness and in purity as is fitting, we have the power to draw to ourselves knowledge to attain Your G‑dliness through the many measures and contractions of the holy Torah. How great is Your goodness which You have done with us through Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him — who illuminated our eyes, and brought us out from darkness to light, from the dark to a great light, from the depths of exile in body and soul and money, from the forty-nine gates of impurity to the forty-nine gates of holiness. For through the immense greatness of the stature of Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him, he was able to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness even to people who are lowly at the very lowest rung — like us today.

As a hart yearns over the water-brooks, so does my soul yearn toward You, O G‑d. My soul thirsts for G‑d, for the living G‑d — when shall I come and appear before the face of G‑d? [ Psalms 42:2–3 ] — for You, Hashem , alone know Your greatness and Your might and Your glory and Your exaltation and Your loftiness, for Your greatness is without limit and the attainment of Your G‑dliness is supremely and utterly exalted: leis machashavah tefisah bach k'lal [Aramaic: no thought can grasp You at all]. Yet from the immensity of Your compassion and Your graciousness — for You desire to do good to Your creatures — You wrought great deeds and encompassed circumstances, and You contracted [ tzimtzamta ] the attainment of Your G‑dliness through many contractions [ tzimtzumim ] of different kinds: from cause to effect [ mei'illah le'illul ], from the higher intellect to the lower intellect — and You granted power to Your true tzadikim to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness and the knowledge of Your exaltedness, and You graced them with knowledge, understanding, and discernment [ da'as, binah, v'haskeil ] — so that through the very force of their understanding they have the power to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness even into our lowly minds. As You began to reveal the attainment of Your G‑dliness through Moshe Your prophet, the faithful of Your house — who brought us out of Egypt from the forty-nine gates of impurity and brought us into the forty-nine gates of holiness [ mem-tes sha'arei tumah and mem-tes sha'arei kedushah ], and drew us near to You and to Your service, and gave us the holy Torah and commandments — which are all measures and contractions [ shi'urim v'tzimtzumim ] to attain through them the attainment of Your G‑dliness. For through every single commandment and through every single letter of Your holy Torah — written and oral — when we merit to perform them in holiness and in purity as is fitting, we have the power to draw to ourselves knowledge to attain Your G‑dliness through the many measures and contractions of the holy Torah. How great is Your goodness which You have done with us through Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him — who illuminated our eyes, and brought us out from darkness to light, from the dark to a great light, from the depths of exile in body and soul and money, from the forty-nine gates of impurity to the forty-nine gates of holiness. For through the immense greatness of the stature of Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him, he was able to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness even to people who are lowly at the very lowest rung — like us today.

And now I have come before You, Hashem my G‑d and G‑d of my fathers — great in counsel and mighty in deed [ Jeremiah 32:19 ]. Teach me and guide me: by which way, by which manner, by which merit, by which counsel and stratagem — shall I, too, merit to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness, for which purpose I was created? As You know — that I was not created in this lowly world except to pursue this great ultimate purpose: to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness, blessed be He.

And now I have come before You, Hashem my G‑d and G‑d of my fathers — great in counsel and mighty in deed [ Jeremiah 32:19 ]. Teach me and guide me: by which way, by which manner, by which merit, by which counsel and stratagem — shall I, too, merit to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness, for which purpose I was created? As You know — that I was not created in this lowly world except to pursue this great ultimate purpose: to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness, blessed be He.

Master of the Universe — You know the great extent of my distance from the attainment of G‑dliness, for not only did I not take care to fulfill all the words of Your Torah and Your commandments — through which one merits to attain You, each one according to what he conceives in his heart — as it is written: He is known in the gates by her husband [ Proverbs 31:23 ] — each one according to what he conceives in his heart [ Zohar ]. Each one according to what he conceives in his heart. But I also did what I did, and blemished what I blemished, and ruined what I ruined; I sinned, I transgressed and I rebelled, and I did what is evil in Your eyes — with willful contempt, deliberately and with treachery. Until I have become as distant from You as I have become, at the uttermost extreme of distance — for through every sin and iniquity and blemish I ruined a pipe and a path and a channel of the wisdom and understanding and knowledge [ chokhmah, binah, v'da'as ] through which I could have attained the attainment of Your G‑dliness. Until through my very many iniquities — measureless and numberless, weightier than the sand of the seas, more numerous than the dust of the earth and mightier than the hairs of our heads — through all this I ruined and tore down and laid waste every kind of pipe and pathway and channel of holy wisdom, and I destroyed the roads through which one attains You. And each time I added sins upon sins, iniquities upon iniquities, very many and mighty transgressions — until my iniquities have surpassed my head, like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me [ Psalms 38:5 ]. Until through this I have made many, many thousands and myriads of iron walls and curtains that separate between me and Your attainment.

Master of the entire universe [ Mara d'alma kola ] — You know that there is no one who can bring into us the attainment of G‑dliness except the true tzadikim of the generation who are very, very great in stature. For according to the enormity of our descent and our distance from You, and according to the lowliness of our souls as we know ourselves to be — we are now in need of a true leader who will be of an exceptional and immense stature that is very, very great. For the greater the sickness of the patient, the greater the physician he requires. And Israel in Egypt, who were at the very lowest rung of the forty-nine gates of impurity — there was no one who could help them except Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him. And now that we have fallen into a great exile in body and soul — even more and more than the exile of Egypt — surely there is no one who can help us except the tzadik who is of a very great stature and who possesses the aspect of Moshe Rabbainu. And not only do we not merit to draw near to such a true tzadik — but also in our many iniquities You have poured out Your fury upon us, and You have taken from us all the lights of our eyes, all our true tzadikim who are of an exceptional and immense stature. And what shall we do now at this time — especially a man like me: sick like me, crushed and tormented by the sufferings of the soul and the body like me, stricken and beaten and driven mad and confused — a man of pains and known to illness [ Isaiah 53:3 ], full of very many and mighty wounds beyond measure, from the sole of the foot to the head there is no wholeness in me — wound and bruise and open sore. What shall I say and what shall I speak and how shall I justify myself — who will have pity on me and who will stand up for me? My Father in Heaven — You know all my heart. See my affliction and release me [ Psalms 25:18 ]. You Who see the disgrace of the disgraced — see my disgrace. You Who show compassion to the poor — show compassion to our destitution. He Who delivers the poor from the one stronger than him [ Psalms 35:10 ] — deliver and save the poor and destitute like me. Take me out from between the teeth of the young lions. Deliver my soul from the sword, my only one from the hand of the dog [ Psalms 22:21 ]. For I confess and acknowledge before You with all my heart and soul — that I myself am guilty in all these matters from beginning to end. But what shall I do, my Father in Heaven? For in my own eyes I am as though I were caught in a net and imprisoned in iron chains and copper doors — and I have no hope whatsoever except upon Your mercies and Your lovingkindnesses and Your true graciousness: as You made known to Moshe Rabbainu that You show grace and mercy even to those who are not worthy and fitting to be shown mercy upon — as it is written: And He said: I shall cause all My goodness to pass before your face and I shall proclaim the Name of Hashem before you — and I shall be gracious to whom I shall be gracious and I shall have mercy upon whom I shall have mercy [ Exodus 33:19 ]. And our Sages of blessed memory expounded: even to him who is not worthy to be shown grace, even to him who is not worthy to be shown mercy. Bring my soul out from confinement — to give thanks to Your Name; through me shall the righteous be crowned, for You shall deal bountifully with me [ Psalms 142:8 ].

Master of the entire universe [ Mara d'alma kola ] — You know that there is no one who can bring into us the attainment of G‑dliness except the true tzadikim of the generation who are very, very great in stature. For according to the enormity of our descent and our distance from You, and according to the lowliness of our souls as we know ourselves to be — we are now in need of a true leader who will be of an exceptional and immense stature that is very, very great. For the greater the sickness of the patient, the greater the physician he requires. And Israel in Egypt, who were at the very lowest rung of the forty-nine gates of impurity — there was no one who could help them except Moshe Rabbainu, may peace be upon him. And now that we have fallen into a great exile in body and soul — even more and more than the exile of Egypt — surely there is no one who can help us except the tzadik who is of a very great stature and who possesses the aspect of Moshe Rabbainu. And not only do we not merit to draw near to such a true tzadik — but also in our many iniquities You have poured out Your fury upon us, and You have taken from us all the lights of our eyes, all our true tzadikim who are of an exceptional and immense stature. And what shall we do now at this time — especially a man like me: sick like me, crushed and tormented by the sufferings of the soul and the body like me, stricken and beaten and driven mad and confused — a man of pains and known to illness [ Isaiah 53:3 ], full of very many and mighty wounds beyond measure, from the sole of the foot to the head there is no wholeness in me — wound and bruise and open sore. What shall I say and what shall I speak and how shall I justify myself — who will have pity on me and who will stand up for me? My Father in Heaven — You know all my heart. See my affliction and release me [ Psalms 25:18 ]. You Who see the disgrace of the disgraced — see my disgrace. You Who show compassion to the poor — show compassion to our destitution. He Who delivers the poor from the one stronger than him [ Psalms 35:10 ] — deliver and save the poor and destitute like me. Take me out from between the teeth of the young lions. Deliver my soul from the sword, my only one from the hand of the dog [ Psalms 22:21 ]. For I confess and acknowledge before You with all my heart and soul — that I myself am guilty in all these matters from beginning to end. But what shall I do, my Father in Heaven? For in my own eyes I am as though I were caught in a net and imprisoned in iron chains and copper doors — and I have no hope whatsoever except upon Your mercies and Your lovingkindnesses and Your true graciousness: as You made known to Moshe Rabbainu that You show grace and mercy even to those who are not worthy and fitting to be shown mercy upon — as it is written: And He said: I shall cause all My goodness to pass before your face and I shall proclaim the Name of Hashem before you — and I shall be gracious to whom I shall be gracious and I shall have mercy upon whom I shall have mercy [ Exodus 33:19 ]. And our Sages of blessed memory expounded: even to him who is not worthy to be shown grace, even to him who is not worthy to be shown mercy. Bring my soul out from confinement — to give thanks to Your Name; through me shall the righteous be crowned, for You shall deal bountifully with me [ Psalms 142:8 ].

Help me and save me and forgive me for all my many iniquities — and set me right with good counsel from before You and save me speedily for the sake of Your Name; and grant me merit to draw near to You in truth from now and forever. And do what You shall do — in such a way that I merit to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness in truth and in complete faith in great holiness and purity and in true humility, as Your good will and the will of Your true tzadikim . And shelter me and guard me and deliver me from the craving for money — that no desire or craving for money whatsoever rise in my heart; and may I merit to be one who hates ill-gotten gain [ sonei vatza ] — to loathe money with the ultimate loathing. And may You save me from the burden of the pursuit of livelihood and from the toil and chasing after this world. And may I not confuse my mind and not disturb my thought with any matter of the affairs of this world whatsoever — rather may all my thoughts, my wisdom, my understanding, my knowledge, my heart, my soul, and my body always be embraced and attached to You and yearn toward You and long for Your exaltedness in truth and in complete faith. Until I merit to complete holy wisdom [ chakhmah sh'leimah dikdushah ] — to the lower wisdom and to the higher wisdom [ chakhmah tata'ah u'l'chakhmah ila'ah ]; until I merit to always attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness in truth and in complete faith. And may You grant me merit immediately to new and true attainments in the knowledge of Your exaltedness and in the longing for Your holy faith — and may You grace me from Yourself with knowledge, understanding, and discernment [ da'as, binah, v'haskeil ]; until I merit through Your mercies to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness into the hearts of many other people as well, in great holiness and purity as Your good will desires. And may I merit through Your mercies to reveal and publicize Your G‑dliness and Your exaltedness and Your lordship to all who come into the world; and may every creature know that You made it; and may every being understand that You fashioned it. And may Your Name, our King, be blessed and praised in the mouth of all; and may Your sovereignty be revealed and exalted and glorified and lifted high and raised up forever. And may all who have the breath of life in their nostrils say: Hashem , G‑d of Israel, is King — and His sovereignty rules over all.

And therefore may You be gracious to us through Your abundant mercies — and bring us out from this bitter exile: from the exile of the body and the soul and the sacred money [ galus hagguf v'hanesesh v'hamamon dikdushah ], all of which are sunk in a very, very great and bitter exile. And may You raise the Shechinah and the Community of Israel [ Kneses Yisroel ] from their exile from among the four kingdoms — for these many, many years the sovereignty of holiness [ malchus dikdushah ] that rules over all the totality of the four worlds has descended from its throne through our many iniquities, and surrendered dominion into the hands of the four kingdoms. And through this we were exiled from our land and distanced from our ground — physically and spiritually; and from exile to exile we went and from vessel to vessel we were poured out; until our strength was spent and our hand grown very weak. And through this the individual exile [ galus haprati ] gains strength over each and every member of Israel — which is the exile of the soul through the desires of this world and its vanities, all of which flows only from the nations among whom we dwell, as it is written: And they mingled among the nations and learned their deeds [ Psalms 106:35 ]. O G‑d, be not silent; be not deaf and be not still, O G‑d [ Psalms 83:2 ]. And hear the sound of Your own crying out and Your own screaming — for You Yourself, as it were, cry out and roar a great and bitter cry over the exile of the Shechinah and the Community of Israel, as it is written: Hashem shall roar from on high and from His holy dwelling shall He give out His voice — He shall roar mightily upon His habitation [ Jeremiah 25:30 ]. And hear the sound of the crying out and screaming of the Shechinah and the Community of Israel — who cry out with a bitter voice over the sorrows of our souls, over which the nations grow stronger against us every day; and not only do they rule over us in body and money — but they also seek, G‑d forbid, to overpower us with their external and erroneous and foolish wisdom. For in truth all their wisdom is complete folly and stupidity; and already many of our brethren, the children of Israel, have been caught in their evil net and trap; and they continue to hunt to take and to tear away, G‑d forbid, more souls of Israel — in the net of their erroneous wisdom of philosophy and heresy and denial [ apikorsus u'kfirot ] which has spread greatly through our iniquities. Have pity and compassion upon us — and remove the poison of Bilaam from their mouths. Overtake and deliver and save us and our brethren and our offspring and all the offspring of Your people the House of Israel — from the evil net and trap that is spread now over all the living, the like of which has not been since ancient times. Grant us merit to complete faith — to crown You over us and over our souls and over all our two hundred and forty-eight limbs [ רמ"ח אֵיבָרֵינוּ ] and three hundred and sixty-five sinews [ שׁסָ"ה גִידֵינוּ ] at every time. May the mercies of Your heart be stirred over You and over Your children — for who can endure the sound of the crying out and screaming of the Holy Blessed One and His Shechinah ? Who can stop his ears and his heart from the sound of their crying and their bitter pleading? And place in our hearts to cry out to You always until You have mercy upon us — we shall cry out and You shall say: Here I am [ cf. Isaiah 58:9 ]. Those who remind Hashem — be not silent; and give Him no silence until He establish and until He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth [ Isaiah 62:6–7 ].

Master of the Universe — Your sovereignty is a sovereignty over all worlds and Your dominion is in every generation and generation [ Psalms 145:13 ]. Have pity and compassion and mercy upon Your sovereignty that spreads through all four worlds — and redeem and bring out and raise the Shechinah of Your might and Your sovereignty from among the nations; and raise up the sovereignty of holiness [ malchus dikdushah ] and the Community of Israel from the exile of the four kingdoms; and may the wicked kingdom be speedily uprooted and shattered and overturned and destroyed and humbled and cast down — speedily in our days; and may You uproot and shatter and nullify all the alien ideas of the external wisdoms and philosophy and heresy from the world; and may You mix in their midst a spirit of confusion, and confuse their minds and seal their mouths; and may You uproot and shatter and nullify their evil thought and intention from the world.

And help us and save us — that we merit to attain the attribute of chesed [lovingkindness] in truth, in the ultimate completeness — like Avraham our Father, may peace be upon him, who grasped the attribute of chesed in completeness; and may we merit to do chesed and truth [ chesed ve'emes ] with all human beings. And may You grant us merit through Your abundant mercies — and send us true tzadikim who are true rebukers [ mochichei emes ], who shall always occupy themselves with rebuking us with open rebuke from hidden love [ Proverbs 27:5 ]. And may You place in our hearts that we incline our ears and our hearts to receive their good rebuke — even though it may sometimes come in the form of humiliation; even so, may we merit to receive the words of their rebuke with love and affection and great joy, and may we be among those who love reproofs. And may we merit to return in complete repentance [ teshuvah sh'leimah ] before You in truth; and may great chesed be revealed through their good rebuke — as it is written: She opens her mouth with wisdom and the teaching of chesed is upon her tongue [ Proverbs 31:26 ]. And may we merit through this to the attribute of chesed in completeness in holiness and purity — and may we always be included in the attribute of Avraham our Father, may peace be upon him, whose attribute was chesed . And through this chesed may we merit through Your mercies to cut away and separate and raise up the sovereignty of holiness from the four kingdoms of the Sitra Achra [the Other Side]; and may we merit to slay and humble and shatter and uproot and nullify the kelipah [husk] of the kingdom of wicked Amaleik, which is comprised of all four kingdoms — and may You help us to erase his name and his memory from the world, as it is written: You shall blot out the memory of Amaleik from under the heavens — you shall not forget [ Deuteronomy 25:19 ]. And may the verse be fulfilled: The enemy — his destructions are forever; and the cities You uprooted — their memory has perished along with them. And Hashem shall sit enthroned forever — He has set up His throne for judgment [ Psalms 9:7–8 ]. And may You uproot and shatter and nullify all the external wisdoms and all the heresy and denial from the world; and may holy faith be revealed throughout the whole world; and may all accept upon themselves the yoke of Your sovereignty and may You reign over them speedily forever. And may we merit to raise up the sovereignty of holiness to the light of the Countenance that shines on the three pilgrimage festivals: [For one in difficult labor, say here: and may You be filled with mercy etc. — see below.]

And may You have mercy upon us through Your abundant mercies and Your great lovingkindnesses — and save us that we merit to receive all three holy pilgrimage festivals [ shalosh regalim ] — which are Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukos — in great holiness and tremendous and mighty joy. And may we merit to honor all the festivals and holy days with every kind of honor and might and splendor — in food and drink and clean garments, and in rest from labor, and with a good heart and great joy, and with prayer with mighty concentration and wondrous awakening — as befits a person of Israel to pray and to conduct himself on a holy festival day. And may You grant us merit and help us to perform many mitzvos throughout the entire year in great holiness and great joy. And may we merit that the joy of all the mitzvos of the entire year be gathered into the holy heart — which is the three pilgrimage festivals; and through this may we merit to the joy of the festival in truth as Your good will desires, as it is written: And you shall rejoice in your festival [ Deuteronomy 16:14 ]. And may we merit to rejoice very, very greatly with tremendous and mighty exultation at all three festivals — we shall rejoice and be glad in You [ Song of Songs 1:4 ]; You Who have chosen us from all peoples and exalted us above all tongues — until we merit to go up to behold and to be beheld in the light of the face of Hashem . And may You help us to fulfill all the commandments that pertain to each festival — through which one raises up the Shechinah , which is the aspect of Daled [the letter ד — an allusion to Malchus , sovereignty], to the light of the Countenance: which are — on Pesach: the four cups [ arba kosos ]; on Shavuos: the receiving of the Torah which is the order of the Mishnah [ seder haMishnah ] — which is four times [the letter מ, mem ] in the hand of each one; on Sukos: the four species on the palm branch [ arba minim sheba'lulav ]. Please, Hashem — have mercy upon us and grant us merit to truly and completely fulfill all these awe-inspiring commandments at their proper time and season, with each festival in turn — together with all the other holy and awe-inspiring commandments of every festival. And may we merit to fulfill them in the ultimate completeness, in joy and tremendous and mighty exultation and in awe and love — in such a manner that we merit to raise up the sovereignty of holiness to the shining light of the Countenance that shines on the three festivals. And may You grant us merit to return in complete repentance before You from within the joy on all the holy days. And may You be gracious to me through Your abundant mercies to perform complete repentance even for the sins that are not known to me.

And may You have mercy upon us through Your abundant mercies and Your great lovingkindnesses — and save us that we merit to receive all three holy pilgrimage festivals [ shalosh regalim ] — which are Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukos — in great holiness and tremendous and mighty joy. And may we merit to honor all the festivals and holy days with every kind of honor and might and splendor — in food and drink and clean garments, and in rest from labor, and with a good heart and great joy, and with prayer with mighty concentration and wondrous awakening — as befits a person of Israel to pray and to conduct himself on a holy festival day. And may You grant us merit and help us to perform many mitzvos throughout the entire year in great holiness and great joy. And may we merit that the joy of all the mitzvos of the entire year be gathered into the holy heart — which is the three pilgrimage festivals; and through this may we merit to the joy of the festival in truth as Your good will desires, as it is written: And you shall rejoice in your festival [ Deuteronomy 16:14 ]. And may we merit to rejoice very, very greatly with tremendous and mighty exultation at all three festivals — we shall rejoice and be glad in You [ Song of Songs 1:4 ]; You Who have chosen us from all peoples and exalted us above all tongues — until we merit to go up to behold and to be beheld in the light of the face of Hashem . And may You help us to fulfill all the commandments that pertain to each festival — through which one raises up the Shechinah , which is the aspect of Daled [the letter ד — an allusion to Malchus , sovereignty], to the light of the Countenance: which are — on Pesach: the four cups [ arba kosos ]; on Shavuos: the receiving of the Torah which is the order of the Mishnah [ seder haMishnah ] — which is four times [the letter מ, mem ] in the hand of each one; on Sukos: the four species on the palm branch [ arba minim sheba'lulav ]. Please, Hashem — have mercy upon us and grant us merit to truly and completely fulfill all these awe-inspiring commandments at their proper time and season, with each festival in turn — together with all the other holy and awe-inspiring commandments of every festival. And may we merit to fulfill them in the ultimate completeness, in joy and tremendous and mighty exultation and in awe and love — in such a manner that we merit to raise up the sovereignty of holiness to the shining light of the Countenance that shines on the three festivals. And may You grant us merit to return in complete repentance before You from within the joy on all the holy days. And may You be gracious to me through Your abundant mercies to perform complete repentance even for the sins that are not known to me.

Master of the Universe — You know how very far I am from the holiness and joy of the holy festival day. Have pity and compassion upon me through Your abundant mercies — and grant me merit through Your immense lovingkindnesses to receive the holy days in great holiness and great joy; until I merit through the holiness and joy of the holy day to raise up the sovereignty of holiness from among the four kingdoms and raise it to the light of the face of Hashem . And may the verse be fulfilled: Righteousness shall walk before Him and shall set its steps on the way [ Psalms 85:14 ]. And it is further said: Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your Name; the upright shall dwell before Your face [ Psalms 140:14 ]. And may You grant me merit to draw upon myself the holiness and joy of the festival always throughout the entire year — and may I merit to holy joy always; until I merit to the attainment of Your G‑dliness and the knowledge of Your exaltedness and the longing for Your faith in truth and with a whole heart, with joy and gladness of heart, in great holiness and purity.

And have mercy upon me and save me and grant me merit to azus dikdushah [holy boldness], so that I merit through this to receive and to draw true Torah novellae [ chidushei Torah ] — for You revealed to us through Your holy sages that it is impossible to merit to the holy Torah except through azus dikdushah , as our Sages of blessed memory said: Be bold as a leopard [ Avos 5:20 ]. And You also made known to us the great extent of the blemish of the brazenness of the Sitra Achra [the Other Side] — for the brazen-faced ones are the seven hundred and seventy-four generations [ tav-kuf-ayin-dalet — תתקע"ד ] who have no portion in the Torah of Moshe. Therefore I have come to entreat Your face, Hashem my G‑d and G‑d of my fathers — that You grace me from Yourself with knowledge, understanding, and discernment [ da'as, binah, v'haskeil ], and that You teach me and instruct me always at every time — that I may know always how to conduct myself with the [faculty of] boldness; in such a manner that I always be saved through Your mercies from every kind of brazenness of the Sitra Achra . And may You save me from the brazen-faced [ azei panim ] and from brazenness of face [ azus panim ]; and may You guard me and save me through Your true mercies from all the Torah teachings and novellae of the Sitra Achra and the klipah [husk] — which are called idols [ pesilim ] — which flow from the brazenness of the klipah . And may You strengthen me and brace me in Your service and draw upon me power and holy might [ gevurah dikdushah ] to draw near to Your service and Your Torah and Your awe in truth. And may I always merit to originate true novellae in the holy Torah — novellae that are truly included and enter into the Torah of Moshe; novellae that shall be for You a delight and a will before the throne of Your glory.

And have mercy upon me and save me and grant me merit to azus dikdushah [holy boldness], so that I merit through this to receive and to draw true Torah novellae [ chidushei Torah ] — for You revealed to us through Your holy sages that it is impossible to merit to the holy Torah except through azus dikdushah , as our Sages of blessed memory said: Be bold as a leopard [ Avos 5:20 ]. And You also made known to us the great extent of the blemish of the brazenness of the Sitra Achra [the Other Side] — for the brazen-faced ones are the seven hundred and seventy-four generations [ tav-kuf-ayin-dalet — תתקע"ד ] who have no portion in the Torah of Moshe. Therefore I have come to entreat Your face, Hashem my G‑d and G‑d of my fathers — that You grace me from Yourself with knowledge, understanding, and discernment [ da'as, binah, v'haskeil ], and that You teach me and instruct me always at every time — that I may know always how to conduct myself with the [faculty of] boldness; in such a manner that I always be saved through Your mercies from every kind of brazenness of the Sitra Achra . And may You save me from the brazen-faced [ azei panim ] and from brazenness of face [ azus panim ]; and may You guard me and save me through Your true mercies from all the Torah teachings and novellae of the Sitra Achra and the klipah [husk] — which are called idols [ pesilim ] — which flow from the brazenness of the klipah . And may You strengthen me and brace me in Your service and draw upon me power and holy might [ gevurah dikdushah ] to draw near to Your service and Your Torah and Your awe in truth. And may I always merit to originate true novellae in the holy Torah — novellae that are truly included and enter into the Torah of Moshe; novellae that shall be for You a delight and a will before the throne of Your glory.

And may You pour upon me holy boldness before You — so that I merit to strengthen and brace myself greatly in prayer with all might and force. And may I strengthen and brace my heart to hope in You and to await Your mercies. And may I make my face bold before You to request and to pray and to entreat before You always — about all that I lack in the service of Hashem ; and may I never be ashamed or disgraced before You forever, to ask of You great and awesome things — that You perform wonders upon wonders with me.

And may You pour upon me holy boldness before You — so that I merit to strengthen and brace myself greatly in prayer with all might and force. And may I strengthen and brace my heart to hope in You and to await Your mercies. And may I make my face bold before You to request and to pray and to entreat before You always — about all that I lack in the service of Hashem ; and may I never be ashamed or disgraced before You forever, to ask of You great and awesome things — that You perform wonders upon wonders with me.

Master of the Universe — all is revealed before You; and You know the immense extent of the many confusions [ bilbulim ] and great and very, very mighty turbidity of the mind that comes over me especially in the hour when I stand to pray and to entreat before You — until I cannot even speak a single word in prayer as is fitting. And all the confusions and turbidity of mind that I have at any moment throughout the entire day — they all come upon me at the very hour of prayer and seek to nullify my prayer. And because of this my prayer is very confused with many kinds of dross and turbidity of mind and alien thoughts and false intentions and very, very many confusions beyond measure. And I do not know what to do — for from the very force of the confusion of mind that comes over me, I do not know any way how to stand against these many confusions; and I have no one to lean upon except my Father in Heaven. Have pity and mercy upon me and save me and rescue me — and save my prayer from every kind of turbidity of mind, and from every kind of alien thoughts and distractions and confusions in the world. And help me and grant me merit to tie my thought to the words of the prayer in a firm and strong bond — until I merit to pray with devotion of the heart [ kavanas halev ]; and may my prayer and my supplication and my request be pure and proper, clear and clean from all dross and refuse. Have pity and compassion upon me and act for Your sake and not for my sake — for I have no hope except upon prayer and supplication.

Master of the Universe — please see our suffering and plead our cause; and save the oppressed from the hand of those who oppress them by force; and do not allow the poor to be robbed since he is poor. And may You fulfill the verse: From the robbery of the poor, from the cry of the destitute — now shall I arise, says Hashem; I shall set him in the safety for which he pants [ Psalms 12:6 ]. Help me and save me and release me and rescue me from every kind of evil thought and evil distraction — and from every kind of confusion and turbidity of mind from now and forever. And grant me merit that my thought be pure and clean, holy and pure always — and especially in the hour of prayer, may I merit to purify and sanctify my thought even more; until no turbidity of mind whatsoever, and no alien thought whatsoever, and no thought that is not relevant to the prayer — even if it be a holy thought — shall it come or arise in my heart during prayer. Rather may I merit to stand throughout the entire prayer in awe and great reverence — and may I hear at that time no person and no thing in the world except You alone; and may I merit to pray with great concentration in the ultimate completeness. And may I merit to attach my prayer to all the true tzadikim of our generation and to all the true tzadikim who dwell in the dust; and may they receive my prayer and clarify and purify it — and save it from every enemy and ambusher and adversary on the way; and may they raise it up as a pleasant fragrance before the throne of Your glory, within the totality of the prayers of Your people the House of Israel — and may it rise up and be carried aloft to be a crown upon Your head.

Master of the Universe — please see our suffering and plead our cause; and save the oppressed from the hand of those who oppress them by force; and do not allow the poor to be robbed since he is poor. And may You fulfill the verse: From the robbery of the poor, from the cry of the destitute — now shall I arise, says Hashem; I shall set him in the safety for which he pants [ Psalms 12:6 ]. Help me and save me and release me and rescue me from every kind of evil thought and evil distraction — and from every kind of confusion and turbidity of mind from now and forever. And grant me merit that my thought be pure and clean, holy and pure always — and especially in the hour of prayer, may I merit to purify and sanctify my thought even more; until no turbidity of mind whatsoever, and no alien thought whatsoever, and no thought that is not relevant to the prayer — even if it be a holy thought — shall it come or arise in my heart during prayer. Rather may I merit to stand throughout the entire prayer in awe and great reverence — and may I hear at that time no person and no thing in the world except You alone; and may I merit to pray with great concentration in the ultimate completeness. And may I merit to attach my prayer to all the true tzadikim of our generation and to all the true tzadikim who dwell in the dust; and may they receive my prayer and clarify and purify it — and save it from every enemy and ambusher and adversary on the way; and may they raise it up as a pleasant fragrance before the throne of Your glory, within the totality of the prayers of Your people the House of Israel — and may it rise up and be carried aloft to be a crown upon Your head.

Have pity and be gracious to me — and have mercy upon me and save me and grant me merit to azus dikdushah , that I may always merit in the hour of prayer to overpower and to remove the shame — that I not be ashamed before You; and may I make my face bold to seek You with every kind of great request in the world that pertains to Your service in truth: that You draw me near to You with every kind of nearness; and that You perform with me wonders upon wonders — to raise me from the lowest rung upward to the holy heights; and may I merit to come and reach speedily all the supernal rungs of holiness; until I merit to attain Your G‑dliness in the ultimate height of the highest rung — at the rung of true prophets and great and awesome tzadikim ; at the rung of the b'nei aliyah [those who ascend]. And may I merit to hold fast to the ways of our fathers who trusted in You and were not ashamed to ask all great things of You — as it is written: In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them. To You they cried and they were saved; in You they trusted and were not put to shame [ Psalms 22:5–6 ]. For You know that according to the immensity of Your greatness and Your exaltedness, and according to the immensity of our lowliness and our smallness — it was impossible for us to begin to stand before You and to ask of You anything whatsoever, even the smallest thing in the world. For who am I that I should merit to pray before You, Hashem my G‑d and G‑d of my fathers — for You, Hashem, are very great and Your Name is exalted above all blessing and praise [ Nechemiah 9:5 ]? And how could we make our faces bold and stiffen our necks to ask of You such great things — and especially a man like me, blemished and despised and rejected of men? Yet through Your abundant mercies You taught us through Your true tzadikim and made known to us Your good ways — for You desire lovingkindness and multiply good. And You pour upon us holy boldness from Yourself — and You desire that we make our faces bold before You to ask of You great and awesome things; and that we implore and press You very greatly for many days and years; until we merit to prevail over You, as it were, to accomplish our requests through mercy from You — as it is written: I am Hashem your G‑d Who brought you up from the land of Egypt — open wide your mouth and I shall fill it [ Psalms 81:11 ]. Therefore Your servant found his heart to entreat before You about all these matters — that You pour upon me holy boldness from Yourself. And may the verse be fulfilled: Ascribe power to G‑d — over Israel His pride, and His power is in the heavens. Awesome is G‑d from Your sanctuary — the G‑d of Israel, He Who gives power and strength to the people; blessed is G‑d [ Psalms 68:35–36 ]. And may we always merit to ask of You great and awesome things — that You perform with me wonders upon wonders; and may You take me out and raise me up from now, quickly and speedily, from all the falls and descents into which I have descended until now. And may You draw me near with every kind of nearness — and may You have mercy upon me with every kind of compassion; and may You draw me near through Your abundant mercies to a great and true tzadik , to the true teacher of the generation, to the great holy teacher of lofty stature who has the power to bring attainments of G‑dliness even into the lowly and the humble like me. And may You save me from misleading myself, G‑d forbid, into exchanging and trading good for evil — and may You guard me from the deceivers and the hypocrites, from the false leaders. And may You guard me from falling into the error of those many people who say it suffices to draw close even to a simple decent man of lesser stature — for in truth those who are lowly like me need specifically a true leader of very exceptionally great stature. Have mercy upon us through Your mercies — and send us the righteous redeemer [ ha'go'ail tzedek ] speedily in our days. And may the verse be fulfilled: As in the days of your going out from the land of Egypt, I shall show you wonders [ Michah 7:15 ]. And may You grant me merit speedily to go up and to be seen and to bow down before You in Your chosen House on our three pilgrimage festivals.

Have pity and be gracious to me — and save me and deliver me with every kind of deliverance and salvation; and raise me speedily from darkness to light, from bondage to redemption, from sorrow to joy. And may You purify me speedily from every kind of impurity; and may You sanctify me with every kind of holiness. And may I merit to ascend and to be encompassed speedily in all the fifty gates of holiness [ chamishim sha'arei kedushah ] — in truth and complete faith and in true humility; until I merit to behold the pleasantness of Hashem and to visit in His sanctuary [ Psalms 27:4 ] — to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness in the ultimate height of the highest rung; and to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness into the heart of all Israel Your people, in great holiness and purity, in truth and complete faith and true humility as Your good will desires. Cause Your face to shine upon Your servant — save me through Your lovingkindness [ Psalms 31:17 ]. Cause Your face to shine upon Your servant and teach me Your statutes [ Psalms 119:135 ]. In righteousness shall I behold Your face — I shall be satisfied, when I awaken, with Your likeness [ Psalms 17:15 ]. And may we not turn back from You — revive us and we shall call upon Your Name [ Psalms 80:19 ]. Hashem, G‑d of hosts — restore us; cause Your face to shine and we shall be saved [ Psalms 80:20 ]. Amen and Amen.

Have pity and be gracious to me — and save me and deliver me with every kind of deliverance and salvation; and raise me speedily from darkness to light, from bondage to redemption, from sorrow to joy. And may You purify me speedily from every kind of impurity; and may You sanctify me with every kind of holiness. And may I merit to ascend and to be encompassed speedily in all the fifty gates of holiness [ chamishim sha'arei kedushah ] — in truth and complete faith and in true humility; until I merit to behold the pleasantness of Hashem and to visit in His sanctuary [ Psalms 27:4 ] — to attain the attainment of Your G‑dliness in the ultimate height of the highest rung; and to bring the attainment of Your G‑dliness into the heart of all Israel Your people, in great holiness and purity, in truth and complete faith and true humility as Your good will desires. Cause Your face to shine upon Your servant — save me through Your lovingkindness [ Psalms 31:17 ]. Cause Your face to shine upon Your servant and teach me Your statutes [ Psalms 119:135 ]. In righteousness shall I behold Your face — I shall be satisfied, when I awaken, with Your likeness [ Psalms 17:15 ]. And may we not turn back from You — revive us and we shall call upon Your Name [ Psalms 80:19 ]. Hashem, G‑d of hosts — restore us; cause Your face to shine and we shall be saved [ Psalms 80:20 ]. Amen and Amen.

And may You be filled with mercy upon all who sit upon the birthing-stool [ hamashber ] — and may You save them from all pain and harm (and especially for [ name ] daughter of [ name ], etc.). Master of the Universe — You Who are always full of abundant mercies: You know her pain and her sorrow; You know her heart and the hearts of her father and her mother and all who are pained by her suffering. See their affliction and their toil — and behold their sorrow; may Your mighty mercies, Your hidden mercies, be stirred over this poor woman who sits upon the birthing-stool with a broken and crushed heart. And open for her the gates of mercy and lovingkindness and compassion and graciousness — open for her the gate of birth. And in Your abundant mercies, cut the closed mem [מ — the closed letter, alluding to the forty days of gestation in which the infant is enveloped], which corresponds to the forty days of the formation of the infant in whom the child is clothed; and in Your great lovingkindness cut this closed mem — and make from it two daleds [two open letters ד]; and through this may You open with Your mercies and Your true lovingkindnesses the doors of her womb — this poor woman sitting upon the birthing-stool; and may You be her help that she give birth immediately with ease, without any difficulty in labor whatsoever. And may You say to the angel: withdraw your hand — You Who says to Your world "enough," say to her suffering: enough. Abundant in lovingkindness and multiplying good — have pity and compassion and mercy; according to Your great lovingkindness, act with her, open for her the gates of birth quickly and swiftly — with no further delay and impediment whatsoever; for she has already endured much bitterness of pain and sorrow, until the strength of the bearer has failed. O Doer of good lovingkindnesses — do with us lovingkindness for free; and delay her birth no further whatsoever. Help and save and deliver her through Your lovingkindness — that the birth-pangs and the doors of her womb be opened to her with great mercy, immediately at once; and may she give birth immediately easily, without any pain or sorrow whatsoever — only with mercy and compassion, with great lovingkindness. And bring the infant forth to the air of the world in peace — to a good life and to peace and to length of good days and years. Amen.