Guarding One’s Spiritual Awareness / Understanding God’s Hints / Sleep / Tzitzit and Tefilin / Torah Learning / Prayer / Business / Redeeming Holy Sparks / Avoiding False Imagination and Slander / Joyous Music / Prophecy / Midnight / Chanukah It is very important to constantly guard one’s awareness, or “memory,” of the spiritual realms, and not fall prey to spiritual forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart.” Therefore, as soon as a person gets up in the morning, he should contemplate that spiritual reality. Throughout the day, he should strive to understand the hints that God sends him in his thoughts, speech and deeds on how to serve Him. A person who understands these hints might wish to restrict himself to this-worldly matters, through which God guides him. But that would be improper, for two reasons. First, this would be a risky endeavor, in that the holiness within the world is surrounded by “husks.” Second, there are better ways of serving God — i.e., Torah and prayer. At any rate, most people lack the ability to understand God’s hints. However, an analogue to this process occurs for them automatically when they sleep, wear tzitzit and tefilin, learn Torah, pray and engage in business: When a person sleeps, his soul and thoughts cleave to the World to Come. The tzitzit and tefilin which a person wears correspond to spiritual greatness and expansiveness. The Torah which a person learns is a Tree of Life that contains all sustenance — enough for everyone to receive what he needs. Prayer deals with this-worldly life — i.e., with the holiness within the world. And through business, the sparks of holiness which are scattered throughout the world — holy letters that broke and fell into everything in the world — are rectified. For instance, a person receives an object with whose sparks he shares a common root. He receives vitality from the broken letters in that object. As a result, those letters are absorbed into his life force and made whole. When this person finishes making use of the letters and sparks related to his root, the object goes to someone else who will raise other sparks and letters within it, related to his soul. Sometimes an object returns to the first owner because his soul has developed over the course of time and he is now able to rectify letters that he had not been able to affect previously. In order to guard his awareness of spiritual reality, a person must protect himself from an evil eye, which corresponds to the “death of the heart” and the shattering of the Tablets. In particular, he must guard his own eyes from being deceived by false imagination, which is an animalistic trait — for animals too possess imagination. Such false imagination is generated when a person engages in slander and, as a result, falls to an animalistic state. Then his animalistic trait of false imagination grows stronger. Instead of loving God, he then experiences animalistic desires. Such false imagination seeks a container — a body — to enter. Therefore, it goes to people who create halakhic insights. Holy Torah insights create heaven and earth, bringing about abundance and blessing for the world. Should a Torah insight be created through the false imaginative faculty, however, vain heavens are created, bringing famine to the world. The energy of false imagination of the “husks” was created at twilight after the sixth day of creation and remained without a body. Thus it seeks a body in which to rest. It therefore goes to those who learn halakhah and who create realities with their words of Torah, in the hope that a body will be created for it to enter. A person can overcome this false imaginative faculty through joyous music, which can even inspire prophecy. A musical instrument gathers together air (i.e., wind), or “spirit.”9The Hebrew word ruach means both “wind” and “spirit.” Initially, it contains a mixture of good and evil: a depressed, evil spirit and a good, holy spirit of prophecy. A person who contains both these spirits cannot experience prophecy. The musician separates the good spirit of prophecy from the depressed spirit. He builds a tune of joy. When the prophet hears this tune, he receives a spirit of prophecy. Depression strengthens false imagination. A depressed spirit blurs the clarity of the good spirit of prophecy, of spiritual “memory,” clinging to supernal reality. Playing joyful music brings forth the good spirit, overcoming the spirit of false imagination — the evil spirit, the spirit of foolishness. Therefore, a harp hanging over King David’s bed would begin to play a holy tune at midnight. Midnight is an ideal time to strengthen oneself to arise and serve God. These ideas are also expressed in the underlying concepts of the festival of Chanukah. “I will recall my song even at night. I will speak in my heart as my spirit searches.” “At night I recall Your Name, HaShem, and keep Your Torah.” “I recall the works of God; I recall Your wonders from the beginning.” “I recall the days of old; I consider all Your deeds. I speak of the work of Your hands.” “When my spirit is faint, I recall HaShem. And when my spirit recalls, it bows down within me.”
I tell myself, “Remember! Don’t forget that there is a World to Come! Nothing in this world is permanent. Everything passes by like the blink of an eye, a passing shadow, scattered dust, a drifting cloud, a blowing wind, a fleeting dream.
“Be good to yourself and maintain this awareness. Every day, be aware of the World to Come. Do not forget it. In your thoughts, cling to the World to Come.
“I feel sorry for you, my friend. Wake up from the sleep of your temptations. Have pity on your soul. ‘Recall your Creator in the days of your youth.’”
Maintaining Awareness I come to You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, to cast my prayer before You. I raise my eyes to You and ask You to help me constantly maintain my awareness of the World to Come. Cause my thoughts to cling only to the World to Come — in general and in every detail.
Every day when I wake up, as soon as I open my eyes, may I immediately recall the eternal world and not this world, which is vain, empty and without substance — “a passing vanity; all is vanity.”
There is no advantage to anyone in all his efforts in the matters of this world. The only meaningful purpose and goodness is found in constantly trying to reach the World to Come.
Help me to attain this holy awareness; and help me to maintain this awareness in every detail, in all the hints that You send me at every moment, which teach me how to come close to You, so that at every moment I will understand where I stand in the world.
You have constricted Your light from the highest point of creation, the beginning of the world of Atzilut, to the farthest point, the center of this physical world of Asiyah.10See note, p. 175. In this process, You send hints to every person, wherever he is and at every moment, on how to come close to You — in accordance with the place, the moment and the person.
Guide me to know how to expand my mind — and, at the same time, restrict it, so that it will remain only in holiness. I should never seek those things that are too great for me and are concealed from me, but only study and increase my awareness of those things that are permitted to me, so that I will grow level by level, step by step, in accordance with my stage of growth, and understand at every moment all the hints that You constantly send me through the affairs of the world and through all my thoughts, words and deeds — hints whose sole purpose is to bring me to serve You.
Minimizing Worldly Involvement God, please teach me how to be content with a minimal amount of the things of this world. Lead me away from engaging in the matters of this world more than is absolutely necessary, and guide me to live in tranquility, holiness and purity for the sake of Your Name and in order to attain a proper state of awareness.
Even after You have helped me to expand my mind so that I understand all the hints of holiness, keep me from increasing my involvement in the things of this world, Heaven forbid. Instead, guide me to be satisfied with little — with the absolute minimum — in great holiness and purity, for the sake of Your Name alone, so that my principle activity will be to serve You — to spend my days in Torah, prayer and good deeds.
And in regard to that which You send me to take care of my basic needs, as a result of my minimal involvement in the world, guide me to set aside a portion for charity and thus fulfill the verse, “It is good for a person to be gracious and lend, to weigh his words with judgment.”
Guide me to give much charity to many worthy poor people. In that way, may I unite the Holy One, Blessed be He, with His Shekhinah in a complete unification, in the name of all the Jewish people.
Holy Sleep “HaShem my God, You are exceedingly great. You have clothed Yourself in glory and splendor. You wrap Yourself in light like a garment, You stretch out the heavens like a tapestry.”
I lack the ability to increase my awareness in these matters. Therefore, I stretch out my hands to You, my King and God, and pray that You will cause all these rectifications to take place for me by themselves, as a result of my daily activities and performance of good deeds.
Draw great holiness onto me when I go to sleep. May I sleep in holiness and purity, so that my sleep is sweet, until my soul rises and clings to the World to Come, until my thoughts cling to the World to Come always.
Serving God with Powerful Intent God, help me to keep the mitzvot of tzitzit, tefilin, reciting the Shma11“Shma Yisrael,” a declaration of faith in the oneness of God and a commitment to fulfilling His mitzvot, comprised of verses from Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21, and Numbers 15:37-41, is recited daily during morning and evening prayers, and before going to sleep. and prayer every day with total perfection; with a full heart, joy and utter devotion; with powerful holiness, purity and intent; with all their details, particulars and intentions, and the 613 mitzvot dependent on them.
Help me to learn Torah every day in great holiness and immense joy. Guide me in Your righteousness to earn a living with complete faith, until I elicit holiness and fulfill my soul through all the items that I buy and sell.
May I know how to buy and sell items when the time has come for something to leave my possession and go to someone else, or vice versa, in accordance with the sparks of holiness in that item and in accordance with the corresponding portions of my soul. In this way, these portions of my soul will be perfected through my business dealings, until I bring about a unification between the Holy One, Blessed be He, and His Shekhinah.
May all these rectifications and supernal unifications occur of themselves, so that I will attain a holy awareness and my thoughts will constantly cling to the World to Come, in general and in every detail.
Guard me against forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart,” so that I will never forget my purpose and never distract myself from my awareness of the World to Come.
Attaining a Good Eye; Avoiding an Evil Eye HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, look at my poverty, oppression and toil. Look at me with Your kind eye. Guard me in Your compassion and rescue me always from the evil eye. May no one look at me with an evil eye, and may I always look at others with a good eye.
Guide me to be one of the students of Abraham, who had three good traits: a good eye, a lowly spirit and a humble demeanor. And guard me against the students of the evil Balaam, who had three evil traits: an evil eye, a haughty spirit and an arrogant demeanor.
Father, King, Mighty One, Creator, Redeemer, Maker, Holy One of Jacob, Shepherd of Israel, King Who does good to all with a good eye — help me to cling to Your good traits and always possess a truly good eye.
Master of the Universe, You do good for everyone with a good eye. You alone know how strenuously the evil eye attempts to overwhelm me, how malignantly it attacks the holiness of the Jewish people, the holy nation. Every day it rises up against me with all sorts of schemes to remove me from serving You, Heaven forbid, and it constantly pursues me.
You know my heart. You know what I have suffered as a result of the evil eye of my enemies and persecutors, who torment people who want to serve You and learn Your Torah.
You know how weak my attempt has been to withstand the evil eye. Tell me, my Father in Heaven, where shall I flee? Where will I go to conceal myself from my enemies’ evil eye?
Look at me in my poverty. My suffering and the pangs of my heart are so many. “My God, bend Your ear and hear, open Your eye and see our desolation. We do not cast our plea before You for the sake of our righteousness, but we appeal to Your great compassion.”
But what can I do, my Father in Heaven? I have been very foolish. I transgressed and did evil and turned away from Your mitzvot. Even though You saved me many times, I rebelled against Your advice — and so, “You gave us over into the power of our sins.”
Still, I yearn at every moment to truly serve You. You desire repentance because You are gracious and compassionate, and close to everyone who honestly calls to You.
Please save the sheep of Your flock. Do not let the evil eye rule over me at all. “Gaze from Heaven and see” that I have become a laughingstock and an object of scorn. “Gaze from Heaven and see, from Your holy and beautiful dwelling place. Where are Your zealousness and Your might? The multitude of Your feelings and compassion for me have been withheld.”
You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are good to all, You Who are good and do good to both the wicked and the good, You are truly good always. Your compassion has not ceased; Your love has not come to an end. Have compassion on me and rescue me from the evil inclination on every level, so that no evil eye will dominate me in any way.
Gaze upon me with Your good eye, Your single eye of compassion. Draw down the energies of a good eye in an abundant stream. Guard me from looking at the successes of my friends and the successes of anyone with an evil eye.
Rescue me from blemished vision. Keep me from ever looking at things that might lead me to have improper fantasies, Heaven forbid, at anything that may damage my eyes. “Keep my eyes from looking at vanity; revive me on Your path.” Rescue me from a lustful eye. “Guard my spirit and rescue me. May I not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”
And for all the times that I transgressed and caused damage with my eyes, accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly, and done wrong in Your eyes, from my youth until this day — grant me atonement, God of forgiveness, You Who are gracious and Who generously pardons.
Protect me from being harmed by any evil eye in the world, whether in the material or spiritual realm, in body, soul or money. Guard me in everything that I do, so that I will have a good life and peace, from now and forever. I turn only to You, for I have no one else upon whom to rely but You alone, my Father in Heaven.
“They have encompassed our every step; they have set their eyes to cast us down to the earth. My opponent polishes his eyes against me.” “I lift my eyes to the mountains. “From where will my help come? My help is from HaShem, the Maker of heaven and earth.” “Before You, God, HaShem, my eyes weep. I take refuge in You.” “Do not cause my soul to be poured out.” “My eyes are always turned to HaShem, because He frees my feet from the net.”
“I have lifted my eyes to You, You Who sit in Heaven. Behold, like the eyes of slaves to the hand of their master, like the eyes of the maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to HaShem our God, until He will be gracious to us. Be gracious to us, HaShem. Be gracious to us, because we have suffered much contempt.”
Nowhere To Flee But God Master of the Universe, look at how I am oppressed and fight on my behalf. You know my heart. You know that my needs are many and my mind is too small to express them.
Help me. I rely on You. Answer me, HaShem, because I am in great adversity. Do not hide Your countenance from me. Be close to me when I cry out to You, because You know all my hardships. Look at my oppression, my toil and my misery. “Recall, HaShem, what we have undergone. Look and see our disgrace.”
Have mercy on me. “Guard me from the snare that they laid for me and from the traps of those who do evil.” Guard me like the pupil of the eye. In the shadow of Your wings, hide me against evildoers who have devastated me, enemies who hope to grasp my soul and surround me. And I am poor and suffering!”
I have nowhere to flee except to You. “To You, HaShem, I call, and with HaShem I plead. What value is there in my blood if I descend to destruction? Will the dust thank You? Will it tell Your truth? My eye is poured out without ceasing, it does not rest, until HaShem will gaze and look down from Heaven.”
Guard me from the evil eye that leads to forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart,” the breaking of the heart. As the verse states, “I have been forgotten like a dead person from the heart; I have become like a lost vessel.”
Empower my heart so that I will experience Your awesomeness and serve You. Guide me so that my heart and mind will constantly and clearly recall my ultimate purpose. Help me to bring my thoughts and my heart to constantly cling to the world of truth. You know the great sorrow and shame that a person will experience in the World to Come if he has not adorned himself in this world. Once that opportunity is lost, it can never be regained. In the World to Come, engaging in good deeds and self-reflection will be of no account, because if a person has not prepared on the eve of the Shabbat, what will he eat on the Shabbat? “That which is crooked cannot be made straight, and that which is missing cannot be numbered.” There, praying for Your compassion will not help. So help me now to always be aware of the World to Come.
May I not turn for an instant from an awareness of the World to Come. Guide me to return to You with perfect repentance, and to rectify in my lifetime everything that I damaged, whether by accident or on purpose, against my will or willingly.
May the merit and strength of the true Tzaddikim — who have the power to save us from every sort of evil eye — protect me. They fight on our behalf. They subjugate and eliminate every sort of evil eye at its supernal root. They weaken and eradicate the evil eye associated with taking power by linking it to its root of sovereignty, which is the kingdom of the Mashiach, son of David, who has “beautiful eyes and sees the good.”
Give Me a Good Spirit HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, protect me from slandering any Jew, whether great or small, to the slightest degree, and from saying anything negative about any Jew, so that I will not harm my state of consciousness at all.
Help me to attain the ten types of holy melody until I purify the power of imagination, subjugating and eliminating the evil within it and raising up the good within it to holiness, as I subjugate and eliminate the evil spirit of foolishness and melancholy.
May I quickly attain the good spirit of holiness, “for You are my God. Your good spirit guides me in a straight land. Create within me a pure heart, God, and renew within me a proper spirit. Do not cast me aside from You; do not take Your holy spirit away from me. Bring back to me the joy of Your salvation and support me with a generous spirit, Mighty One, God of the spirits.” Master of all beings, whether supernal or lowly, give me a good spirit.
“HaShem, God of spirits, take heed of all flesh.” Pour forth upon me a good spirit of holiness, “a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and might, a spirit of awareness and the fear of HaShem,” a spirit of purity and joy.
Keep me from associating with sages whose deeds are unworthy. Keep me from listening to words of Torah from sages who have not yet clarified the power of their imagination, so that their insights are affected by the power of their imagination as it mixes together good and evil — with more evil than good. Those insights lead to a loss of holy prosperity and abundance, Heaven forbid, and cause great damage.
Bring me close to true Tzaddikim, whose Torah thoughts are all drawn from holiness — from the good spirit, the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of holiness — without any admixture.
Be gracious to me and give me awareness, understanding and mindfulness. Sanctify me with Your supernal holiness and help me to create original, true Torah thoughts that come from holiness. May they all be true without a trace of evil, Heaven forbid, and without any waste matter at all.
Be gracious to me and redeem me, so that I will quickly purify and sanctify myself in truth and break the power of the imagination, eliminating it and expelling it.
Protect me from the sin of slander, even the slightest trace, and from every sort of blemished speech and any blemish of the covenant, so that I will attain real holiness and purity — until I come to true, original and holy Torah thoughts, in accordance with Your desire.
Help me to be joyful always. May I rejoice in Your salvation. May I sing all the days of my life regarding the House of HaShem. May I lift the voice of song for Your Name and serve You in accordance with Your desire.
May I arouse and reveal the ten types of melody. May I hear the voice of melody that expresses the joy of mitzvot, as played by worthy and good musicians who produce holy melodies that come from the harp of David, who had a beautiful voice and played music well. As they play on their instruments, may the good spirit — the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of holiness, the spirit of joy — be separated from the depression of the spirit, from a melancholy and evil spirit, until I will attain a truly good spirit and always be joyful, and return to You completely with a truly broken heart that comes from joy and the melody of holiness.
Then I myself will pour forth my heart like water before Your countenance as I pray and speak to You with all my heart and spirit, and with great weeping that comes from joy.
Help me to arise every night, literally at midnight, without exception, rising up like a lion to learn Torah and serve You in truth. “Awaken my soul, awaken the lyre and harp; I will awaken the dawn.”
Speaking to God at Length [Merciful and Gracious King, guide me to speak to You at length every day, telling You everything in my heart, honestly and with a broken heart — particularly after midnight, which is the best time for this practice. Inspire me to tell You everything in my heart, to seek out and bring forth the good spirit — the good points within me — as I separate them from the evil spirit.
In this way, help me to maintain my awareness of holiness, so that I will always be clearly aware of my ultimate purpose, which is to merit the World to Come, and I will constantly consider my end. Inspire me to cling in my thoughts to the World to Come, until I will at last return to You in complete repentance.]
For All Generations God, please give me healthy sons who will learn Your Torah, keep Your mitzvot and do Your will throughout their lives — they, their children and their children’s children, for all generations. And may my memory remain throughout all their generations.
For Chanukah [Master of the World, inspire me to perform the mitzvah of lighting the Chanukah lamp perfectly and in its proper time. Please consider my lighting the menorah as though I have done so with all its details and particulars, and as though I had in mind all the holy intentions included in the mitzvah, until in this way the illuminations of holy consciousness will be drawn down onto me from their supernal, holy root.
Like the holy anointing oil, may it light a flame that will enhance my awareness and understanding, and deepen my thought to comprehend all the holy hints that You send me at every moment in my every thought, word and deed. You send these holy hints in accordance with each person, place and time, in order to teach us how to come close to You and cause our thoughts to cling to the World to Come in detail, until we lift up the feet of holiness that are hidden in all the things of this world.]
Recalling the World to Come My Father in Heaven, deliver me from the power of the imagination, from the “death of the heart,” from forgetfulness and from the evil eye, on every level.
Help me to attain an awareness of holiness, so that I will always bring my thoughts to cling to the World to Come wherever I am — in general and in detail.
Let me not lose my world, Heaven forbid, for no good reason. Guide me to keep in mind that this world consist of “days of darkness which are many, all of them vanity.”
Guide me to recall my Creator in the days of my youth, “before the sun, the light, the moon and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain.”
Guide me to recall all the words of this teaching. May I not forget anything of what I have learned. May I not forget the things that my eyes have seen and the teachings of Your true sages that my ears have heard.
HaShem our God, recall Your covenant with our fathers. May the verses be realized, “I will recall My covenant with Jacob and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham will I recall, and the earth will I recall.”
“I will recall for them the covenant of the first ones whom I brought out of the land of Egypt, in the sight of the nations, to be their God; I am HaShem.”
“Is Ephraim not a precious son to me, a child of delights? Whenever I speak of him, I recall him yet more; therefore, I yearn for him. I will surely have compassion on him, says HaShem.”
Master of the World, take heed of me for the good. Bring me salvation and compassion from the highest heavens. Recall for me, HaShem our God, the love of the early Tzaddikim. In their merit, protect and save those who come after them.
Keep us in mind, HaShem, with Your favor for Your people. Send us Your salvation. May we see the goodness of Your chosen ones, rejoice in the joy of Your nation, and take pride in Your inheritance. “Why should You forget us forever, abandon us for length of days? Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”
[עַל־פִּי תּוֹרָה נ"ד - וַיְהִי מִקֵּץ - זִּכָּרוֹן]
אֶזְכְּרָה נְגִינָתִי בַּלָּיְלָה עִם לְבָבִי אָשִׂיחָה וַיְחַפֵּשׂ רוּחִי. זָכַרְתִּי בַלַּיְלָה שִׁמְךָ יְהֹוָה וָאֶשְׁמְרָה תּוֹרָתֶךָ. אֶזְכּוֹר מַעַלְלֵי יָהּ כִּי אֶזְכְּרָה מִקֶּדֶם פִּלְאֶךָ. זָכַרְתִּי יָמִים מִקֶּדֶם הָגִיתִי בְכָל פָּעֳלֶךָ בְּמַעֲשֵׂה יָדֶיךָ אֲשׂוֹחֵחַ, בְּהִתְעַטֵּף עָלַי נַפְשִׁי אֶת יְהֹוָה זָכָרְתִּי. זָכוֹר תִּזְכּוֹר וְתָשׁוּחַ עָלַי נַפְשִׁי,
Guarding One’s Spiritual Awareness / Understanding God’s Hints / Sleep / Tzitzit and Tefilin / Torah Learning / Prayer / Business / Redeeming Holy Sparks / Avoiding False Imagination and Slander / Joyous Music / Prophecy / Midnight / Chanukah
It is very important to constantly guard one’s awareness, or “memory,” of the spiritual realms, and not fall prey to spiritual forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart.” Therefore, as soon as a person gets up in the morning, he should contemplate that spiritual reality. Throughout the day, he should strive to understand the hints that God sends him in his thoughts, speech and deeds on how to serve Him.
A person who understands these hints might wish to restrict himself to this-worldly matters, through which God guides him. But that would be improper, for two reasons. First, this would be a risky endeavor, in that the holiness within the world is surrounded by “husks.” Second, there are better ways of serving God — i.e., Torah and prayer.
At any rate, most people lack the ability to understand God’s hints. However, an analogue to this process occurs for them automatically when they sleep, wear tzitzit and tefilin, learn Torah, pray and engage in business: When a person sleeps, his soul and thoughts cleave to the World to Come. The tzitzit and tefilin which a person wears correspond to spiritual greatness and expansiveness. The Torah which a person learns is a Tree of Life that contains all sustenance — enough for everyone to receive what he needs. Prayer deals with this-worldly life — i.e., with the holiness within the world. And through business, the sparks of holiness which are scattered throughout the world — holy letters that broke and fell into everything in the world — are rectified.
For instance, a person receives an object with whose sparks he shares a common root. He receives vitality from the broken letters in that object. As a result, those letters are absorbed into his life force and made whole. When this person finishes making use of the letters and sparks related to his root, the object goes to someone else who will raise other sparks and letters within it, related to his soul. Sometimes an object returns to the first owner because his soul has developed over the course of time and he is now able to rectify letters that he had not been able to affect previously.
In order to guard his awareness of spiritual reality, a person must protect himself from an evil eye, which corresponds to the “death of the heart” and the shattering of the Tablets. In particular, he must guard his own eyes from being deceived by false imagination, which is an animalistic trait — for animals too possess imagination. Such false imagination is generated when a person engages in slander and, as a result, falls to an animalistic state. Then his animalistic trait of false imagination grows stronger. Instead of loving God, he then experiences animalistic desires.
Such false imagination seeks a container — a body — to enter. Therefore, it goes to people who create halakhic insights. Holy Torah insights create heaven and earth, bringing about abundance and blessing for the world. Should a Torah insight be created through the false imaginative faculty, however, vain heavens are created, bringing famine to the world.
The energy of false imagination of the “husks” was created at twilight after the sixth day of creation and remained without a body. Thus it seeks a body in which to rest. It therefore goes to those who learn halakhah and who create realities with their words of Torah, in the hope that a body will be created for it to enter.
A person can overcome this false imaginative faculty through joyous music, which can even inspire prophecy. A musical instrument gathers together air (i.e., wind), or “spirit.”9The Hebrew word ruach means both “wind” and “spirit.” Initially, it contains a mixture of good and evil: a depressed, evil spirit and a good, holy spirit of prophecy. A person who contains both these spirits cannot experience prophecy.
The musician separates the good spirit of prophecy from the depressed spirit. He builds a tune of joy. When the prophet hears this tune, he receives a spirit of prophecy.
Depression strengthens false imagination. A depressed spirit blurs the clarity of the good spirit of prophecy, of spiritual “memory,” clinging to supernal reality. Playing joyful music brings forth the good spirit, overcoming the spirit of false imagination — the evil spirit, the spirit of foolishness.
Therefore, a harp hanging over King David’s bed would begin to play a holy tune at midnight. Midnight is an ideal time to strengthen oneself to arise and serve God. These ideas are also expressed in the underlying concepts of the festival of Chanukah.
“I will recall my song even at night. I will speak in my heart as my spirit searches.” “At night I recall Your Name, HaShem, and keep Your Torah.” “I recall the works of God; I recall Your wonders from the beginning.” “I recall the days of old; I consider all Your deeds. I speak of the work of Your hands.” “When my spirit is faint, I recall HaShem. And when my spirit recalls, it bows down within me.”
וָאַעַן וָאוֹמַר לְנַפְשִׁי, זְכוֹר אַל תִּשְׁכַּח שֶׁיֵּשׁ עַלְמָא דְאָתֵי, וְאֵין שׁוּם קְבִיעוּת בְּזֶה הָעוֹלָם, כִּי הָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה עוֹבֵר כְּהֶרֶף עַיִן כְּצֵל עוֹבֵר וּכְאָבָק פּוֹרֵחַ וּכְעָנָן כָּלֶה וּכְרוּחַ נוֹשָׁבֶת וְכַחֲלוֹם יָעוּף,
I tell myself, “Remember! Don’t forget that there is a World to Come! Nothing in this world is permanent. Everything passes by like the blink of an eye, a passing shadow, scattered dust, a drifting cloud, a blowing wind, a fleeting dream.
וְעִקָּר הַחַיִּים וְעִקָּר הַקְּבִיעוּת דִּירָה שֶׁל הָאָדָם הוּא רַק בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי.
“The essence of life and permanence, the essence of a person’s dwelling place, exists only in the World to Come.
חוּסָה עָלֶיךָ וּשְׁמֹר אֶת הַזִּכָּרוֹן הֵיטֵב, שֶׁתִּזְכֹּר תָּמִיד בְּכָל יוֹם בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי וְלֹא תִּשְׁכַּח, וְהַדְבֵּק מַחֲשַׁבְתְּךָ בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי וְאַל יָזוּז זִכָּרוֹן עַלְמָא דְאָתֵי מֵרַעְיוֹנֶךָ.
“Be good to yourself and maintain this awareness. Every day, be aware of the World to Come. Do not forget it. In your thoughts, cling to the World to Come.
הִסְתַּכֵּל עַל עַצְמְךָ הֵיטֵב הֵיטֵב וְיַשֵּׁב דַּעְתְּךָ בֶּאֱמֶת לַאֲמִתּוֹ, וּזְכוֹר וְתֵן לְלִבְּךָ מַה תַּעֲשֶׂה בְּאַחֲרִיתֶךָ, בְּעֵת יָבוֹא קִצֶּךָ כְּהֶרֶף עַיִן.
“Look at yourself and calm your mind. Consider what you will do when your end comes, as swiftly as the blink of an eye.
צַר לִי עָלֶיךָ אָחִי, הָקִיצָה אָחִי מִשְּׁנַת פְּתַיּוּתֶךָ, וַחֲמֹל עַל נַפְשְׁךָ וּזְכֹר אֶת בּוֹרְאֶיךָ בִּימֵי בְּחוּרוֹתֶיךָ:
“I feel sorry for you, my friend. Wake up from the sleep of your temptations. Have pity on your soul. ‘Recall your Creator in the days of your youth.’”
וּבְכֵן בָּאתִי לְפָנֶיךָ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהַי וֵאלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתַי, לְהַפִּיל תְּחִנָּתִי לִפְנֵי רַחֲמֶיךָ הָאֲמִתִּיִּים, וְלִשָּׂא עֵינַי לַחֲסָדֶיךָ הָעֲצוּמִים, שֶׁתְּזַכֵּנִי לִשְׁמֹר אֶת הַזִּכָּרוֹן הַזֶּה הֵיטֵב, שֶׁאֶזְכֹּר תָּמִיד בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי, וּלְאַדְבָּקָא מַחֲשַׁבְתִּי רַק בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי בִּכְלָל וּבִפְרָט,
Maintaining Awareness
I come to You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, to cast my prayer before You. I raise my eyes to You and ask You to help me constantly maintain my awareness of the World to Come. Cause my thoughts to cling only to the World to Come — in general and in every detail.
וּבְכָל יוֹם וָיוֹם בְּהָקִיצִי מִשְּׁנָתִי, תֵּכֶף וּמִיָּד כְּשֶׁאֶפְתַּח אֶת עֵינַי, אֶזְכֶּה לִזְכֹּר מִיָּד בָּעוֹלָם הַבָּא שֶׁהוּא עוֹלָם הָעוֹמֵד וְהַקַּיָּם לָעַד וּלְנֵצַח נְצָחִים, וְהָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה הוּא הֶבֶל וָרִיק, הֲבֵל הֲבָלִים אֵין בּוֹ מַמָּשׁ, הֶבֶל נִדָּף, הֲבֵל הֲבָלִים הַכֹּל הָבֶל.
Every day when I wake up, as soon as I open my eyes, may I immediately recall the eternal world and not this world, which is vain, empty and without substance — “a passing vanity; all is vanity.”
וְאֵין שׁוּם יִתְרוֹן לָאָדָם בְּכָל עֲמָלוֹ שֶׁיַּעֲמֹל בְּעִסְקֵי הָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, וְאֵין שׁוּם תַּכְלִית וָטוֹב בָּעוֹלָם כִּי אִם לִרְדֹּף תָּמִיד לְהַשִּׂיג הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא.
There is no advantage to anyone in all his efforts in the matters of this world. The only meaningful purpose and goodness is found in constantly trying to reach the World to Come.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי שֶׁאֶזְכֹּר זֹאת הֵיטֵב בְּכֹחַ הַזִּכָּרוֹן דִּקְדֻשָּׁה, וְאַחַר־כָּךְ אֶזְכֶּה לְקַיֵּם זֹאת בִּפְרָטִיּוּת, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְהָבִין בְּכָל עֵת וּבְכָל שָׁעָה וּבְכָל מָקוֹם שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, אֵת כָּל הָרְמָזִים שֶׁאַתָּה מְרַמֵּז לִי בְּכָל עֵת לְהִתְקָרֵב לַעֲבוֹדָתְךָ בֶּאֱמֶת.
Help me to attain this holy awareness; and help me to maintain this awareness in every detail, in all the hints that You send me at every moment, which teach me how to come close to You, so that at every moment I will understand where I stand in the world.
כִּי בְּחַסְדְּךָ הַגָּדוֹל אַתָּה מְצַמְצֵם אֱלָהוּתְךָ מֵרֵאשִׁית נְקֻדַּת הַבְּרִיאָה שֶׁהוּא תְחִלַּת הָאֲצִילוּת עַד סוֹף נְקֻדַּת הַמֶּרְכָּז שֶׁל עוֹלָם הָעֲשִׂיָּה הַגַּשְׁמִי הַזֶּה, מֵאֵין סוֹף עַד אֵין תַּכְלִית. וְאַתָּה מְצַמְצֵם וּמְרַמֵּז רְמָזִים לְכָל אָדָם בְּכָל מָקוֹם וּבְכָל עֵת לְקָרְבוֹ לַעֲבוֹדָתֶךָ, לְפִי הַמָּקוֹם וּלְפִי הַשָּׁעָה וּלְפִי הָאָדָם.
You have constricted Your light from the highest point of creation, the beginning of the world of Atzilut, to the farthest point, the center of this physical world of Asiyah.10See note, p. 175. In this process, You send hints to every person, wherever he is and at every moment, on how to come close to You — in accordance with the place, the moment and the person.
עָזְרֵנִי וְזַכֵּנִי וְתִפְתַּח אֶת דַּעְתִּי, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְהָבִין הֵיטֵב בֶּאֱמֶת אֶת הָרְמָזִים הָאֵלֶּה, לְמַעַן אֶזְכֶּה לָשׁוּב אֵלֶיךָ בֶּאֱמֶת לִהְיוֹת כִּרְצוֹנְךָ תָמִיד מֵעַתָּה וְעַד עוֹלָם.
Please open my mind so that I will understand these hints and return to You and always please You, from this moment on.
וְתוֹרֵנִי וּתְלַמְּדֵנִי בְּחַסְדְּךָ הַגָּדוֹל וּבִגְבוּרָתְךָ הַנּוֹרָאָה, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לֵידַע וּלְהָבִין בֶּאֱמֶת אֵיךְ לְהַגְדִּיל אֶת דַּעְתִּי בְּעִנְיָן הָרְמָזִים הָאֵלֶּה, וְאֵיךְ לְצַמְצֵם אֶת דַּעְתִּי בִּקְדֻשָּׁה שֶׁלֹּא יֵצֵא חוּץ מֵהַמִּדָּה, שֶׁלֹּא אֶדְרֹשׁ בַּמֻּפְלָא מִמֶּנִּי וְלֹא אֶחְקֹר בַּמְכֻסֶּה מִמֶּנִּי, רַק בַּמֶּה שֶׁהוּרְשֵׁתִי אֶזְכֶּה לְהִתְבּוֹנֵן וּלְהַגְדִּיל אֶת דַּעְתִּי בְּהַדְרָגָה וּבְמִדָּה כְּפִי מַדְרֵגָתִי, לְהָבִין תָּמִיד בְּכָל עֵת וּבְכָל שָׁעָה אֵת כָּל הָרְמָזִים שֶׁאַתָּה מְרַמֵּז לִי תָמִיד בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ, עַל־יְדֵי כָּל הַדְּבָרִים שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, וְעַל־יְדֵי כָּל הַמַּחֲשָׁבוֹת וְהַדִּבּוּרִים וְהָעֲשִׂיּוֹת שֶׁאַתָּה מַזְמִין לִי בְּכָל עֵת, אֲשֶׁר בְּכֻלָּם אֵין כַּוָּנָתְךָ שׁוּם דָּבָר כִּי אִם לְרַמֵּז לִי עַל־יָדָם לְהִתְקָרֵב לַעֲבוֹדָתְךָ בֶּאֱמֶת:
Guide me to know how to expand my mind — and, at the same time, restrict it, so that it will remain only in holiness. I should never seek those things that are too great for me and are concealed from me, but only study and increase my awareness of those things that are permitted to me, so that I will grow level by level, step by step, in accordance with my stage of growth, and understand at every moment all the hints that You constantly send me through the affairs of the world and through all my thoughts, words and deeds — hints whose sole purpose is to bring me to serve You.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים לְמִדַּת הַהִסְתַּפְּקוּת, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לִהְיוֹת מִסְתַּפֵּק בַּמּוּעָט מֵהָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, וְלֹא אֶשְׁתַּמֵּשׁ בְּעִסְקֵי הָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה כִּי אִם מַה שֶּׁמֻּכְרָח לְבַד בְּתַכְלִית הַצִּמְצוּם וְהַהִסְתַּפְּקוּת, בִּקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה גְּדוֹלָה לְשִׁמְךָ וּלְזִכְרְךָ לְבַד.
Minimizing Worldly Involvement
God, please teach me how to be content with a minimal amount of the things of this world. Lead me away from engaging in the matters of this world more than is absolutely necessary, and guide me to live in tranquility, holiness and purity for the sake of Your Name and in order to attain a proper state of awareness.
וַאֲפִלּוּ כְּשֶׁתְּזַכֵּנִי לְהַגְדָּלַת הַדַּעַת בֶּאֱמֶת שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְהָבִין מִכָּל הַדְּבָרִים אֶת הָרְמָזִים דִּקְדֻשָּׁה שֶׁיֵּשׁ בָּהֶם, אַף־עַל־פִּי־כֵן לֹא אֶהְיֶה נוֹטֶה כְּלָל לְהַרְבּוֹת חַס וְשָׁלוֹם בְּעִסְקֵי הָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, רַק לְהִסְתַּפֵּק בְּמוּעָט מְאֹד בְּצִמְצוּם גָּדוֹל בְּהֶכְרֵחִיוּת לְבַד, וּבִקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה גְּדוֹלָה לְשִׁמְךָ לְבַד בֶּאֱמֶת, וְעִקָּר עִסְקִי יִהְיֶה רַק בַּעֲבוֹדַת יְהֹוָה לַעֲסֹק כָּל יָמַי בַּתּוֹרָה וּתְפִלָּה וּמַעֲשִׂים טוֹבִים.
Even after You have helped me to expand my mind so that I understand all the hints of holiness, keep me from increasing my involvement in the things of this world, Heaven forbid. Instead, guide me to be satisfied with little — with the absolute minimum — in great holiness and purity, for the sake of Your Name alone, so that my principle activity will be to serve You — to spend my days in Torah, prayer and good deeds.
וְתַעַזְרֵנִי שֶׁאֲפִלּוּ מִזֶּה הַהִסְתַּפְּקוּת וְהַהֶכְרֵחִיּוּת שֶׁתַּשְׁפִּיעַ לִי אֶזְכֶּה לְהַפְרִישׁ מִמֶּנּוּ לִצְדָקָה, וְאֶזְכֶּה לְקַיֵּם מִקְרָא שֶׁכָּתוּב, טוֹב אִישׁ חוֹנֵן וּמַלְוֶה יְכַלְכֵּל דְּבָרָיו בְּמִּשְׁפָּט.
And in regard to that which You send me to take care of my basic needs, as a result of my minimal involvement in the world, guide me to set aside a portion for charity and thus fulfill the verse, “It is good for a person to be gracious and lend, to weigh his words with judgment.”
וְאֶזְכֶּה לְהַרְבּוֹת בִּצְדָקָה לַעֲנִיִּים הֲגוּנִים הַרְבֵּה, וְעַל־יְדֵי הַצְּדָקָה שֶׁלִּי אֶזְכֶּה לְיַחֵד קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא וּשְׁכִינְתֵּיהּ בְּיִחוּדָא שְׁלִים בְּשֵׁם כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל:
Guide me to give much charity to many worthy poor people. In that way, may I unite the Holy One, Blessed be He, with His Shekhinah in a complete unification, in the name of all the Jewish people.
רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהַי גָּדַלְתָּ מְאֹד הוֹד וְהָדָר לָבָשְׁתָּ. עֹטֶה אוֹר כַּשַּׂלְמָה נוֹטֶה שָׁמַיִם כַּיְרִיעָה.
Holy Sleep
“HaShem my God, You are exceedingly great. You have clothed Yourself in glory and splendor. You wrap Yourself in light like a garment, You stretch out the heavens like a tapestry.”
אַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ כִּי בַעַר אָנֹכִי מֵאִישׁ וְלֹא בִינַת אָדָם לִי.
You know “that I am more like a beast than a man, that I lack the comprehension of a man.”
וְאֵין לִי שׁוּם שֵׂכֶל לְהַגְדִּיל דַּעְתִּי בְּכָל זֶה. עַל כֵּן בָּאתִי לִפְרֹשׂ כַּפַּי אֵלֶיךָ מַלְכִּי וֵאלֹהָי, שֶׁתְּזַכֵּנוּ בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ שֶׁיִּהְיוּ נַעֲשִׂים אֶצְלֵנוּ כָּל הַתִּקּוּנִים הָאֵלֶּה מִמֵּילָא עַל־יְדֵי הָעֲסָקִים וְהַמִּצְוֹת שֶׁאָנוּ עוֹסְקִים בְּכָל יוֹם.
I lack the ability to increase my awareness in these matters. Therefore, I stretch out my hands to You, my King and God, and pray that You will cause all these rectifications to take place for me by themselves, as a result of my daily activities and performance of good deeds.
וְתִהְיֶה בְּעֶזְרִי וּתְזַכֵּנִי לְהַמְשִׁיךְ עָלַי קְדֻשָּׁה גְּדוֹלָה קֹדֶם הַשֵּׁנָה, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לִישֹׁן בִּקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה גְּדוֹלָה, וּשְׁנָתִי תֶּעֱרַב לִי, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה עַל־יְדֵי הַשֵּׁנָה שֶׁתַּעֲלֶה נִשְׁמָתִי וְתִתְדַּבֵּק בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי, עַד שֶׁתִּהְיֶה מַחֲשַׁבְתִּי דְּבוּקָה בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי תָּמִיד:
Draw great holiness onto me when I go to sleep. May I sleep in holiness and purity, so that my sleep is sweet, until my soul rises and clings to the World to Come, until my thoughts cling to the World to Come always.
וְתַעַזְרֵנִי וּתְזַכֵּנִי לְקַיֵּם בְּכָל יוֹם מִצְוַת צִיצִית וּתְפִלִּין וּקְרִיאַת שְׁמַע וּתְפִלָּה בְּתַכְלִית הַשְּׁלֵמוּת, בְּלֵב טוֹב וּבְשִׂמְחָה גְּדוֹלָה וּבִמְסִירַת נֶפֶשׁ, בִּקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה וּבְכַוָּנָה גְּדוֹלָה וַעֲצוּמָה, עִם כָּל פְּרָטֵיהֶם וְדִקְדּוּקֵיהֶם וְכַוָּנוֹתֵיהֶם וְתַרְי"ג מִצְוֹת הַתְּלוּיִם בָּהֶם.
Serving God with Powerful Intent
God, help me to keep the mitzvot of tzitzit, tefilin, reciting the Shma11“Shma Yisrael,” a declaration of faith in the oneness of God and a commitment to fulfilling His mitzvot, comprised of verses from Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21, and Numbers 15:37-41, is recited daily during morning and evening prayers, and before going to sleep. and prayer every day with total perfection; with a full heart, joy and utter devotion; with powerful holiness, purity and intent; with all their details, particulars and intentions, and the 613 mitzvot dependent on them.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי לַעֲסֹק בַּתּוֹרָה בְּכָל יוֹם וָיוֹם בִּקְדֻשָּׁה גְּדוֹלָה וּבְשִׂמְחָה רַבָּה, וְאַחַר כָּךְ תַּנְחֵנִי בְּצִדְקָתֶךָ לַעֲסֹק בְּמַשָּׂא וּמַתָּן בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְבָרֵר בֵּרוּרִים קְדוֹשִׁים וּלְהַשְׁלִים נַפְשִׁי וְרוּחִי וְנִשְׁמָתִי עַל־יְדֵי כָל הַדְּבָרִים שֶׁאֶקְנֶה וְאֶמְכֹּר.
Help me to learn Torah every day in great holiness and immense joy. Guide me in Your righteousness to earn a living with complete faith, until I elicit holiness and fulfill my soul through all the items that I buy and sell.
וְאֶזְכֶּה לֵידַע וּלְכַוֵּן לִקְנוֹת וְלִמְכֹּר כָּל דָּבָר בְּעִתּוֹ בְּמוֹעֲדוֹ וּבִזְמַנּוֹ, בְּעֵת שֶׁהִגִּיעַ הַשָּׁעָה שֶׁיֵּצֵא הַדָּבָר מֵרְשׁוּתִי לִרְשׁוּת אַחֵר אוֹ לְהֵפֶךְ, כְּפִי הַנִּצּוֹצוֹת הַקְּדוֹשׁוֹת שֶׁיֵּשׁ בְּאוֹתוֹ הַדָּבָר, וּכְפִי חֶלְקֵי נֶפֶשׁ רוּחַ וּנְשָׁמָה שֶׁלִּי, בְּאֹפֶן שֶׁיֻּשְׁלְמוּ חֶלְקֵי נֶפֶשׁ רוּחַ וּנְשָׁמָה שֶׁלִּי עַל־יְדֵי הַמַּשָּׂא וּמַתָּן, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לַעֲשׂוֹת יִחוּד קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא וּשְׁכִינְתֵּיהּ עַל־יְדֵי הַמַּשָּׂא וּמַתָּן שֶׁלִּי וְעַל־יְדֵי כָל הָעֲסָקִים שֶׁלִּי.
May I know how to buy and sell items when the time has come for something to leave my possession and go to someone else, or vice versa, in accordance with the sparks of holiness in that item and in accordance with the corresponding portions of my soul. In this way, these portions of my soul will be perfected through my business dealings, until I bring about a unification between the Holy One, Blessed be He, and His Shekhinah.
וְנִזְכֶּה שֶׁיִּהְיוּ נַעֲשִׂין אֶצְלֵנוּ מִמֵּילָא כָּל הַתִּקּוּנִים וְהַיִּחוּדִים הָעֶלְיוֹנִים, בְּאֹפֶן שֶׁנִּזְכֶּה לְזִכָּרוֹן דִּקְדֻשָּׁה, לְאַדְבָּקָא מַחֲשַׁבְתָּא בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי תָמִיד בִּכְלָלִיּוּת וּבִפְרָטִיּוּת.
May all these rectifications and supernal unifications occur of themselves, so that I will attain a holy awareness and my thoughts will constantly cling to the World to Come, in general and in every detail.
וְתִשְׁמְרֵנִי וְתַצִּילֵנִי מִשִּׁכְחָה שֶׁהִיא מִיתַת הַלֵּב, שֶׁלֹּא אֶשְׁכַּח אֶת תַּכְלִיתִי וְסוֹפִי, וְלֹא אַסִּיחַ דַּעְתִּי לְעוֹלָם מִזִּכְרוֹן עַלְמָא דְאָתֵי:
Guard me against forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart,” so that I will never forget my purpose and never distract myself from my awareness of the World to Come.
וּבְכֵן יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶיךָ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ וֵאלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתֵינוּ, שֶׁתִּרְאֶה בְּעָנְיֵינוּ וְדֹחֲקֵנו וַעֲמָלֵנוּ, וְתָשׁוּר בְּעָנְיֵינוּ וְתַבִּיט בַּעֲמָלֵנוּ. וְתָצִיץ עָלֵינוּ בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ, וְתַשְׁגִּיחַ עָלֵינוּ בְּעֵין חֶמְלָתֶךָ, וְתִשְׁמְרֵנוּ בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הַטּוֹבִים וְתַצִּילֵנוּ תָמִיד מֵרַע עַיִן, שֶׁלֹּא יִהְיֶה לָנוּ שׁוּם עַיִן רָעָה עַל שׁוּם אָדָם שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, רַק נִסְתַּכֵּל תָּמִיד עַל כָּל אֶחָד בְּעַיִן טוֹבָה,
Attaining a Good Eye; Avoiding an Evil Eye
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, look at my poverty, oppression and toil. Look at me with Your kind eye. Guard me in Your compassion and rescue me always from the evil eye. May no one look at me with an evil eye, and may I always look at others with a good eye.
וְנִזְכֶּה לִהְיוֹת מִתַּלְמִידָיו שֶׁל אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ עָלָיו הַשָּׁלוֹם, שֶׁיֵּשׁ בָּהֶם שְׁלֹשָׁה מִדּוֹת טוֹבוֹת שֶׁהֵם עַיִן טוֹבָה וְנֶפֶשׁ שְׁפָלָה וְרוּחַ נְמוּכָה. וְתִשְׁמְרֵנוּ וְתַצִּילֵנוּ מִתַּלְמִידָיו שֶׁל בִּלְעָם הָרָשָׁע שֶׁיֵשׁ לָהֶם שָׁלֹשׁ מִדּוֹת רָעוֹת שֶׁהֵם, עַיִן רָעָה וְרוּחַ גָּבוֹהַּ וְנֶפֶשׁ רְחָבָה.
Guide me to be one of the students of Abraham, who had three good traits: a good eye, a lowly spirit and a humble demeanor. And guard me against the students of the evil Balaam, who had three evil traits: an evil eye, a haughty spirit and an arrogant demeanor.
אָבִינוּ מַלְכֵּנוּ אַדִּירֵנוּ בּוֹרְאֵנוּ גּוֹאֲלֵנוּ יוֹצְרֵנוּ קְדוֹשֵׁנוּ קְדוֹשׁ יַעֲקֹב רוֹעֵנוּ רוֹעֵה יִשְׂרָאֵל הַמֶּלֶךְ הַטּוֹב וְהַמֵּטִיב לַכֹּל, טוֹב עַיִן בֶּאֱמֶת, זַכֵּנִי בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְהִתְדַּבֵּק בְּמִדּוֹתֶיךָ הַטּוֹבִים לִהְיוֹת טוֹב עַיִן בֶּאֱמֶת תָּמִיד.
Father, King, Mighty One, Creator, Redeemer, Maker, Holy One of Jacob, Shepherd of Israel, King Who does good to all with a good eye — help me to cling to Your good traits and always possess a truly good eye.
וְתַצִּילֵנוּ בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים מֵעַיִן רָעָה שֶׁלֹּא יִשְׁלֹט בָּנוּ שׁוּם עַיִן רָעָה מִשּׁוּם אָדָם וּמִשּׁוּם נִבְרָא שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, וְלֹא יִהְיֶה לְהָרַע עַיִן שׁוּם כֹּחַ וְשׁוּם שְׁלִיטָה, וְלֹא יוּכַל לְהַזִּיק לָנוּ כְּלַל חַס וְשָׁלוֹם לֹא בְּגַשְׁמִיּוּת וְלֹא בְּרוּחָנִיּוּת:
Rescue me from an evil eye, so that no one’s evil eye will prevail over me or harm me, Heaven forbid, in material or spiritual matters.
רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, מָלֵא רַחֲמִים, טוֹב וּמֵטִיב לַכֹּל, טוֹב עַיִן. אַתָּה לְבַד יוֹדֵעַ אֶת עֹצֶם הִתְגַּבְּרוּת הָרַע עַיִן שֶׁמִּתְגַּבֵּר עָלֵינוּ מְאֹד, שֶׁעֵינוֹ רָעָה בִּקְדֻשַּׁת יִשְׂרָאֵל עַם קָדוֹשׁ, וּבְכָל יוֹם וָיוֹם מִתְגַּבֵּר עָלֵינוּ בְּיוֹתֵר בְּכַמָּה תַחְבּוּלוֹת לְהַרְחִיקֵנוּ חַס וְשָׁלוֹם מֵעֲבוֹדָתְךָ בֶּאֱמֶת, וְרוֹדֵף אוֹתָנוּ מְאֹד.
Master of the Universe, You do good for everyone with a good eye. You alone know how strenuously the evil eye attempts to overwhelm me, how malignantly it attacks the holiness of the Jewish people, the holy nation. Every day it rises up against me with all sorts of schemes to remove me from serving You, Heaven forbid, and it constantly pursues me.
מָלֵא רַחֲמִים מָלֵא טוֹב, אַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ אֶת לְבָבֵנוּ, אַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ אֵת כָּל אֲשֶׁר עָבַר עָלֵינוּ עַל־יְדֵי הָרַע עַיִן שֶׁל הָאוֹיְבִים וְהַשּׂוֹנְאִים הָרוֹדְפִים אַחַר הַבָּאִים לְהִתְקָרֵב בֶּאֱמֶת לַעֲבוֹדָתְךָ וּלְתוֹרָתֶךָ.
You know my heart. You know what I have suffered as a result of the evil eye of my enemies and persecutors, who torment people who want to serve You and learn Your Torah.
וְגַם אַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ גֹּדֶל חֲלִישׁוּתֵנוּ לַעֲמֹד נֶגֶד עֵינָם הָרָעָה. וְעַתָּה הוֹדִיעֵנוּ נָא אָבִינוּ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם, אָנָה מִפְּנֵיהֶם נִבְרַח, וְאַיֵּה אֵפוֹא הַמָּקוֹם לְהִתְחַבֵּא וּלְהִטָּמֵן מִפְּנֵי עֵינָם הָרָעָה,
You know how weak my attempt has been to withstand the evil eye. Tell me, my Father in Heaven, where shall I flee? Where will I go to conceal myself from my enemies’ evil eye?
הַבִּיטָה בְעָנְיֵינוּ כִּי רַבּוּ מַכְאוֹבֵינוּ וְצָרוֹת לְבָבֵנוּ. הַטֵּה אֱלֹהַי אָזְנְךָ וּשְׁמָע פְּקַח עֵינֶיךָ וּרְאֵה שׁוֹמְמוֹתֵינוּ, כִּי לֹא עַל צִדְקוֹתֵינוּ אֲנַחְנוּ מַפִּילִים תַּחֲנוּנֵינוּ לְפָנֶיךָ כִּי עַל רַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים.
Look at me in my poverty. My suffering and the pangs of my heart are so many. “My God, bend Your ear and hear, open Your eye and see our desolation. We do not cast our plea before You for the sake of our righteousness, but we appeal to Your great compassion.”
כִּי יָדַעְנוּ בֶּאֱמֶת, כִּי אֲנַחְנוּ בְעַצְמֵנוּ הַחַיָּבִים בְּכָל זֶה, כִּי לוּלֵא חֲטָאֵינוּ וּפְשָׁעֵינוּ הַמְּרֻבִּים וְהָעֲצוּמִים, לֹא הָיִינוּ צְרִיכִים לְהִתְיָרֵא מִפְּנֵיהֶם כְּלָל.
I know that I am responsible for all this, because if not for my many sins, I would have no need to fear these people at all.
אֲבָל מַה נַּעֲשֶׂה אָבִינוּ, כִּי הִסְכַּלְנוּ הַרְבֵּה מְאֹד, חָטָאנוּ הֶעֱוִינוּ וְהִרְשַׁעְנוּ וְסַרְנוּ מִמִּצְוֹתֶיךָ, פְּעָמִים רַבּוֹת הִצַּלְתָּנוּ וַאֲנַחְנוּ מָרִינוּ עֵצוֹתֶיךָ, וַתְּמוּגֵנוּ בְּיַד עֲוֹנֵנוּ,
But what can I do, my Father in Heaven? I have been very foolish. I transgressed and did evil and turned away from Your mitzvot. Even though You saved me many times, I rebelled against Your advice — and so, “You gave us over into the power of our sins.”
וּבְכָל זֹאת אָנוּ חֲפֵצִים וּמִשְׁתּוֹקְקִים וּמְחַכִּים וּמְיַחֲלִים בְּכָל עֵת לְהִתְקָרֵב לַעֲבוֹדָתְךָ בֶּאֱמֶת, כִּי אַתָּה רוֹצֶה בִּתְשׁוּבָה כִּי חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם אַתָּה וְקָרוֹב לְכָל קוֹרְאֶיךָ בֶּאֱמֶת,
Still, I yearn at every moment to truly serve You. You desire repentance because You are gracious and compassionate, and close to everyone who honestly calls to You.
וְעַתָּה הַצִּילֵנוּ נָא בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ מִן הָרַע עַיִן, כִּי אֵין לָנוּ שׁוּם כֹּחַ לַעֲמֹד נֶגֶד אֶחָד מִשּׂוֹנְאֵינוּ, אַף כִּי נֶגֶד כֻּלָּם.
Save me from the evil eye because I lack the power to withstand even one of my enemies, and certainly not all of them.
וְאֵין לָנוּ עַל מִי לְהִשָּׁעֵן כִּי אִם עַל אָבִינוּ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם.
I have no one to rely upon except for You, my Father in Heaven.
לְךָ לְבַד עֵינַי תְּלוּיוֹת לְךָ לְבַד עֵינַי צוֹפִיּוֹת, דַּלּוּ עֵינַי לַמָּרוֹם אוּלַי יִרְאֶה יְהֹוָה בְּעֵינִי, אוּלַי יָחוּס אוּלַי יְרַחֵם.
My eyes turn to You alone. “I raise my eyes to the heights.” Perhaps You will see my eyes, perhaps You will have compassion on me.
הַבֶּט נָא רַחֵם נָא וְהוֹשִׁיעָה נָּא צֹאן מַרְעִיתֶךָ, וְאַל יִמְשָׁל בָּנוּ הָרַע עַיִן כְּלָל, הַבֵּט מִשָּׁמַיִם וּרְאֵה כִּי הָיִינוּ לַעַג וָקֶלֶס, הַבֵּט מִשָּׁמַיִם וּרְאֵה מִזְּבוּל קָדְשְׁךָ וְתִפְאַרְתֶּךָ אַיֵּה קִנְאָתְךָ וּגְבוּרֹתֶךָ הֲמוֹן מֵעֶיךָ וְרַחֲמֶיךָ אֵלַי הִתְאַפָּקוּ.
Please save the sheep of Your flock. Do not let the evil eye rule over me at all. “Gaze from Heaven and see” that I have become a laughingstock and an object of scorn. “Gaze from Heaven and see, from Your holy and beautiful dwelling place. Where are Your zealousness and Your might? The multitude of Your feelings and compassion for me have been withheld.”
מָלֵא רַחֲמִים, טוֹב לַכֹּל, טוֹב וּמֵטִיב, טוֹב וּמֵטִיב לָרָעִים וְלַטּוֹבִים, טוֹב בֶּאֱמֶת תָּמִיד, הַטּוֹב כִּי לֹא כָלוּ רַחֲמֶיךָ וְהַמְרַחֵם כִּי לֹא תַמּוּ חֲסָדֶיךָ. רַחֵם עָלֵינוּ בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים, וְהַצִּילֵנוּ מֵרַע עַיִן מִכָּל הַבְּחִינוֹת, הֵן שֶׁלֹּא יִהְיֶה לָנוּ שׁוּם עַיִן רָעָה כְּלָל, הֵן שֶׁלֹּא יִשְׁלֹט בָּנוּ שׁוּם עַיִן רָעָה מִשּׁוּם אָדָם וּמִשּׁוּם נִבְרָא שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם,
You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are good to all, You Who are good and do good to both the wicked and the good, You are truly good always. Your compassion has not ceased; Your love has not come to an end. Have compassion on me and rescue me from the evil inclination on every level, so that no evil eye will dominate me in any way.
וְתַבִּיט עָלַי בְּעֵינְךָ הַטּוֹב, בְּעֵינָא חָדָא דְרַחֲמֵי, וְתַמְשִׁיךְ וְתַשְׁפִּיעַ עָלַי טוּב עַיִן, וְתִשְׁמְרֵנִי וְתַצִּילֵנִי שֶׁלֹּא יִהְיֶה עֵינִי רָעָה כְּלַל בִּגְדֻלַּת חֲבֵרַי וּבִגְדֻלַּת כָּל הָעוֹלָם כֻּלּוֹ.
Gaze upon me with Your good eye, Your single eye of compassion. Draw down the energies of a good eye in an abundant stream. Guard me from looking at the successes of my friends and the successes of anyone with an evil eye.
וְתַצִּילֵנִי מִפְּגַם הָרְאוּת, וְתִשְׁמְרֵנִי תָמִיד שֶׁלֹּא אֶסְתַּכֵּל בְּשׁוּם דָּבָר הַמֵּבִיא לִידֵי הִרְהוּרִים חַס וְשָׁלוֹם, וְלֹא בְשׁוּם דָּבָר הַפּוֹגֵם אֶת הָעֵינַיִם. הַעֲבֵר עֵינַי מֵרְאוֹת שָׁוְא בִּדְרָכֶךָ חַיֵּנִי. הַצִּילֵנִי מֵעַיִן נוֹאֶפֶת, שָׁמְרָה נַפְשִׁי וְהַצִּילֵנִי אַל אֵבוֹשׁ כִּי חָסִיתִי בָךְ.
Rescue me from blemished vision. Keep me from ever looking at things that might lead me to have improper fantasies, Heaven forbid, at anything that may damage my eyes. “Keep my eyes from looking at vanity; revive me on Your path.” Rescue me from a lustful eye. “Guard my spirit and rescue me. May I not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”
וְכָל מַה שֶּׁחָטָאתִי עָוִיתִי וּפָשַׁעְתִּי לְפָנֶיךָ וּפָגַמְתִּי בְּעֵינַי, בְּשׁוֹגֵג וּבְמֵזִיד בְּאֹנֶס וּבְרָצוֹן, וְהָרַע בְּעֵינֶיךָ עָשִׂיתִי מִנְּעוּרַי וְעַד הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה. עַל הַכֹּל תִּמְחֹל וּתְכַפֵּר לִי אֱלוֹהַּ סְלִיחוֹת, חַנּוּן הַמַּרְבֶּה לִסְלֹחַ.
And for all the times that I transgressed and caused damage with my eyes, accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly, and done wrong in Your eyes, from my youth until this day — grant me atonement, God of forgiveness, You Who are gracious and Who generously pardons.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי מֵעַתָּה לִהְיוֹת טוֹב עַיִן בְּכָל הַבְּחִינוֹת בִּקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה גְּדוֹלָה כִּרְצוֹנְךָ הַטּוֹב בֶּאֱמֶת:
From this moment on, may I have a good eye on every level, in holiness and great purity, in accordance with Your desire.
וְתַצִּילֵנִי שֶׁלֹּא יִשְׁלֹט בָּנוּ שׁוּם עַיִן הָרָע מִשּׁוּם רַע עַיִן שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, וְלֹא יַזִּיק לָנוּ עֵינָם הָרָעָה כְּלָל, הֵן בְּגַשְׁמִיּוּת הֵן בְּרוּחָנִיּוּת, בְּגוּף וָנֶפֶשׁ וּמָמוֹן. וְתִשְׁמֹר צֵאתֵנוּ וּבוֹאֵנוּ לְחַיִּים טוֹבִים וּלְשָׁלוֹם מֵעַתָּה וְעַד עוֹלָם, כִּי אֵין לָנוּ עַל מִי לְהִשָּׁעֵן כִּי אִם עָלֶיךָ לְבַד אָבִינוּ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם,
Protect me from being harmed by any evil eye in the world, whether in the material or spiritual realm, in body, soul or money. Guard me in everything that I do, so that I will have a good life and peace, from now and forever. I turn only to You, for I have no one else upon whom to rely but You alone, my Father in Heaven.
כִּי אֲשׁוּרֵנוּ עַתָּה סְבָבוּנוּ עֵינֵיהֶם יָשִׁיתוּ לִנְטוֹת בָּאָרֶץ. צָרִי יִלְטֹשׁ עֵינָיו לִי. אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי אֶל הֶהָרִים מֵאַיִן יָבוֹא עֶזְרִי. עֶזְרִי מֵעִם יְהֹוָה עֹשֵׂה שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ. כִּי אֵלֶיךָ אֱלֹהִים יְהֹוָה עֵינָי בְּכָה חָסִיתִי אַל תְּעַר נַפְשִׁי. עֵינַי תָּמִיד אֶל יְהֹוָה כִּי הוּא יוֹצִיא מֵרֶשֶׁת רַגְלָי.
“They have encompassed our every step; they have set their eyes to cast us down to the earth. My opponent polishes his eyes against me.” “I lift my eyes to the mountains. “From where will my help come? My help is from HaShem, the Maker of heaven and earth.” “Before You, God, HaShem, my eyes weep. I take refuge in You.” “Do not cause my soul to be poured out.” “My eyes are always turned to HaShem, because He frees my feet from the net.”
אֵלֶיךָ נָשָׂאתִי אֶת עֵינַי הַיּוֹשְׁבִי בַּשָּׁמָיִם. הִנֵּה כְעֵינֵי עֲבָדִים אֶל יַד אֲדוֹנֵיהֶם כְּעֵינֵי שִׁפְחָה אֶל יַד גְּבִירְתָּהּ כֵּן עֵינֵינוּ אֶל יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ עַד שֶׁיְּחָנֵּנוּ. חָנֵּנוּ יְהֹוָה חָנֵּנוּ כִּי רַב שָׂבַעְנוּ בוּז:
“I have lifted my eyes to You, You Who sit in Heaven. Behold, like the eyes of slaves to the hand of their master, like the eyes of the maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to HaShem our God, until He will be gracious to us. Be gracious to us, HaShem. Be gracious to us, because we have suffered much contempt.”
רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, רְאֵה נָא בְעָנְיֵנוּ וְרִיבָה רִיבֵנוּ, כִּי אַתָּה יָדַעְתָּ אֶת לְבָבֵנוּ, כִּי צְרָכֵינוּ מְרֻבִּים מְאֹד וְדַעְתֵּנוּ קְצָרָה לְפָרֵשׁ,
Nowhere To Flee But God
Master of the Universe, look at how I am oppressed and fight on my behalf. You know my heart. You know that my needs are many and my mind is too small to express them.
עָזְרֵנוּ כִּי עָלֶיךָ נִשְׁעָנְנוּ, עֲנֵנוּ יְהֹוָה עֲנֵנוּ כִּי בְצָרָה גְּדוֹלָה אֲנָחְנוּ, אַל תַּסְתֵּר פָּנֶיךָ מִמֶּנּוּ הֱיֵה נָא קָרוֹב לְשַׁוְעָתֵנוּ. כִּי אַתָּה יוֹדֵעַ אֶת כָּל תְּלָאוֹתֵינוּ, וּרְאֵה אֶת עָנְיֵינוּ וְאֶת עֲמָלֵנוּ וְאֶת לַחֲצֵנוּ, זְכֹר יְהֹוָה מֶה הָיָה לָנוּ הַבִּיטָה וּרְאֵה אֶת חֶרְפָּתֵנוּ.
Help me. I rely on You. Answer me, HaShem, because I am in great adversity. Do not hide Your countenance from me. Be close to me when I cry out to You, because You know all my hardships. Look at my oppression, my toil and my misery. “Recall, HaShem, what we have undergone. Look and see our disgrace.”
חוּס וַחֲמֹל עָלֵינוּ, שָׁמְרֵנִי מִידֵי פַח יָקְשׁוּ לִי וּמֹקְשׁוֹת פֹּעֲלֵי אָוֶן. שָׁמְרֵנִי כְּאִישׁוֹן בַּת עָיִן בְּצֵל כְּנָפֶיךָ תַּסְתִּירֵנִי, מִפְּנֵי רְשָׁעִים זוּ שַׁדּוּנִי אוֹיְבַי בְּנֶפֶשׁ יַקִּיפוּ עָלָי. וַאֲנִי עָנִי וְכוֹאֵב,
Have mercy on me. “Guard me from the snare that they laid for me and from the traps of those who do evil.” Guard me like the pupil of the eye. In the shadow of Your wings, hide me against evildoers who have devastated me, enemies who hope to grasp my soul and surround me. And I am poor and suffering!”
אֵין לִי שׁוּם בֵּית מָנוֹס כִּי אִם אֵלֶיךָ לְבַד, אֵלֶיךָ יְהֹוָה אֶקְרָא וְאֶל יְהֹוָה אֶתְחַנָּן. מַה בֶּצַע בְּדָמִי בְּרִדְתִּי אֶל שַׁחַת הֲיוֹדְךָ עָפָר הֲיַגִּיד אֲמִתֶּךָ. עֵינִי נִגְּרָה וְלֹא תִדְמֶה מֵאֵין הֲפֻגוֹת, עַד יַשְׁקִיף וְיֵרֶא יְהֹוָה מִשָּׁמָיִם.
I have nowhere to flee except to You. “To You, HaShem, I call, and with HaShem I plead. What value is there in my blood if I descend to destruction? Will the dust thank You? Will it tell Your truth? My eye is poured out without ceasing, it does not rest, until HaShem will gaze and look down from Heaven.”
הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ מָלֵא רַחֲמִים, הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ בְּעֵת צָרָה הַזֹּאת, וְקַיֵּם בָּנוּ מִקְרָא שֶׁכָּתוּב, וְעֵת צָרָה הִיא לְיַעֲקֹב וּמִמֶּנָּה יִוָּשֵׁעַ.
Save me at this time of trouble. May the verse be realized, “Although it is a time of trouble for Jacob, he will be rescued from it.”
הַצִּילֵנִי וְשָׁמְרֵנִי מֵרַע עַיִן הַמֵּבִיא לִידֵי שִׁכְחָה שֶׁהִיא מִיתַת הַלֵּב, שְׁבִירַת לֵב, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב, נִשְׁכַּחְתִּי כְּמֵת מִלֵּב הָיִיתִי כִּכְלִי אוֹבֵד.
Guard me from the evil eye that leads to forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart,” the breaking of the heart. As the verse states, “I have been forgotten like a dead person from the heart; I have become like a lost vessel.”
עָזְרֵנִי שֶׁלֹּא אֶשְׁכַּח אֶת עוֹלָמִי הַנִּצְחִי וְהַקַּיָּם לָעַד, חוּסָה עָלַי כְּרֹב רַחֲמֶיךָ, כְּרֹב יְשׁוּעָתֶךָ, כְּרֹב טוֹבוֹתֶיךָ, כְּרֹב הַצָּלוֹתֶיךָ. יֶהֱמוּ מֵעֶיךָ עָלַי, עַל נִרְדָּף כָּמֹנִי, עַל חֲסַר דֵּעָה, חֲסַר עֵצָה כָּמֹנִי.
Help me to never forget my eternal world. Have mercy upon me — I who am persecuted and who lack awareness and counsel.
אַמֵּץ וְחַזֵּק אֶת לְבָבִי בְּיִרְאָתְךָ וַעֲבוֹדָתֶךָ, וְזַכֵּנִי שֶׁאָשִׂים אֶל לִבִּי וְאֶזְכֹּר הֵיטֵב בְּלִבִּי וּבְדַעְתִּי תָמִיד אֶת הַתַּכְלִית הָאַחֲרוֹן, וְאֶזְכֶּה לְדַבֵּק מַחֲשַׁבְתִּי וּלְבָבִי תָמִיד בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי, כִּי אַתָּה יוֹדֵעַ אֶת גֹּדֶל הַצַּעַר וְהַבּוּשָׁה שֶׁיִּהְיֶה בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי עַל מִי שֶׁלֹּא קִשֵּׁט עַצְמוֹ בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, וְהוּא אֲבֵדָה שֶׁאֵינָה חוֹזֶרֶת לְעוֹלָם, כִּי שָׁם אֵין מַעֲשֵׂה וְחֶשְׁבּוֹן מוֹעִיל כְּלָל, כִּי מִי שֶׁלֹּא טָרַח בְּעֶרֶב שַׁבָּת מַה יֹּאכַל בְּשַׁבָּת. מְעֻוָּת לֹא יוּכַל לִתְקֹן וְחֶסְרוֹן לֹא יוּכַל לְהִמָּנוֹת. וְאֵין מוֹעִיל שָׁם שׁוּם רַחֲמָנוּת בָּעוֹלָם. זַכֵּנִי עַתָּה בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לִזְכֹּר עַתָּה בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה אֶת הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא תָמִיד,
Empower my heart so that I will experience Your awesomeness and serve You. Guide me so that my heart and mind will constantly and clearly recall my ultimate purpose. Help me to bring my thoughts and my heart to constantly cling to the world of truth. You know the great sorrow and shame that a person will experience in the World to Come if he has not adorned himself in this world. Once that opportunity is lost, it can never be regained. In the World to Come, engaging in good deeds and self-reflection will be of no account, because if a person has not prepared on the eve of the Shabbat, what will he eat on the Shabbat? “That which is crooked cannot be made straight, and that which is missing cannot be numbered.” There, praying for Your compassion will not help. So help me now to always be aware of the World to Come.
וְאַל יַלִּיזוּ מֵעֵינַי וְלֹא אָסוּר מִדַּעְתִּי זִכְרוֹן הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא תָמִיד, בְּאֹפֶן שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לָשׁוּב בִּתְשׁוּבָה שְׁלֵמָה אֵלֶיךָ בֶּאֱמֶת, וְאֶזְכֶּה לְתַקֵּן בְּחַיַּי אֵת כָּל אֲשֶׁר שִׁחַתְתִּי בְּשׁוֹגֵג וּבְמֵזִיד בְּאֹנֶס וּבְרָצוֹן.
May I not turn for an instant from an awareness of the World to Come. Guide me to return to You with perfect repentance, and to rectify in my lifetime everything that I damaged, whether by accident or on purpose, against my will or willingly.
וּתְזַכֵּנוּ שֶׁיָּגֵן עָלֵינוּ זְכוּת וְכֹחַ הַצַּדִּיקִים אֲמִתִּיִּים שֶׁיֵשׁ לָהֶם כֹּחַ לְהַצִּיל אוֹתָנוּ מִכָּל מִינֵי רַע עַיִן שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, וְהֵם יִלָּחֲמוּ לְפָנֵינוּ וְיַכְנִיעוּ וִישַׁבְּרוּ וִיבַטְּלוּ אֶת כָּל מִין רַע עַיִן בְּשָׁרְשׁוֹ שֶׁלְּמַעְלָה, וְיַמְתִּיקוּ וִיבַטְּלוּ אֶת הָרַע עַיִן שֶׁל הִתְנַשְּׂאוּת עַל־יְדֵי שֹׁרֶשׁ הַמַּלְכוּת שֶׁהוּא מַלְכוּת מָשִׁיחַ בֶּן דָוִד יְפֵה עֵינַיִם וְטוֹב רֹאִי,
May the merit and strength of the true Tzaddikim — who have the power to save us from every sort of evil eye — protect me. They fight on our behalf. They subjugate and eliminate every sort of evil eye at its supernal root. They weaken and eradicate the evil eye associated with taking power by linking it to its root of sovereignty, which is the kingdom of the Mashiach, son of David, who has “beautiful eyes and sees the good.”
וְיַמְשִׁיכוּ עָלֵינוּ אוֹרוֹ שֶׁל מָשִׁיחַ שֶׁיָּבוֹא בִּמְהֵרָה בְּיָמֵינוּ, וּמִכָּל צָרוֹתֵינוּ יוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ וְיִגְאָלֵנוּ:
May they draw onto us the light of the Mashiach — may he come speedily and in our day, and save us from all our sorrows as he redeems us.
וּבְכֵן יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶיךָ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ וֵאלֹהֵי אֲבוֹתֵינוּ, שֶׁתַּצִּילֵנִי מִלָּשׁוֹן הָרָע וּמֵאֲבַק לָשׁוֹן הָרָע, וְלֹא אוֹצִיא דִּבָּה עַל שׁוּם בַּר יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם, הֵן עַל גְּדוֹלִים הֵן עַל קְטַנִים, וְלֹא יֵצֵא מִפִּי שׁוּם דִּבּוּר רַע עַל שׁוּם יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם. וְתַצִּילֵנִי וְתִשְׁמְרֵנִי שֶׁלֹּא אֶפְגֹּם אֶת דַּעְתִּי כְּלָל.
Give Me a Good Spirit
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, protect me from slandering any Jew, whether great or small, to the slightest degree, and from saying anything negative about any Jew, so that I will not harm my state of consciousness at all.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי לְאַהֲבָה דִקְדֻשָּׁה וְתַצִּילֵנִי מֵאַהֲבוֹת הַנְּפוּלוֹת, מֵאַהֲבוֹת רָעוֹת.
Guide me to holy love. Rescue me from love that has fallen into negative spaces.
וְתַעַזְרֵנִי וְתוֹשִׁיעֵנִי וּתְזַכֵּנִי וְתִתֶּן לִי כֹחַ לְשַׁבֵּר אֶת הַכֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה שֶׁהוּא כֹחַ הַבְּהֵמִיּוּת, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה מְהֵרָה לְשַׁבֵּר אֶת כָּל הַתַּאֲווֹת הַבְּהֵמִיּוֹת מֵאִתִּי,
Give me the ability to break the power of the beast-like imagination, so that I will be able to quickly put an end to all my animalistic desires.
וְתִשְׁמְרֵנִי מִן הַטָּעוּתִים הַבָּאִים עַל־יְדֵי כֹחַ הַמְדַמֶּה, שֶׁלֹּא אֶטְעֶה מִן הָאֱמֶת לְעוֹלָם עַל־יְדֵי הַטָּעוּת שֶׁל כֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה חַס וְשָׁלוֹם.
Protect me from errors that result from the power of the imagination, so that I will not stray from truth, Heaven forbid.
וְזַכֵּנִי בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים לְשִׂמְחָה דִקְדֻשָּׁה, שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לִהְיוֹת בְּשִׂמְחָה תָמִיד. וְתִתֵּן כֹּחַ בְּיָדִי לְלַקֵּט וּלְבָרֵר אֶת הָרוּחַ טוֹבָה מִן הָרוּחַ נְכֵאָה, מִן הָרוּחַ רָעָה, מֵעַצְבוּת רוּחַ.
Let me experience the joy of holiness always. Give me the power to gather and extricate the good spirit from the depressed and evil spirit.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי לַעֲשָׂרָה מִינֵי נְגִינָה דִקְדֻשָּׁה, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְזַכֵּךְ וּלְבָרֵר אֶת הַכֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה, לְהַכְנִיעַ וּלְבַטֵל הָרַע שֶׁבַּמְדַמֶּה, וּלְבָרֵר וּלְהַעֲלוֹת הַטּוֹב שֶׁבּוֹ אֶל הַקְּדֻשָּׁה, וְאֶזְכֶּה לְהַכְנִיעַ וּלְשַׁבֵּר וּלְגָרֵשׁ וּלְבַטֵּל מִמֶּנִּי הָרוּחַ רָעָה, רוּחַ שְׁטוּת, עַצְבוּת רוּחַ, רוּחַ נְכֵאָה.
Help me to attain the ten types of holy melody until I purify the power of imagination, subjugating and eliminating the evil within it and raising up the good within it to holiness, as I subjugate and eliminate the evil spirit of foolishness and melancholy.
וּתְזַכֵּנִי מְהֵרָה לְרוּחַ טוֹבָה דִקְדֻשָּׁה, כִּי אַתָּה אֱלֹהָי רוּחֲךָ טוֹבָה תַּנְחֵנִי בְּאֶרֶץ מִישׁוֹר. לֵב טָהוֹר בְּרָא לִי אֱלֹהִים וְרוּחַ נָכוֹן חַדֵּשׁ בְּקִרְבִּי. אַל תַּשְׁלִיכֵנִי מִלְּפָנֶיךָ וְרוּחַ קָדְשְׁךָ אַל תִּקַּח מִמֶּנִּי. הָשִׁיבָה לִי שְׂשׂוֹן יִשְׁעֶךָ וְרוּחַ נְדִיבָה תִּסְמְכֵנִי. אֵל אֱלֹהֵי הָרוּחוֹת שַׁלִּיט בָּעֶלְיוֹנִים וּבַתַּחְתּוֹנִים, תֶּן לִי רוּחַ טוֹבָה.
May I quickly attain the good spirit of holiness, “for You are my God. Your good spirit guides me in a straight land. Create within me a pure heart, God, and renew within me a proper spirit. Do not cast me aside from You; do not take Your holy spirit away from me. Bring back to me the joy of Your salvation and support me with a generous spirit, Mighty One, God of the spirits.” Master of all beings, whether supernal or lowly, give me a good spirit.
יִפְקֹד יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי הָרוּחוֹת לְכָל בָּשָׂר לְהַשְׁפִּיעַ עָלַי רוּחַ טוֹבָה, רוּחַ הַקְּדֻשָּׁה, רוּחַ חָכְמָה וּבִינָה רוּחַ עֵצָה וּגְבוּרָה רוּחַ דַּעַת וְיִרְאַת יְהֹוָה, רוּחַ קְדֻשָּׁה וְטָהֳרָה, רוּחַ שִׂמְחָה וְחֶדְוָה,
“HaShem, God of spirits, take heed of all flesh.” Pour forth upon me a good spirit of holiness, “a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and might, a spirit of awareness and the fear of HaShem,” a spirit of purity and joy.
וְשָׁמְרֵנִי וְהַצִּילֵנִי בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים, מִלְּהִתְקָרֵב וּמִלְּהִתְחַבֵּר לְתַלְמִידֵי חֲכָמִים שֶׁאֵינָם הֲגוּנִים בְּמַעֲשֵׂיהֶם, וְלֹא אֶשְׁמַע שׁוּם דְּבַר תּוֹרָה מֵהַתַּלְמִידֵי חֲכָמִים שֶׁלֹּא זָכוּ עֲדַיִן לְבָרֵר הַכֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה, אֲשֶׁר כָּל חִדּוּשֵׁי תוֹרָתָם נִמְשָׁכִין מִכֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה הַמְעֹרָב טוֹב וָרַע, וְהָרַע יוֹתֵר מִן הַטּוֹב, אֲשֶׁר עַל־יְדֵי חִדּוּשֵׁיהֶם נִפְסָד הַפַּרְנָסָה וְהַשֶּׁפַע דִּקְדֻשָּׁה חַס וְשָׁלוֹם, וְגוֹרְמִים מַה שֶּׁגּוֹרְמִים חַס וְשָׁלוֹם. הַצִּילֵנִי מֵהֶם, שָׁמְרֵנִי מֵהֶם,
Keep me from associating with sages whose deeds are unworthy. Keep me from listening to words of Torah from sages who have not yet clarified the power of their imagination, so that their insights are affected by the power of their imagination as it mixes together good and evil — with more evil than good. Those insights lead to a loss of holy prosperity and abundance, Heaven forbid, and cause great damage.
זַכֵּנִי בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים, לְהִתְקָרֵב וּלְהִתְחַבֵּר לְצַדִּיקִים אֲמִתִּיִּים, אֲשֶׁר כָּל חִדּוּשֵׁי תוֹרָתָם נִמְשָׁכִין מִן הַקְּדֻשָּׁה, מִן הָרוּחַ טוֹבָה, רוּחַ נְבוּאָה, רוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ, בְּלִי תַּעֲרֹבֶת שׁוּם פְּסֹלֶת כְּלָל.
Bring me close to true Tzaddikim, whose Torah thoughts are all drawn from holiness — from the good spirit, the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of holiness — without any admixture.
וְחָנֵּנִי מֵאִתְּךָ דֵּעָה בִּינָה וְהַשְׂכֵּל, וְקַדְּשֵׁנִי בִּקְדֻשָּׁתְךָ הָעֶלְיוֹנָה, וְעָזְרֵנִי שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה גַּם־כֵּן לְחַדֵּשׁ בַּתּוֹרָה חִדּוּשִׁים אֲמִתִּיִּים הַנִּמְשָׁכִין מִן הַקְּדֻשָּׁה, וְעָזְרֵנִי שֶׁיִּהְיוּ כֻלָּם טוֹב בְּלִי שׁוּם אֲחִיזַת הָרַע חַס וְשָׁלוֹם, וּבְלִי שׁוּם פְּסֹלֶת כְּלָל.
Be gracious to me and give me awareness, understanding and mindfulness. Sanctify me with Your supernal holiness and help me to create original, true Torah thoughts that come from holiness. May they all be true without a trace of evil, Heaven forbid, and without any waste matter at all.
חָנֵּנִי וּפְדֵנִי וְזַכֵּנִי מְהֵרָה שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְטַהֵר וּלְקַדֵּשׁ עַצְמִי בֶּאֱמֶת, וְאֶזְכֶּה לְשַׁבֵּר אֶת הַכֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה וּלְבַטְּלוֹ וּלְגָרְשׁוֹ מֵאִתִּי,
Be gracious to me and redeem me, so that I will quickly purify and sanctify myself in truth and break the power of the imagination, eliminating it and expelling it.
וְתִתֶּן לִי כֹחַ וְעֵצָה וּגְבוּרָה לְשַׁבֵּר וּלְבַטֵּל מִמֶּנִּי אֶת כָּל תַּאֲווֹת הַמְּדֻמִּיּוֹת, תַּאֲווֹת הַבְּהֵמִיּוֹת.
Give me the power and wisdom to break and nullify all the animalistic lusts of the imagination.
וְתִשְׁמְרֵנִי וְתַצִּילֵנִי מֵחֵטְא לְשׁוֹן הָרָע וּמֵאֲבַק לְשׁוֹן הָרָע, וּמִכָּל מִינֵי פְּגָם הַדִּבּוּר, וּמִכָּל מִינֵי פְּגָם הַבְּרִית, בְּאֹפֶן שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לִקְדֻשָּׁה וְטָהֳרָה בֶּאֱמֶת, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לְחִדּוּשֵׁי תוֹרָה אֲמִתִּיִּים דִּקְדֻשָּׁה כִּרְצוֹנְךָ הַטּוֹב.
Protect me from the sin of slander, even the slightest trace, and from every sort of blemished speech and any blemish of the covenant, so that I will attain real holiness and purity — until I come to true, original and holy Torah thoughts, in accordance with Your desire.
אָבִי שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם, הַצִּילֵנִי מִטּוֹב הַמְדֻמֶּה, הַמָּרָה בָּאַחֲרוֹנָה כְּרֹאשׁ וְלַעֲנָה, זַכֵּנִי לְטוּבְךָ הָאֲמִתִּי, שַׂבְּעֵנִי מִטּוּבְךָ הַנִּצְחִי.
My Father in Heaven, rescue me from imaginary good, which in the end is as bitter as wormwood. Satisfy me instead with Your true and eternal goodness.
וְזַכֵּנִי לִהְיוֹת בְּשִׂמְחָה תָמִיד, נָגִילָה וְנִשְׂמְחָה בִּישׁוּעָתֶךָ, וּנְגִינוֹתַי אֲנַגֵּן כָּל יְמֵי חַיַּי עַל בֵּית יְהֹוָה. וְאֶזְכֶּה לְהָרִים קוֹל זִמְרָה וְנִגּוּן לְשִׁמְךָ וְלַעֲבוֹדָתְךָ בֶּאֱמֶת כִּרְצוֹנְךָ הַטּוֹב,
Help me to be joyful always. May I rejoice in Your salvation. May I sing all the days of my life regarding the House of HaShem. May I lift the voice of song for Your Name and serve You in accordance with Your desire.
וְאֶזְכֶּה לְעוֹרֵר וּלְגַלּוֹת תָּמִיד כָּל הָעֲשָׂרָה מִינֵי נְגִינָה. וּתְזַכֵּנִי לִשְׁמֹעַ קוֹל נִגּוּן וְזִמְרָה בְּשִׂמְחָה שֶׁל מִצְוָה מִמְּנַגֵּן כָּשֵׁר וָטוֹב, הַיּוֹדֵעַ נַגֵּן עַל הַכִּנּוֹר וְעַל כְּלֵי שִׁיר, נִגּוּנִים דִּקְדֻשָּׁה הַנִּמְשָׁכִים מִכִּנּוֹר שֶׁל דָּוִד, יְפֵה קוֹל וּמֵטִיב נַגֵּן, בְּאֹפֶן שֶׁיִּתְבָּרֵר עַל־יְדֵי הַמְנַגֵּן בִּכְלֵי שִׁיר הָרוּחַ טוֹבָה, רוּחַ נְבוּאָה, רוּחַ הַקֹּדֶשׁ, רוּחַ שִׂמְחָה וְחֶדְוָה, מֵעַצְבוּת רוּחַ, מֵרוּחַ נְכֵאָה, מֵרוּחַ רָעָה, עַד שֶׁנִּזְכֶּה לְרוּחַ טוֹבָה בֶּאֱמֶת, וְלִהְיוֹת בְּשִׂמְחָה תָמִיד. וְנִזְכֶּה לָשׁוּב אֵלֶיךָ בִּתְשׁוּבָה שְׁלֵמָה וּבְלֵב נִשְׁבָּר בֶּאֱמֶת, הַבָּא מִתּוֹךְ שִׂמְחָה וְנִגּוּן דִּקְדֻשָּׁה,
May I arouse and reveal the ten types of melody. May I hear the voice of melody that expresses the joy of mitzvot, as played by worthy and good musicians who produce holy melodies that come from the harp of David, who had a beautiful voice and played music well. As they play on their instruments, may the good spirit — the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of holiness, the spirit of joy — be separated from the depression of the spirit, from a melancholy and evil spirit, until I will attain a truly good spirit and always be joyful, and return to You completely with a truly broken heart that comes from joy and the melody of holiness.
עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לִשְׁפֹּךְ לִבִּי כַּמַּיִם נוֹכַח פְּנֵי יְהֹוָה בִּתְחִנָּתִי וּבַקָּשָׁתִי, וְאֶזְכֶּה לְפָרֵשׁ כָּל שִׂיחָתִי לְפָנֶיךָ בְּכָל לֵב וָנֶפֶשׁ וּבִבְכִיָּה גְּדוֹלָה מִתּוֹךְ שִׂמְחָה:
Then I myself will pour forth my heart like water before Your countenance as I pray and speak to You with all my heart and spirit, and with great weeping that comes from joy.
וְתַעַזְרֵנִי וְתוֹשִׁיעֵנִי שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה לָקוּם בְּכָל לַיְלָה בַּחֲצוֹת מַמָּשׁ, וְלֹא יַעֲבֹר עָלַי חֲצוֹת לַיְלָה בְּשֵׁנָה לְעוֹלָם, רַק אֶזְכֶּה לְהִתְעוֹרֵר וְלָקוּם בְּכָל לַיְלָה בַּחֲצוֹת מַמָּשׁ כָּל יְמֵי חַיַּי לְעוֹלָם, חֹק וְלֹא יַעֲבֹר, וְאֶזְכֶּה אָז לְהִתְגַּבֵּר כָּאֲרִי לַעֲסֹק בְּתוֹרָה וַעֲבוֹדָה בֶּאֱמֶת, עוּרָה כְבוֹדִי עוּרָה הַנֵּבֶל וְכִנּוֹר אָעִירָה שָּׁחַר:
Help me to arise every night, literally at midnight, without exception, rising up like a lion to learn Torah and serve You in truth. “Awaken my soul, awaken the lyre and harp; I will awaken the dawn.”
אָנָּא מֶלֶךְ רַחוּם וְחַנּוּן, זַכֵּנִּי לְהַרְבּוֹת בְּהִתְבּוֹדְדוּת וְשִׂיחָה בֵּינִי לְבֵין קוֹנִי בְּכָל יוֹם וָיוֹם, וְאֶת כָּל אֲשֶר עִם לְבָבִי אָשִׂיחָה לְפָנֶיךָ בָּאֱמֶת וּבִתְמִימוּת וּבְלֵב נִשְׁבָּר מְאֹד. וּבִפְרָט בְּכָל לַיְלָה וְלַיְלָה אַחַר חֲצוֹת לַיְלָה שֶׁאָז הַזְּמַן מְסֻגָּל לָזֶה בְּיוֹתֵר. תְּזַכֵּנִי אָז לְהִתְבּוֹדֵד בֵּינִי לְבֵין קוֹנִי וּלְפָרֵש כָּל שִׂיחָתִי לְפָנֶיךָ וְלָשׂוּחַ עִם לְבָבִי, וּלְחַפֵּשׂ וּלְבָרֵר הָרוּחַ טוֹבָה דְּהַיְנוּ הַנְּקֻדּוֹת טוֹבוֹת שֶׁיֵּשׁ בִּי עֲדַיִן וּלְבָרְרָם מִתּוֹךְ הָרוּחַ רָעָה.
Speaking to God at Length
[Merciful and Gracious King, guide me to speak to You at length every day, telling You everything in my heart, honestly and with a broken heart — particularly after midnight, which is the best time for this practice. Inspire me to tell You everything in my heart, to seek out and bring forth the good spirit — the good points within me — as I separate them from the evil spirit.
וְעַל־יְדֵי־זֶה אֶזְכֶּה לִשְׁמֹר אֶת הַזִּכָּרוֹן דִּקְדֻשָּׁה תָּמִיד, דְּהַיְנוּ לִזְכֹּר תָּמִיד הֵיטֵב תַּכְלִית הָאַחֲרוֹן לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא, וְלַחֲשֹׁב תָּמִיד עַל סוֹפִי וּלְאַדְבָּקָא מַחֲשַׁבְתִּי בְּעַלְמָא דְּאָתֵי, עַד שֶׁאֶזְכֶּה עַל־יְדֵי־זֶה לָשׁוּב בִּתְשׁוּבָה שְׁלֵמָה לְפָנֶיךָ.
In this way, help me to maintain my awareness of holiness, so that I will always be clearly aware of my ultimate purpose, which is to merit the World to Come, and I will constantly consider my end. Inspire me to cling in my thoughts to the World to Come, until I will at last return to You in complete repentance.]
וְזַכֵּנוּ לְבָנִים זְכָרִים חָיִּים וְקַיָּמִים, וְיִהְיוּ עוֹסְקֵי תוֹרָתֶךָ וּמְקַיְּמֵי מִצְוֹתֶיךָ וְעוֹשֵׂי רְצוֹנֶךָ כָּל יְמֵיהֶם לְעוֹלָם, הֵם וּבְנֵיהֶם וּבְנֵי בְנֵיהֶם עַד עוֹלָם, וְיִהְיֶה נִשְׁאָר זִכְרֵנוּ לְדוֹרֵי דוֹרוֹת עַד סוֹף כָּל הַדּוֹרוֹת,
For All Generations
God, please give me healthy sons who will learn Your Torah, keep Your mitzvot and do Your will throughout their lives — they, their children and their children’s children, for all generations. And may my memory remain throughout all their generations.
וְתִשְׁמְרֵם וְתַצִּילֵם מִכָּל חֵטְא וְעָוֹן וְאַשְׁמָה, וְתַאֲרִיךְ יְמֵיהֶם וּשְׁנוֹתֵיהֶם וְיַגְדִּילוּ שִׁמְךָ עַד עוֹלָם:
Guard them and keep them from every sin. Grant them long lives, and may they enhance Your Name forever.
רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, זַכֵּנוּ לְקַיֵּם מִצְוַת הַדְלָקַת נֵר חֲנֻכָּה בִּזְמַנּוֹ בִּשְׁלֵמוּת, וְיִהְיֶה חָשׁוּב לְפָנֶיךָ כְּאִלּוּ קִיַּמְנוּ מִצְוָה זֹאֹת בְּכָל פְּרָטֶיהָ וְדִקְדּוּקֶיהָ, וּכְאִלוּ כִּוָּנְנוּ כָּל הַכַּוָּנוֹת הַקְּדוֹשׁוֹת הַכְּלוּלִין בְּמִצְוַת הַדְלָקַת נֵר חֲנֻכָּה, עַד שֶׁנִּזְכֶּה עַל־יְדֵי־זֶה שֶׁתַּמְשִׁיךְ עָלֵינוּ הֶאָרַת קְדֻשַּׁת הַמֹּחִין הַקְּדוֹשִׁים מִשָּׁרְשָׁם הָעֶלְיוֹן הַקָּדוֹשׁ.
For Chanukah
[Master of the World, inspire me to perform the mitzvah of lighting the Chanukah lamp perfectly and in its proper time. Please consider my lighting the menorah as though I have done so with all its details and particulars, and as though I had in mind all the holy intentions included in the mitzvah, until in this way the illuminations of holy consciousness will be drawn down onto me from their supernal, holy root.
בִּבְחִינַת ״לְאַמְשָׁכָא מְשַׁח רְבוּת קוּדְשָׁא וּלְאַדְלָקָא בּוֹצִינָא״, עַד שֶׁנִּזְּכֶּה עַל־יְדֵי־זֶה לְהַגְדִּיל דַּעְתֵּנוּ וּבִינָתֵנוּ וּלְהַעֲמִיק מַחֲשַׁבְתֵּנוּ, לְהָבִין כָּל הָרְמָזִים הַקְּדוֹשִׁים שֶׁאַתָּה מְרַמֵּז לָנוּ בְּכָל מַחֲשָׁבָה דִּבּוּר וּמַעֲשֶׂה, שֶׁאַתָּה מַזְמִין לָנוּ בְּכָל עֵת לְפִי הָאָדָם וּלְפִי הַמָּקוֹם וְהַזְּמַן, שֶׁבְּכֻלָּם אַתָּה מְרַמֵּז לָנוּ רְמָזֶיךָ הַקְּדוֹשִׁים לְהִתְקָרֵב לַעֲבוֹדָתְךָ, וּלְאַדְבְּקָא מַחֲשַׁבְתֵּנוּ בְּעַלְמָא דְּאָתֵי בִּפְרָטִיּוּת, עַד שֶׁנִּזְכֶּה עַל יְדֵי זֶה לְהַעֲלוֹת וּלְהָקִים בְּחִינַת רַגְלֵי הַקְּדֻשָּׁה הַמְּלֻבָּשִׁין בְּזֶה הָעוֹלָם בְּכָל הַדְּבָרִים שֶׁבָּעוֹלָם.
Like the holy anointing oil, may it light a flame that will enhance my awareness and understanding, and deepen my thought to comprehend all the holy hints that You send me at every moment in my every thought, word and deed. You send these holy hints in accordance with each person, place and time, in order to teach us how to come close to You and cause our thoughts to cling to the World to Come in detail, until we lift up the feet of holiness that are hidden in all the things of this world.]
אָבִינוּ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמַיִם, מַלֵּא מִשְׁאֲלוֹתֵינוּ בְּרַחֲמִים, וְהַצִּילֵנוּ מִכֹּחַ הַמְדַמֶּה וּמִמִּיתַת הַלֵּב וּמִשִּׁכְחָה וּמֵרַע עַיִן בְּכָל הַבְּחִינוֹת,
Recalling the World to Come
My Father in Heaven, deliver me from the power of the imagination, from the “death of the heart,” from forgetfulness and from the evil eye, on every level.
וְזַכֵּנוּ לְזִכָּרוֹן דִּקְדֻשָּׁה שֶׁנִּזְכֶּה תָמִיד לְדַבֵּק מַחֲשַׁבְתֵּנוּ בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי בְּכָל יוֹם וָיוֹם וּבְכָל מָקוֹם וּמָקוֹם בִּכְלָל וּבִפְרָט,
Help me to attain an awareness of holiness, so that I will always bring my thoughts to cling to the World to Come wherever I am — in general and in detail.
וְלֹא נְאַבֵּד אֶת עוֹלָמֵנוּ חַס וְשָׁלוֹם בְּחִנָּם. וְנִזְכּוֹר אֶת יְמֵי הַחֹשֶׁךְ כִּי הַרְבֵּה יִהְיוּ כָּל שֶׁבָּא הָבֶל.
Let me not lose my world, Heaven forbid, for no good reason. Guide me to keep in mind that this world consist of “days of darkness which are many, all of them vanity.”
וְנִזְכֹּר אֶת בּוֹרְאֵנוּ בִּימֵי בְּחוּרוֹתֵינוּ, עַד אֲשֶׁר לֹא תֶחְשַׁךְ הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ וְהָאוֹר וְהַיָּרֵחַ וְהַכּוֹכָבִים וְשָׁבוּ הֶעָבִים אַחַר הַגָּשֶׁם.
Guide me to recall my Creator in the days of my youth, “before the sun, the light, the moon and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain.”
וְנִזְכֶּה לִזְכֹּר אֶת כָּל דִּבְרֵי הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת, וְלֹא נִשְׁכַּח דָּבָר מִמִּשְׁנָתֵנוּ. וְלֹא נִשְׁכַּח אֶת הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר רָאוּ עֵינֵינוּ וַאֲשֶׁר שָׁמְעוּ אָזְנֵינוּ מִפִּי חֲכָמֶיךָ הָאֲמִתִּיִּים.
Guide me to recall all the words of this teaching. May I not forget anything of what I have learned. May I not forget the things that my eyes have seen and the teachings of Your true sages that my ears have heard.
וְנִזְכֹּר בְּעַלְמָא דְאָתֵי תָמִיד, עַד אֲשֶׁר נִזְכֶּה לָשׁוּב אֵלֶיךָ בֶּאֱמֶת, וְלִהְיוֹת כִּרְצוֹנְךָ הַטּוֹב תָּמִיד.
May I always recall the World to Come until I truly return to You and I am truly a person who is in accordance with Your desire.
וּזְכָר לָנוּ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ אֶת בְּרִית אֲבוֹתֵינוּ, וְקַיֵּם לָנוּ מִקְרָא שֶׁכָּתוּב, וְזָכַרְתִּי אֶת בְּרִיתִי יַעֲקוֹב וְאַף אֶת בְּרִיתִי יִצְחָק וְאַף אֶת בְּרִיתִי אַבְרָהָם אֶזְכֹּר, וְהָאָרֶץ אֶזְכֹּר.
HaShem our God, recall Your covenant with our fathers. May the verses be realized, “I will recall My covenant with Jacob and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham will I recall, and the earth will I recall.”
וְנֶאֱמַר, וְזָכַרְתִּי לָהֶם בְּרִית רִאשׁוֹנִים אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אוֹתָם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם לְעֵינֵי הַגּוֹיִם לִהְיוֹת לָהֶם לֵאלֹהִים אֲנִי יְהֹוָה.
“I will recall for them the covenant of the first ones whom I brought out of the land of Egypt, in the sight of the nations, to be their God; I am HaShem.”
וְנֶאֱמַר, זָכַרְתִּי לָךְ חֶסֶד נְעוּרַיִךְ אַהֲבַת כְּלוּלוֹתָיִךְ לֶכְתֵּךְ אַחֲרַי בַּמִּדְבָּר בְּאֶרֶץ לֹא זְרוּעָה.
“I will recall to you the kindness of your youth, the love of your new marriage, when you followed after Me in the desert in a unsown land.”
וְנֶאֱמַר, הֲבֵן יַקִּיר לִי אֶפְרַיִם אִם יֶלֶד שַׁעֲשׁוּעִים כִּי מִדֵּי דַּבְּרִי בּוֹ זָכוֹר אֶזְכְּרֶנוּ עוֹד עַל כֵּן הָמוּ מֵעַי לוֹ רַחֵם אֲרַחֲמֶנּוּ נְאֻם יְהֹוָה.
“Is Ephraim not a precious son to me, a child of delights? Whenever I speak of him, I recall him yet more; therefore, I yearn for him. I will surely have compassion on him, says HaShem.”
זְכֹר רַחֲמֶיךָ יְהֹוָה וַחֲסָדֶיךָ כִּי מֵעוֹלָם הֵמָּה.
Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your kindness, for they are eternal.
חַטֹּאת נְעוּרַי וּפְשָׁעַי אַל תִּזְכֹּר כְּחַסְדְּךָ זְכָר לִי אַתָּה לְמַעַן טוּבְךָ יְהֹוָה:
Do not recall the sins of my youth. In Your kindness, take note of me now, for the sake of Your goodness, HaShem.
רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, זָכְרֵנוּ בְּזִכָּרוֹן טוֹב לְפָנֶיךָ וּפָקְדֵנוּ בִּפְקֻדַּת יְשׁוּעָה וְרַחֲמִים מִשְּׁמֵי שְׁמֵי קֶדֶם, וּזְכָר לָנוּ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ אַהֲבַת הַצַּדִּיקִים הַקַּדְמוֹנִים, בִּזְכוּתָם תַּעֲזֹר וְתָגֵן וְתוֹשִׁיעַ אֶת הָאַחֲרוֹנִים,
Master of the World, take heed of me for the good. Bring me salvation and compassion from the highest heavens. Recall for me, HaShem our God, the love of the early Tzaddikim. In their merit, protect and save those who come after them.
וְתִזְכֹּר אֶת עַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל הַנְּפוֹצִים עַל הֶהָרִים כַּצֹּאן אֲשֶׁר אֵין לָהֶם רוֹעֶה.
Recall Your nation, the Jewish people, who are scattered upon the mountains like sheep that have no shepherd.
זָכְרֵנוּ יְהֹוָה בִּרְצוֹן עַמֶּךָ פָּקְדֵנוּ בִּישׁוּעָתֶךָ לִרְאוֹת בְּטוֹבַת בְּחִירֶיךָ לִשְׂמֹחַ בְּשִׂמְחַת גּוֹיֶךָ לְהִתְהַלֵּל עִם נַחֲלָתֶךָ. לָמָּה לָנֶצַח תִּשְׁכָּחֵנוּ תַּעַזְבֵנוּ לְאֹרֶךְ יָמִים. הֲשִׁיבֵנוּ יְהֹוָה אֵלֶיךָ וְנָשׁוּבָה חַדֵּשׁ יָמֵינוּ כְּקֶדֶם.
Keep us in mind, HaShem, with Your favor for Your people. Send us Your salvation. May we see the goodness of Your chosen ones, rejoice in the joy of Your nation, and take pride in Your inheritance. “Why should You forget us forever, abandon us for length of days? Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”
יִהְיוּ לְרָצוֹן אִמְרֵי פִי וְהֶגְיוֹן לִבִּי לְפָנֶיךָ יְהֹוָה צוּרִי וְגוֹאֲלִי:
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”