Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation

Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)

Sources of Avot and Mystical Encounters
Abraham-Tanach - Genesis Chapter 18
1. And the Lord appeared to him in the plains of Mamre; and he sat in the tent door in the heat of
the day;2. And he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him; and when he
saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the ground,
d Wl W d P d e ` x I e eipi r ` V I e a :mFI d mg M l d` d-g z R a Wi `Ed e ` x n n ipl ` A d ed i eil ` ` xI e `
b :d v x ` Eg Y W I e l d` d g z R n m z` x wl u xI e ` x I e eil r mi a S p mi Wp `
Isaac Genesis Chapter 24
62. And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he lived in the Negev. 63.And Isaac
went out to meditate in the field at the evening time; and he lifted up his eyes, and saw,
` V I e a x r zFp tl d c V A gEyl w g v i ` vI e bq :a b P d u x ` A a WFi `Ed e i `x i gl x ` A `FA n ` A w g v i e
` x I e eipi r
Jacob Chapter 28
10. And J acob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran. 11. And he lighted upon a
certain place, and remained there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of
that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.12. And he dreamed,
and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold the
angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Israel Chapter 32
25. And J acob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
26. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and
the hollow of Jacobs thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. 27. And he said, Let me
go, for the day breaks. And he said, I will not let you go, except you bless me. 28. And he said to
him, What is your name? And he said, Jacob. 29. And he said, Your name shall be called no
more J acob, but Israel; for as a prince you have wrestled with angels and with men, and have
prevailed. 30. And J acob asked him, and said, Tell me, I beg you, your name. And he said, Why
is it that you ask after my name? And he blessed him there. 31. And J acob called the name of the
place Peniel; for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. 32. And as he passed
over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he limped upon his thigh.
Moses, Exodus Chapter 3
1. And Moses kept the flock of J ethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock
far away into the desert, and came to the mountain of God, to Horeb. 2. And the angel of the
Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and, behold,
the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. 3. And Moses said, I will now turn
aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. 4. And when the Lord saw that he
turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And
he said, Here am I.
Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation
Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)
Various Sources on Hitbodedut
Lamentations 3:28.
Let him sit alone and in silence, because he has taken it upon him.
:eil r l hp i M mC i e c c A a Wi
Devarim, Chapter 5
The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. 3. The Lord made not this covenant with
our fathers, but with us, who are all of us here alive this day. 4. The Lord talked with you face to
face in the mount out of the midst of the fire, 5. *I stand between Adonai and you at that time, to
tell you the word of the Lord; for you were afraid because of the fire, and went not up into the
mount, saying,
...`e d d z r A m kipi aE d Fd i-oi A c nr i kp `*
Baal Shem Tov
Thus, on the one hand, our sense of separateness acts as a divide between God and ourselves, (as
the Besht explains in his comment on Devarim 5:5) And I (i kp `) stand between Adonai and
you-the sense of I-ness (zeikep`) is what is in the way. However, on the other hand, our
separate and individual uniquness is also the only pathway through which we can perceive God
as seen in the verse For I know that God is great
(Psalms 135:5; Rabbi Nachmans Wisdom, #1)
Rebbie Nachman
(commenting on Beshts commentary on Devarim 5:5)
However, we see here from our author that knowing oneself does not just mean knowing the
tendencies of ones lower self, but also transcending the separateness of the ego-self and
knowing ones true self. These are indeed two sides of the same coin. An experience of one is by
its very nature an experience of the other. Thus, when the Divine will was conveyed to Abraham
that he travel to the Promised Land, the message was Lekh Lekha L l-Kl(Go To Yourself!)
[Get away] from your country, from your birthplace and from your family. Self-identification
with parents, family friends and nationality creates our sense of separateness in the world.
Self-knowledge, in contrast, entails moving beyond self-identification and is the only way to
reach the spiritual promised land-ones true self
(Likutei Halakhot, Shabbat7:75, found in Visions of a Compassionate World, ft. chp. 1 note 3)
Source Unknown
.ip` dn .invrl ip`yke .il in .il ip` oi`
If I am not for myself, who is for me, but if I am for my own self [only],what am I, and if not
now, when? (Avot 1:14)
If I possess the level of Ein, of nothingness, yet I also possess the level of Ani, of knowing the
greatness of my soul, and can maintain the consciousness of both levels simultaneously, then I
will possess the level of Mi, which is the highest level of holiness. every person should strive for
this level, although it cannot be conceptually grasped by someone who has not personally
experienced it.
Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation
Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)
This idea is also succinctly captured in the following teaching of the famous Reb Zusya
(d.1800): Every person must always keep a little reminder in each of his pockets. In one it must
say, I come from dust and earth (Genesis 18:27),, and in the other, The world was created for
me (Sanhedrin 37a).
Besht
When a person knows his negative tendencies-his spiritual ailments-that very knowledge is the
key to healing himself. But when that knowledge is hidden from him...when the person is
unaware that he is spiritually ill-then there is no way that he can be healed
(Keter Shem Tov; Sefer Baal Shem Tov, VaYelekh, #4)
Reishit Chochmah
This material world is transient, but there is another, spiritual world which is eternal and
always-present. So you should separate yourself altogether from the things of this world, from its
pleasures, from its hatred and its fierce competitivness, ans even from speking about worldly
matters. And when you think that you no longer belong to this [lower] world, you will not speak
about it; rather, all your conversation will be about Torah and mitzvot, for they are of the upper,
spiritual world. So, too, will all your thoughts be in the Upper World, for it is what is important
to the soul. Why should you trouble your mind aobut things that not only are of no value or
benefit to your soul, but will cause it harm? So it is good for a person [to practice being in this
state, and] when he is involved in prayer or Torah to think that he is not [standing] in this
material world, but in the spiritual world, in the Garden of Eden, before the Divine Presence-and
through this he will purify his mind [until that is his actual experience always].
(Shaar haKedusha, chapter 4, #23)
The holiness we are to have vis-a-vis this world is that we are to separate from it and
from the things of this world, and be sanctifed to spirituality-as if we were not part of this world
at all. But the higher level of holiness depends on the sanctification [not only of our action, but]
of our mind, that it be totally involved in spiritual things and clinging in dvekut to the upper,
spiritual world... Those who attain this higher state are not on the same level as the rest of the
people who just do Torah and mitzvot without the inner elevation and are on the level of the
Lower Garden of Eden; for these other tzaddikim ascend [to the Upper Garden of Eden].
(Shaar haKedusha, chapter 4, #21)
Rebbie Nachman of Bratzlav
The dvekut of a person with the Infinite One must be according to the way of running and
returning: [you run to unite with God in mystical experience, through prayer, meditation, etc.,
where you lose consciousness of self, and then you return to this world, to do Gods will], so
that you do not completely lose yourself and died before your time from the mystic nullification
of self. Then, afterward, when you are on the level of returning, when you have returned to
your this-world self-consciousness and self-existence, an impression of the wonderful Light of
that higher dvekut yet remains with you, and that impression allows you to see and to know the
unity of the Infinite One in this world and His goodness, so that you know that everything is
good and that everything is one. And this level is like that of the World to Come. (Likutei
Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation
Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)
Aytzot-Hasagot, #2)
Baal Shem Tov (Besht)
(The Besht tells of his closeness to his father when he was a child (his father passed away when
he was five years old), and says:)
Before his death he called me to him and said to me, My child, always remember God is with
you. Never let this thought out of your mind. Go deeper adn deeper into it every hour and every
minute, and in every place. These words of his are still fixed in my heart and engraved in my
mind. And after my fathers death I always went off alone in seclusion, in forests and fields, to
strengthen this holy thought in my mind-that the glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, fills all
the earth, and that He is actually with me (Ikarei Emunah p.11).
The Piazezcena Rebbie
Many times during the day, at home and outside on the street, think with a broken heart: All the
world is Godliness, even the particles of earth beneath my feet, as well as the air I breathe within
me-and the reality of all taht exists is Godliness. Why then have I alone separated myself from
all his great camp of the Shekinah, to be independent unto myself? - Master of the World! Draw
me close to You, surounded with all Your blessings, and in complete repentance! (Bnai
Machshava Tovah, Seder Hadracha vKlalim, #7).
All the world is included in the holiness of His Godliness in total nullification; everything that
exists does His will. Just I alone, in my own willfulness, have removed myself as a separate
thing, far from Him, blessed be He, to wander outside this great camp of the Shekinah.
When you meditate on this continually, and fix it in your mind, then you force this thought on
yourself...and it is impossible that through this the holy vision not be revealed in your soul. For
by itself this is what your soul always sees-it is just the body that obscures its holy vision. And
when you force this thought on your body, meditating on it continuously, your soul emerges and
sees. If not always, at least there will be exalted moments and hours when you will see
(Bnai Machshava Tovah, Seder Emtzai vYesod haHevrah, #14).
Or HaGanuz LTzaddikim
There is service of God that involves movement, such as all the mitzvot which involve action
adn doing, and also Torah study adn prayer [which involve speech, movement of the lips, etc.]...
But there is also service of God through stillness and complete absence of movement, when a
person sits alone and in silence, and meditates on Gods exaltedness, blessed be He. For he
enters the world of thought, which is the world of absolute rest and stillness, and he draws this
on himself. And so should you, when you want to cleave to God through God-consciousness., sit
in absolute stillness with holy thoughts and awe and dvekut.
Shulkan Arukh 98:1 (quoting the Tur)
It is necessary that when one is praying he must havekavanah.One who is praying must
concentrate his heart, this means that one must focus on the words that are expressed with his
lips and must pray as if the Shekinah is constantly before him. He must remove all impeding
thoughts until he gets to pure thought and intention worthy of his prayer...This was the practice
of the hasidim who would meditate (hitboded) and concentrate in their prayers until they reached
Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation
Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)
a level where they divested themselves from the physical. The transcendental spirit would be
strengthened in them until they would reach a level close to prophecy.
Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation
Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)
SourceTexts For the Olam Visualization
Tanach - Genesis Chapter 15
1. After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram; I
am your shield, and your reward will be great.2. And Abram said, Lord God, what will you give
me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
3. And Abram said, Behold, to me you have given no seed; and, lo, one born in my house is my
heir. 4. And, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, This shall not be your heir; but
he who shall come forth from your own bowels shall be your heir. 5. And he brought him
outside, and said, Look now toward heaven, and count the stars, if you are able to count them;
and he said to him, So shall your seed be. 6. And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to
him for righteousness.
Rabbi Yehosuha Starrett commenting on Visions of a Compassionate World
For as long as Abraham saw himself as only dust (Genesis 18:27), he was trapped within the
laws of the Earth, as dictated by the influence of the stars and would forever remain infertile.
But when he could transcend the world and see it from above, he would also be able to
transcend his inborn nature, and could now become fertile. For as the author says in the
following chapter, these visualizations can bring about a complete transformation of self, and
such spiritual transformations have far-reaching effects on the physical level as well. God would
not change Abrahams lot externally until Abraham first changed himself internally.
Psalms 8: 4
When I contemplate Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the sun and the stars You set in
place, [I ask] what is a human being that You think of him, a mortal man that you should
consider him?
Tanach - Psalms Chapter 148
1. Hallelujah! Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights.
2. Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his host.
3. Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you stars of light.
4. Praise him, heavens of heavens, and you waters that are above the heavens.
5. Let them praise the name of the Lord; for he commanded, and they were created.
6. And he established them for ever and ever; he has made a decree which shall not pass.
7. Praise the Lord from the earth, you crocodiles, and all deeps;
8. Fire, and hail; snow, and vapors; stormy wind fulfilling his word;
9. Mountains, and all hills; fruitful trees, and all cedars;
10. Beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and winged birds;
11. Kings of the earth, and all peoples; princes, and all judges of the earth;
12. Young men and also virgins; old men, and children;
13. Let them praise the name of the Lord; for his name alone is exalted; his glory is above the
earth and heaven.
14. He also exalts the horn of his people, a praise for all his pious ones, for the children of Israel,
a people near to him. Praise the Lord!
Hitbodedut - Jewish Meditation
Rabbi Baruch HaLevi (www.RabbiB.com)
Sources to Look Up
-See Kaplans Sefer Yetzirah p.133 (visualizations I think)
-To Heal the Soul, p.149 (know thyself); p.xxix
-Rabbi Nachmans Wisdom #232
-Nachman, Likutei Moharan I:133 quoting Besht: The world is full of awesome and wondorous
spiritual lights and secrets, but a small hand stands before our eyes and blocks our vision
-Psalm 148 Visualization on Earth