Description: Bitzur 04
She’arim BiTefillah
Bitzur 04
There’s a sefer called Marganisah Tovah, which the Chafetz Chaim printed a part of it in the back of sefer Ahavas Chesed. In there he writes, that a person has to be careful, ‘yizahair,’ that the humility and fear he feels while in a tzarah, a dire situation, he should attempt to recreate while in good times as well, to conduct himself with that level of humility and fear of Hashem.
This is really a pasuk, which the Gemarah darshens, it says, ‘ha’yaroch shivachah lo bitzar,’ will you prepare your cries of tefillah without the tzarah. The Gemarah says, that if not that Avraham had davened between Beis Keil and Ay while traveling through Eretz Yisrael, nothing would have been left of Klal Yisrael. That place was where Achan stole from the booty of Yericho, and caused Klal Yisrael to suffer a loss in their war of conquest – the only loss. If not that Avraham had preempted by davening in that place, their loss would have been so devastating it would have destroyed their army. This demonstrates the power and importance of davening as if there is a tzarah, but before it actually happens.
The truth is that this is itself a segulah to protect us from tzaros. Often a tzarah only happens in order to encourage us to daven. As we have quoted earlier, the only reason the Avos suffered from childlessness was so that they would daven. That’s why this sefer uses the language, lizahair, to be careful. Because davening properly simply saves us from dangerous situations!
The Raavad in his sefer of Shailos and Teshuvos known as Tmim Deim writes a fascinating point in halachah. He is going according to those rishonim who hold that if we don’t daven in lashon hakodesh, the Malachim don’t understand us, and they won’t bring those tefillos up to Shamayim. Therefore, he writes that women who don’t understand lashon hakodesh, (which was common in those days because the girls didn’t receive an education,) and prefer to daven in the language they understand, run the risk of their tefillos not being heard, unless they are davening together with a tzibbur. When davening together with a tzibbur, Hashem is simply there – because the Shechinah rests on a tzibbur. (As an aside, this should reflect on the importance of making tefillah b’tzibbur!) But then he adds, that if a person is davening with tears and from being in a difficult situation – it doesn’t make a difference what language they daven in – because Shaarei dimaos and onaah lo ninalu, the gates of tears and inflicted pain never close – Hashem waits for those tefillos personally!
Likewise, he writes, if a person davens with great kavanah from a tzarah, in a dire situation, they will be heard even though the Malachim don’t understand and aren’t able to bring those tefillos, as we see from Menashe the king. The story of Menashe was that he had done tremendous avairos, and caused many of Klal Yisrael to sin with him. He brought Avodah Zarah into Klal Yisrael and into the Beis Hamikdash. He murdered many people – for political gains. He was captured after decades of this behavior, and his captors placed him in a pot and began to cook him alive. They were into that kind of thing then. He davened to Hashem, a whole story in itself, but finally he turned to Hashem. The Malachim, according to the Gemarah were trying to slam the doors of heaven shut and deny entrance to Shamayim. Hashem, so to speak, dug a passageway in the heavens to allow Menashe’s tefillos through, and he was miraculously saved. We see from here, says the Raavad, that earnest tefillos, in times of great need, are heard directly by Hashem, without need of Malachim.
This concludes the section of Bitzur. We now will begin Shavah iy”H.
She’arim BiTefillah
Bitzur 04
There’s a sefer called Marganisah Tovah, which the Chafetz Chaim printed a part of it in the back of sefer Ahavas Chesed. In there he writes, that a person has to be careful, ‘yizahair,’ that the humility and fear he feels while in a tzarah, a dire situation, he should attempt to recreate while in good times as well, to conduct himself with that level of humility and fear of Hashem.
This is really a pasuk, which the Gemarah darshens, it says, ‘ha’yaroch shivachah lo bitzar,’ will you prepare your cries of tefillah without the tzarah. The Gemarah says, that if not that Avraham had davened between Beis Keil and Ay while traveling through Eretz Yisrael, nothing would have been left of Klal Yisrael. That place was where Achan stole from the booty of Yericho, and caused Klal Yisrael to suffer a loss in their war of conquest – the only loss. If not that Avraham had preempted by davening in that place, their loss would have been so devastating it would have destroyed their army. This demonstrates the power and importance of davening as if there is a tzarah, but before it actually happens.
The truth is that this is itself a segulah to protect us from tzaros. Often a tzarah only happens in order to encourage us to daven. As we have quoted earlier, the only reason the Avos suffered from childlessness was so that they would daven. That’s why this sefer uses the language, lizahair, to be careful. Because davening properly simply saves us from dangerous situations!
The Raavad in his sefer of Shailos and Teshuvos known as Tmim Deim writes a fascinating point in halachah. He is going according to those rishonim who hold that if we don’t daven in lashon hakodesh, the Malachim don’t understand us, and they won’t bring those tefillos up to Shamayim. Therefore, he writes that women who don’t understand lashon hakodesh, (which was common in those days because the girls didn’t receive an education,) and prefer to daven in the language they understand, run the risk of their tefillos not being heard, unless they are davening together with a tzibbur. When davening together with a tzibbur, Hashem is simply there – because the Shechinah rests on a tzibbur. (As an aside, this should reflect on the importance of making tefillah b’tzibbur!) But then he adds, that if a person is davening with tears and from being in a difficult situation – it doesn’t make a difference what language they daven in – because Shaarei dimaos and onaah lo ninalu, the gates of tears and inflicted pain never close – Hashem waits for those tefillos personally!
Likewise, he writes, if a person davens with great kavanah from a tzarah, in a dire situation, they will be heard even though the Malachim don’t understand and aren’t able to bring those tefillos, as we see from Menashe the king. The story of Menashe was that he had done tremendous avairos, and caused many of Klal Yisrael to sin with him. He brought Avodah Zarah into Klal Yisrael and into the Beis Hamikdash. He murdered many people – for political gains. He was captured after decades of this behavior, and his captors placed him in a pot and began to cook him alive. They were into that kind of thing then. He davened to Hashem, a whole story in itself, but finally he turned to Hashem. The Malachim, according to the Gemarah were trying to slam the doors of heaven shut and deny entrance to Shamayim. Hashem, so to speak, dug a passageway in the heavens to allow Menashe’s tefillos through, and he was miraculously saved. We see from here, says the Raavad, that earnest tefillos, in times of great need, are heard directly by Hashem, without need of Malachim.
This concludes the section of Bitzur. We now will begin Shavah iy”H.