A certain rav once described the following scene: A nine-year-old boy and an old man stand side by side davening Shemoneh Esrei. Their eyes are closed as they sway back and forth with great devotion. We hope that the boy is aware of what he is doing, but the chances are slim. His mind is still too young and undeveloped to realize that he is davening to Hashem, and he probably does not understand most of the words; but that is okay. At this point in his life what is most important is that he get into the habit of davening. But what about his neighbor? Is he aware of what he is doing? Or is he still davening the way he did 70 years earlier? It could very well be that we are watching two young boys davening, one with a white beard and one without…
Because we started davening when we were young, we must stop and assess if the way we daven today parallels our current level of intelligence, maturity, and Torah knowledge. We must assess if it matches that of baalei teshuvah who, because they first learned to daven as elders, say each word clearly and slowly, and with great emotion.
Our first step in our journey through the world of tefillah should be to go back to the basics and relearn what tefillah is all about. Doing so will remove many of the misconceptions that still remain with us from our youth and let us really enjoy this special mitzvah.
Tefillah is not voluntary or something we do when we feel like it. It is one of the 613 mitzvos. Its source is in Kriyas Shema where we say “ule’ovdo b’chol livavchem – to serve Him with all your heart.” The Gemara (Ta’anis 2a) asks: “What is this avodah shebalev, this servitude of the heart? Tefillah.”
How often must we do this mitzvah? According to all opinions we must do it every day. (The only question is whether this rule comes from the Torah or our chachamim – an issue we will address later in the series.)
However, this raises a question. At first glance it would seem that the reason we daven is in order to ask Hashem for our needs. If someone does not want to avail himself of this golden opportunity, the fool should be left alone! Why did Hashem tell us that we have to daven?
Only Through Tefillah
Tefillah is found in countless places throughout the Torah. Rashi tells us (Breishis 2:5) that when Adam Harishon was created, he discovered himself in a desolate, barren, and gray world. There was not a single plant, shrub, or tree to be seen. So he turned to Hashem and recited the first prayer in the world’s history, and asked for rain. As soon as he did that, Hashem brought rain, and all the trees and plants that were just under the surface of the ground rose. Rav Yerucham Levovitz zt”l, the famed Mashgiach of Mir, explains (Da’as Torah ibid.) that this teaches us that everything is contingent on tefillah. Even something that we deserve and that is supposed to happen will not materialize unless we daven for it. For example, our forefathers and mothers were barren and would not have had children without their tefillos. Yaakov had to daven that Hashem help him in his travails regarding Esav, She’chem, Yosef, and Binyamin, even though he had enough merit to save himself. Similarly, even though Hashem had sworn to redeem Klal Yisroel from Mitzrayim, without their tefillos it would not have happened.
Rav Shlomo Wolbe zt”l (Alei Shur vol II, page 349) writes that our world can be compared to one gigantic mechanical clock. The huge hands are connected to millions of wheels and cogs, each one interlinked to the next. They will not budge an inch unless something makes them move, and that is the spring that is tightly wound inside. The spring that keeps our world going is tefillah!
Tefillah has many facets. Indeed, Chazal (Yalkut Shemoni Va’eschanan) point out that in Tanach, tefillah is referred to in thirteen different ways. This tells us that there are at least thirteen different angles to tefillah. Similarly, there are many explanations for the word tefillah, each one corresponding to a different aspect.
Today we will focus on one cited by Rav Shimshon Pincus zt”l in She’arim B’tefillah, page 102.
Rochel Imeinu said (Vayeitzei 30:8), “Naftulei Elokim niftalti.” Rashi cites several translations, and one is: “Bonds from Hashem; that is, ‘I am joined with my sister to merit children.’” Several seforim say that the word “tefillah” is based on this word “naftulei,” because through tefillah we are attached and joined to Hashem.
A Constant Bond
The Gemara in Yoma (76a) relates that the students of Rabi Shimon bar Yochai asked him why the mohn fell each day in the midbar. Wouldn’t it have been easier for Klal Yisrael if it had happened once a year? He answered with the following parable: A king had one son, and he gave him all his provisions for the entire year. As a result, his son never came to visit him. The next year he changed his approach. Now the son needed to come each day to his father for his needs. So too, Hashem wanted Klal Yisrael to realize that we were totally in His hands and thus had to daven to Him each day for food.
The Mesilas Yeshorim (Chapter 1) writes that we were placed in this world to serve our Creator. But in order to reward us for our efforts, Hashem created all sorts of distractions to distance us from Him. Our job is to avoid those distractions and come close to Him. We can suggest that in order to help us overcome these pitfalls, Hashem established the world in such a way that everything is contingent on tefillah. This built-in need ensures that we will constantly come close to Him and remember our purpose on earth.
All this gives us a brand new outlook on tefillah. First, we have learned that nothing can come without it. We may have treasure houses of wealth and bracha waiting for us in shomayim – children, nachas, health, parnasah, happiness – whatever we need. But if we do not ask Hashem for them, they will just sit up there. Asking does not take much effort – it is all contained in the words of Shemoneh Esrei. A little thought about what we are saying will bring the words to life.
However, it is important to remember that Hashem will not always fulfill our requests, as He knows what is best for us. But that doesn’t really matter, because receiving what we asked for is just a side benefit of tefillah. The main benefit is that we attach ourselves to Him and come close to Him.
