By Rabbi David Sterne
Last week, we analyzed the Hebrew etymology of the word, tefila (“prayer”) and concluded that it is from a word meaning “struggle, or wrestle,” as Rashi says. Proper tefila – prayer – demands meditation and also implies a mental struggle to remain focused on God as we pray. And also as we pray, a struggle between our divine side and our more physical animal side takes place. As we ascend the spiritual ladder of prayer, we are forced to struggle against the tendencies of our animal soul to pull us down. The emphasis on meditation and struggling to focus on divine matters is why the word tefila comes from an etymological root meaning “struggle.”
This week, let’s look at a more practical issue, which is – must we pray together with the minyan (prayer quorum of ten Jewish men), or may we pray on our own, individually? According to Jewish law, of course we should always seek a minyan with which to pray. However, another major requirement of tefila – prayer – is that we must have kavana, or intention of the heart. In fact, prayer without kavana is not even considered prayer. And some people feel that they cannot pray with proper kavana when they pray with a minyan. So, of course the question arises whether it is better to pray in a minyan without kavana or not to pray with a minyan, as long as we have kavana.
Ultimately the answer to this question must be decided by each individual in consultation with his personal rabbi or mentor. However, there are certain advantages to praying with a minyan that should not be overlooked. Those advantages have to do with the benefit that a public has over an individual. There is a general instruction from the Torah to pray directly to God, without intermediaries. And yet, the Zohar tells us that there is an angel – Metat is his name – who receives the prayers of the Jews, and “kisses and caresses them” in order to elevate them to God. So, if so, then what happened to our direct connection with God, and the instruction to pray directly to Him, without intermediaries (such as angels)? Why is an angel necessary to elevate our prayers instead of them ascending directly to God Himself?
But, the answer is that when we pray alone, our prayers usually have to go through the intermediaries – the angels –before arriving at their final destination. Our prayers have to go through a step by step process, pausing at various spiritual levels to become more polished and refined, before they arrive at their final destination, before God Himself. But, if we pray in a minyan, then all of our prayers ascend together to the One above, directly, without pausing at intermediate stations such as the various angels (from the Rebbe Rashab in Sefer Maamorim 5679 (1919), page 177). So, one advantage to praying in a minyan, is that our prayers do not meet up with any obstacles or resistance – they ascend directly to the One above.
On the other hand, there are circumstances in which even the prayers of an individual ascend directly, avoiding any pauses or intermediaries. One of the circumstances is during the ten days of repentance – the days between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, when “the Lamp is close to the sparks” and it is easier for us to connect with God. We feel His presence more intensely because it is a time of inner turmoil and teshuva, when we want to work on ourselves and uplift ourselves. And therefore, during the ten days of teshuva, the prayers of an individual are considered just as efficacious as the prayers of the public in a minyan.
A similar principle applies to the person who prays from the depth of their heart, out of distress. Because he or she is crying out to God, directly from the very essence of their being, there is nothing that stands in the way of their prayers, and they ascend directly to God without any pauses or intermediaries such as the angels. The archetypal example is Hannah, who prayed in Shiloah from the depth of her heart for a child. Her prayers were so intense that the High Priest mistook her for an inebriated woman, until Hannah explained the circumstances of her prayers. The same applies to our prayers upon meditation. Our meditation should lead us to the realization that we are very far away from God and from holiness, and therefore we are appealing to Him out of distress and out of desperate desire to approach Him and be close to Him. Because of the desperate nature of our appeal, our prayers originate from within the higher levels of our soul (from the “makifim”), which are directly in contact with the One above (see Sha’arei Tefila from Heichal Menachem quoting the Lubavitcher Rebbe that this style of prayer is from the Torah, not the rabbis). And therefore, prayer on this level also goes directly to God, without need of intermediaries such as the angels. In all other cases, though it is preferable to seek out a minyan in which to pray, rather than pray as an individual.
Rabbi David Sterne is a prolific author on chassidic thought and has translated many of its seminal works. He resides in Israel and is the director of Jerusalem Connection. To read more of his work and to purchase his books visit http://www.jewishspiritualbook
