Hisbodidus Versus Meditation

Hisbodidus Versus Meditation

Hisbodidus literally means to be alone in seclusion. The definition for meditation is: Continuous and profound contemplation or musing on a subject or series of subjects of a deep or abstruse or spiritual nature. The parameters of each of these disciplines can be broadened so that they overlap. Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan obm, a great genius and prolific author and translator whose main mentor was a Breslover Chusid, wrote that probably his biggest chiddush (novel idea and insight) was to translate the common word “kavana” which people always use to mean focus of concentration and meaningful intention, as meditation. In this vein he went on to explain that hisbodidus can also be referring to meditation.

RAK obm went so far as to suggest that what Rabbainu revealed and instructed that when doing hisbodidus and one has no words, he should repeat over and over again whatever words he does have, giving an example: “Reeboanoa (Master) Shel (of) Oalum (the World),[1][2]” if one has nothing to say during hisbodidus, he can even just repeat this over and over again[3][4], RAK wrote that this could be alluding to the methodology of the mantra.

Students of the Mussar movement were known to repeat holy dictums of our Holy Sages over and over again even for hours on end (-one dictum I remember cited specifically is that of Rabbi Yaakov, prepare yourself in the “prozdor” (anti-chamber – this world) in order to enter the “traklin” (palace – future world), and with regard to them I would definitely feel comfortable calling this a form of meditation. The Talmud itself speaks often of Sages repeatedly reviewing specific teachings 40 times or even 400 times, and actually discusses (Shabbos 66b) “minyunay” - countings – incantations that are to be said numerous times. The Talmud says that if such an incantation does not have a given amount of times it is to be said, then it should be said forty one times.

The Ramchal already describes this method in his awesome work Adir Bamurom (Spinner’s edition, pages 39 and 50), and in his essay Derech Eitz Hachaim. In The Words of Rabbi Nachman, article 58, Rabbi Nachman revealed that, “When pondering the Torah one needs to think over the matter of the Torah in which he wants to gain novel insight, to ponder over and over again in his thoughts the verse or the specific matter very many, many numerous times, and to knock and rap on the door until they open for him.” This is certainly a form of meditation.

Rabbi Chaim Vital also documented different forms of holy mantras and meditations in the fourth section of Shaaray Kedusha (The Gates of Holiness). These are just some of the places where mantras and meditations are discussed explicitly. Furthermore, the holy book Shaar Ruach Hakoadesh (The Gate of Divine Inspiration) is dedicated to “yichudim” – unifications, that is systems of Divine and supernal names to contemplate and unite in thought, these would be considered meditations. The Arizal revealed to Rabbi Chaim Vital that doing yichudim was more important and holy than learning Torah. Thus all the great kabbalists and Chasidic masters, and even some of the other rabbis, were very busy doing yichudim. Rabbi Nachman said (The Life of Our Leader Rabbi Nachman, article 148) that even the great tzadikim who conducted their entire lives, their every act and behavior according with yichudim, he can show them that they know nothing of the way of yichudim, and show them the way. Rabbi Nussun points out (Words of Rabbi Nachman, article 185), that Rabbi Nachman gave people personal rectifications, specific to the root of their soul, and all these instructions were not in the way of the secrets of the yichudim, just practical devotions. Here again we see that even though the terms of meditation were very familiar and fluent to Rabbi Nussun, he specifically does not use them, and on the contrary, he makes it clear that Rabbi Nachman’s main instructions to the people were not of this type.

Also in regard to the Kavanos of the Arizal for the prayers, even for most of those that Rabbi Nachman himself told to study them, he instructed them not to actually do them, only those who had reached the level of understanding that these kavanoas were second nature to them as they were actually living them in reality, and these kavanos were for them the simple meaning, only for such people Rabbi Nachman allowed to actually practice doing them (Words of Rabbi Nachman, article 75).[5] Further on, you will see that even Rabbi Nachman himself chose to engage in pure heartfelt prayer.

Further, Rabbi Nachman wrote explicitly about ascending into the “World of Thought”, in Likutay Moharan, Torah-teaching 234, he writes that, “This is called the ascent of the worlds, because thought is extremely high, and whoever desires to enter the World of Thought must be silent, and even if he speaks then a proper word, he will lose the thought, because the thought is an extremely high matter, that even a proper utterance will ruin (it), and this is the aspect of (Minuchos 29), ‘Silence! Thus has risen in the thought!,” for to ascend to the thought it is necessary to be silent, and even if one will be silent and not speak at all, even still there are many confusions which confuse the thought and prevent it, and what is needed for this is purity of thought, and this is through recounting stories of tzadikim, see there.”

Thus, we find places where Rabbi Nachman spoke directly about methodology of meditation and attaining a meditative mind set. This does not seem to be the case with regard to his instructions on prayer and hisbodidus.

In The Life of Our Leader Rabbi Nachman (article 239), “One time a youngster asked Rabbi Nachman how to do hisbodidus, and Rabbi Nachman taught him how to say before Hashem Yisburach, ‘Master of the World have mercy on me etc. because is it possible that I should pass my days with such vanity, can it be that for this I was created?!’ Afterwards, at some point of time, this person stood behind the wall of Rabbainu o.b.m., and he hear Rabbainu himself pouring out his heart before Hashem Yisburach with words like these.”

In The Life of our Leader Rabbi Nachman (Chayay Moharan 441) it is taught: Once Rabbainu obm spoke of the necessity to engage copiously in reciting Psalms, and entreaties, and supplications, and hisbodidus etc. So the Rav, Rabbi Yudel obm asked him, “How does one get heart? (i.e. how does one merit that this verbiage will be with arousal of the heart).” Rabbainu obm answered him, “Tell me, by which tzadik have you received arousal of the heart, the main thing is the saying with the mouth.” I.e. to abound in words of entreaties and supplications with the mouth, and the arousal of the heart will come of itself (see The Words of Rabbi Nachman, article 75).” This shows very clearly that Rabbainu did not intend for one’s main hisbodidus to be an exercise of meditation, rather a session of ardent and profuse verbal expression of prayer in which all ascensions would come of their own accord, not through directly grasping them or their invocation. Also, in the The Words of Rabbi Nachman (article 75) Rabbainu made it very clear that the main kavana – intention and focus – of the prayer should be just to understand the simple straightforward meaning of the words and to hear them well, and definitely not to engage in Kabalistic schemes and intentions. Also, in all these places and many more (see e.g. The Words of Rabbi Nachman article 74), the main direction seems to be a striving for more passionate prayer, and not necessarily to be trying to achieve higher consciousness. Rabbainu did instruct (Words of Rabbi Nachman 232) once “To have two hours of hisbodidus a day, one hour as a preparatory session, to go and yearn and prepare himself to speak, and to arrange his heart for such, and then to speak for one hour.” This preparatory hour can be taken to be even a meditation, however the purpose and the activity of the main hour of hisbodidus is simply: to speak.

Furthermore, even though the world of thought is higher than the world of speech, Rabbainu said that ultimately speech is more powerful. Similarly Rabbainu said his main thing was emuna – faith, which even though it is the lowest Sefirah, whereas the Sefiros of thought (ChaBaD – Chuchmuh – wisdom, Beena – understanding, and Daas – realization of knowledge) are on the top, through faith one merits and attains the absolute highest attribute of Kessehr – Crown, which is “ratzon” – will and desire even to an infinite extent.

So in conclusion, it seems clear that the primary hisbodidus of Rabbi Nachman was not meant to be an exercise of meditation, just time spent alone in seclusion conversing with G-d Almighty. Meditation is important and should even be used to prepare for hisbodidus, and when meditating it is necessary to be completely silent.  However, hisbodidus is definitely included in the broader sense of the word meditation, as it is definitively a state of mind. Rabbainu revealed some of the physical criteria which facilitate successful hisbodidus, such as going out somewhere no one goes, and at a time when everyone is asleep, but ultimately one can do hisbodidus even when surrounded by a tumultuous crowd, as Rabbainu said of himself (Chayay Moharan – The Life of Our Leader Rabbi Nachman, article 241): “When do I have hisbodidus?” and he said, that at the time when everyone is standing around him and he sits in their midst, then he has hisbodidus.”[6]

Na Nach Nachma Nachman MayUman

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[1] In Chayay Moharan – The Life of Our Leader Rabbi Nachman, article 440, Rabbainu said that even if one has nothing to say just “Master of the World,” this is also very good.

[2] In the Letters of Rabbi Nachman of Tulchin, published in Ullim Litrufah, he writes, “And even if one can’t speak but a few words, “Master of the World, have mercy on me.” The added words, “have mercy on me,” make it clearer that this is intended more as a prayer than as a meditation.

[3] Likutay Moharan II, Torah-teaching 96, brought in Outpouring of the Soul (article 4). There Rabbainu says one should speak this thing that he does have many, many times without limit or measure, and even to spend many, many days just with these words alone, this is also good.

[4] Rabbi Nussun was once confronted and challenged by the praises of a certain scholar who was profuse in 500 pages of the Talmud by heart, Rabbi Nussun retorted that his Moshelle (-R’ Moshe Breslover, the mentor of Rabbi Yisroel Karduner) can say Master of the World 500 times (Yisroel Saba, chapter of One Silence. To See The Blossoms of the Spring, chapter of Prayer).

[5] There are of course exceptions to this general rule. The main one being for the Tikun Klalli – the ten Psalms Rabbi Nachman revealed as a general comprehensive rectification, for this Rabbi Nachman himself revealed Divine Names that should be kept in mind when saying them.

From here we can establish that obviously Rabbi Nachman was not ruling out the holy practice of doing yichudim, rather he was making it clear that the quintessential devotion must be with simplicity and wholesomeness – each person according to their level, and the main thing is real dialogue and expression, and not to overreach and lose that personal perspective.

[6] This is like the classic Book of Charedim writes (page 48, also included in the daily learning of the Chok LiYisroel, for the Monday of the Torah Portion of Meekaitz): It is written (Genesis 6), “With the Lord walked Noach,” i.e. he would do hisbodidus with his Creator, and he didn’t have companionship with people, or, due to his habituation to hisbodidus, even when he was in the midst of people they didn’t unsettle his mind, because they were as not in his eyes, and this is what the poet (Rabbi Avrohom Ibn Ezra, “Agadelchuh”) said, “When I stand in the midst of Your congregation Rock/Creator to exalt, to You I prostrate and bow (my) head and stature,” that is to say, that their company doesn’t encumber me to detach my thought from You, because the whole world is a flock of sheep, and He Blessed He is the solitary shepherd and overseer over every single particular etc..