[Avodah] kavanah in tefila

[Micha Berger]

On Tue, Jul 05, 2011 at 05:35:59AM +0300, Ben Waxman wrote:
: a. Despite what the Rishonim wrote (about our lack of kavana today)
: many great gedolim did delve into the issue of kavana in tefila and its
: importance. Those who did this obviously held that it is possible to
: succeed in having kavana.

I took the rishonim who were complaining about our kavanah were talking
(at different times) about two things:

1- Lemaaseh, today, kavanah is rare. When R' Matnaya thanked his head
for knowing when to bow at Modim it was guzma (compared to us, see #2);
today it's the norm. And therefore they held that we should not repeat
Ashrei if we said "Poseiach es yadekha" without kavanah, since the
repetition is not likely to be bekavanah either.

2- There is kavanah, and there is kavanah.

But not that one shouldn't try for as much kavanah as possible.

I think there are two definitions of kavanah floating around, though:

Cerebral/Litvish: peirush hamilim

Experiential/Chassidish: awareness of speaking to Avinu shebashamayim.

: b. We can ask the following: in a generation where so many people
: delve into issues of self awareness (in prayer and in other areas),
: perhaps it is time to return to the din of the Gemara. If someone can
: pray with kavana, then perhaps he should repeat his tefila if he failed
: to do so (perhaps the Rema was not talking about our generation).

All I know is that even when I try, e.g. during 10 Yemei Teshuvah when
I make a point of saying Birkhas Avos and Poseiach es Yadekha at the
meditative speed R' Aryeh Kaplan describes, I can lose myself between
starting and the third pasuq.

I'm not sure wanting to delve into self-awareness or even commiting to
do so can be counted on to produce results.

After all, you're not talking about getting above our current lack of
self-awareness, but getting above the level Jews were at when rishonim
were lamenting the death of real kavanah!

Just to get a handle on the difference between "kavanah" and "real
kavanah" (assuming you bought into my 2nd point):

Did these pesaqim about not repeating Ashrei come before or after the
time when people with "desk jobs" and full time stopped wearing tefillin
all day?

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             The purely righteous do not complain about evil,
micha at aishdas.org        but add justice, don't complain about heresy,
http://www.aishdas.org   but add faith, don't complain about ignorance,
Fax: (270) 514-1507      but add wisdom.     - R AY Kook, Arpilei Tohar