(א) אֵין עוֹמְדִין לְהִתְפַּלֵּל אֶלָּא מִתּוֹךְ כֹּבֶד רֹאשׁ. חֲסִידִים הָרִאשׁוֹנִים הָיוּ שׁוֹהִים שָׁעָה אַחַת וּמִתְפַּלְּלִים, כְּדֵי שֶׁיְּכַוְּנוּ אֶת לִבָּם לַמָּקוֹם. אֲפִלּוּ הַמֶּלֶךְ שׁוֹאֵל בִּשְׁלוֹמוֹ, לֹא יְשִׁיבֶנּוּ. וַאֲפִלּוּ נָחָשׁ כָּרוּךְ עַל עֲקֵבוֹ, לֹא יַפְסִיק:
(1) [One] should not stand up to pray unless they are kavod rosh (lit. heavy/honorably headed). The Original Pious Ones used to wait one hour and then pray, in order to direct their hearts towards THE PLACE. [While one is reciting the Amidah,] even if the king greets him, he should not respond to him, and even if a snake wraps around his heel, he should not interrupt.
One who prays must focus his heart in all of the blessings. And if he is unable to focus his heart in all of them, he should focus his heart at least in one.
One who was standing in prayer in the Diaspora, should focus his heart toward the Land of Israel, as it is stated: “And they shall pray to You by way of their land." (I Kings 8:48) One who was standing in the Land of Israel, should focus his heart toward Jerusalem, as it is stated: “And they shall pray to the Lord by way of the city that You have chosen” (I Kings 8:44). One who was standing in Jerusalem, should focus his heart toward the Temple, as it is stated: “And they shall pray toward this house” (II Chronicles 6:32). One who was standing in the Temple, should focus his heart toward the Holy of Holies, as it is stated: “And they shall pray toward this place” (I Kings 8:35). One who was standing in the Holy of Holies, should focus his heart toward the seat of the ark-cover [kapporet], atop the ark, the dwelling place of God’s glory. One who was standing behind the seat of the ark-cover, should visualize himself as if standing before the ark-cover and turn toward it.
Consequently, one standing in prayer in the East turns to face west, and one standing in the West, turns to face east. One standing in the South, turns to face north, and one standing in the North, turns to face south; all of the people of Israel find themselves focusing their hearts toward one place, the Holy of Holies in the Temple.
(א) מִי שֶׁהִתְפַּלֵּל וְלֹא כִּוֵּן אֶת לִבּוֹ יַחֲזֹר וְיִתְפַּלֵּל בְּכַוָּנָה. וְאִם כִּוֵּן אֶת לִבּוֹ בִּבְרָכָה רִאשׁוֹנָה שׁוּב אֵינוֹ צָרִיךְ. מִי שֶׁטָּעָה בְּאַחַת מִשָּׁלֹשׁ בְּרָכוֹת הָרִאשׁוֹנוֹת חוֹזֵר לָרֹאשׁ. וְאִם טָעָה בְּאַחַת מִשָּׁלֹשׁ בְּרָכוֹת אַחֲרוֹנוֹת יַחֲזֹר לַעֲבוֹדָה. וְאִם טָעָה בְּאַחַת מִן הָאֶמְצָעִיּוֹת חוֹזֵר לִתְחִלַּת בְּרָכָה שֶׁטָּעָה בָּהּ וּמַשְׁלִים תְּפִלָּתוֹ עַל הַסֵּדֶר. וְכֵן שְׁלִיחַ צִבּוּר שֶׁטָּעָה כְּשֶׁהוּא מִתְפַּלֵּל בְּקוֹל רָם עַל דֶּרֶךְ זוֹ הוּא חוֹזֵר:
(1) If one has recited the Amidah without devotion, he should recite it again devoutly. If he, however, concentrated his attention during the recital of the first blessing, he need not read the prayer again. If one made a mistake in one of the first three blessings, he has to turn back to the beginning of the Amidah. If one made a mistake in one of the last three blessings, he turns back to the blessing relating to the restoration of the Temple Service. If he made a mistake in one of the intermediate blessings, he turns back to the beginning of the blessing in which he made the mistake, and then continues the Service in regular order to the end. The reader, if he makes a mistake when reading the Amidah aloud, follows the same rules.
(א) חמשה דברים מעכבין את התפלה אף על פי שהגיע זמנה טהרת ידים וכיסוי הערוה וטהרת מקום תפלה ודברים החופזים אותו וכוונת הלב.
(טו) כוונת הלב כיצד כל תפלה שאינה בכוונה אינה תפלה ואם התפלל בלא כוונה חוזר ומתפלל בכוונה מצא דעתו משובשת ולבו טרוד אסור לו להתפלל עד שתתיישב דעתו לפיכך הבא מן הדרך והוא עיף או מיצר אסור לו להתפלל עד שתתיישב דעתו אמרו חכמים ישהה שלשה ימים עד שינוח ותתקרר דעתו ואחר כך יתפלל.
(טז) כיצד היא הכוונה שיפנה את לבו מכל המחשבות ויראה עצמו כאלו הוא עומד לפני השכינה לפיכך צריך לישב מעט קודם התפלה כדי לכוין את לבו ואח"כ יתפלל בנחת ובתחנונים ולא יעשה תפלתו כמי שהיה נושא משאוי ומשליכו והולך לו לפיכך צריך לישב מעט אחר התפלה ואחר כך יפטר חסידים הראשונים היו שוהין שעה אחת קודם תפלה ושעה אחת לאחר תפלה ומאריכין בתפלה שעה.
(1) Prayer is suspended for five matters, even if the proper time for prayer has arrived: clean hands; covered loins; a clean environment for prayer; matters that would make one feel rushed; and inner mindfulness.
(15) Inner mindfulness: how does one attain it? Any prayer for which one is not fully mindful is not considered prayer. And if one prays without mindfulness, one must go back and pray [again, this time] with mindfulness. One who is confused or inwardly agitated is forbidden from praying until he settles himself; thus, one who has come in from traveling and is tired or unsettled is forbidden from praying until he settles himself. The sages used to say that he ought to wait for three days until he has rested and his emotions have cooled, and only afterward may he pray.
(16) How is intent (achieved)? A person should turn his heart from all thoughts and envision himself as if he is standing before the presence of God. Therefore he must sit a while before prayer in order to direct his heart and then he can pray with ease and supplications. And he should not treat his prayer like one who is carrying a burden and throws it down and moves on. Therefore he must sit a while after prayer and then take leave. The early pious individuals would wait an hour before prayer and an hour after prayer and would draw out their prayer for an hour.
Maimonides: Life and Thoughts, Moshe Halbertal, at 244-5: In Mishneh Torah's "Laws Concerning Prayer," two of Maimonides' rulings appear to contradict each other. On the one hand, he rules that because prayer without kavvanah is not considered real prayer, one who recites a mandatory prayer without kavvanah has not discharged his obligation and must repeat the prayer. Elsewhere, however, he rules that discharge of the obligation requires only that the first blessing of the amidah be recited with kavvanah; if he lacks kavvanah during the remainder of the amidah, his obligation is nonetheless discharged. One could maintain, as did several interpretors of Mishneh Torah, that the latter statement is simply a qualification of the first, limiting the reach of the obligation to maintain kavvanah....R. Chayyim Soloveitchik, who shrank from this kind of explanation, sought to account for the difference in a more substantive way, proposed that there were, in fact, two kinds of kavvanah. In first ruling that prayer without kavvanah was not prayer, Maimonides was using the term kavvanah to mean an awareness of standing before God....Later, however, when he writes of the minimal requirement--that one have kavvanah only during the first blessing--he is using the term in a different sense, to mean attentiveness to the meaning and wording of the passage being recited.
Prayer as Mantra
Jewish Meditation by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, Ch. 11
Since the Amidah was composed as a meditation prayer, it is as necessary to repeat it as often as possible. It is for this reason that it was repeated that the same prayer be said three times every day.
As discussed earlier, one of the reasons a mantra works is that when the words are said over and over, the mind develops a special resonance with them. The words can then be said automatically, without special effort or concentration. Since the mind is not concerned with saying the words, it can allow itself to be filled with their meaning.
The same is true of a prayer that is said every day. Eventually, one not only memorizes the words, but learns to say them automatically. After one has recited the Amidah three times daily for a few years, one can literally say the prayer without thinking...
If the Amidah is treated simply as prayer, this is a problem. However, if it is treated as a mantra, then the automatic nature of the recital is a great boon. The words themselves become like a mantra, quieting the mind and removing from it all extraneous thought...
Thus, when one says in the first blessing that God is "great," one has an overpowering experience of God's greatnes. Similarly, when one says that He is "mighty," one experiences His infinite strength.
There are two basic ways in which you can pace the recitation of the words. You can draw out each word as long as possible and then pause briefly to let the meaning sink in. Alternatively, you can recite the word and then wait for seven seconds before saying the next word. Each method is effective in its own way, and either can be used, depending on your preference.
While reciting a word, and for the period afterward, do not think of anything other than the simple meaning of the word. Allow the words to penetrate your inner being, opening yourself to feel and see the meaning of each word. During the pause between words, the mind is hushed in anticipation of the next word and then cleared of all other thoughts.
(א) הָיָה קוֹרֵא בַתּוֹרָה, וְהִגִּיעַ זְמַן הַמִּקְרָא, אִם כִּוֵּן לִבּוֹ, יָצָא. וְאִם לָאו, לֹא יָצָא. בַּפְּרָקִים שׁוֹאֵל מִפְּנֵי הַכָּבוֹד וּמֵשִׁיב, וּבָאֶמְצַע שׁוֹאֵל מִפְּנֵי הַיִּרְאָה וּמֵשִׁיב, דִּבְרֵי רַבִּי מֵאִיר.
(1) If one was reading [Shema] in the Torah, and it came time to recite [Shema]: If he directed his mind [and intended to fulfill his obligation to recite Shema as he read it], he has fulfilled his obligation. And if not, he has not fulfilled his obligation. At the breaks [between sections of Shema], one may greet another out of honor and return a greeting, and in the middle [of a section], one may greet out of fear and return a greeting. These are the words of Rabbi Meir.
א רבי בא בריה דר' חייא בר אבא אכל מהלך עומד ומברך. אכל עומד יושב ומברך. אכל יושב מיסב ומברך. אכל מיסב מתעטף ומברך. אם עשה כן הרי הוא כמלאכי השרת.
Rabbi Ba son of Rabbi Chiyya son of Aba teaches: If one ate while walking, he must stand and bless. If one ate while standing, he must sit and bless. If one ate while sitting, he must recline and bless. If one ate while reclining he must enwrap himself and bless. If he did this, he is like the ministering angels.
(ג) כִּי כָּל דִּבּוּר וְדִבּוּר הוּא עוֹלָם מָלֵא, וּכְשֶׁאָדָם עוֹמֵד לְהִתְפַּלֵּל, וּמְדַבֵּר דִּבּוּרֵי הַתְּפִלָּה, אֲזַי הוּא מְלַקֵּט צִיצִים וּפְרָחִים וְשׁוֹשַׁנִּים נָאִים. כְּאָדָם הַהוֹלֵךְ בְּשָׂדֶה, וּמְלַקֵּט שׁוֹשַׁנִּים וּפְרָחִים נָאִים אַחַת לְאַחַת, עַד שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה אֲגֻדָּה אֶחָת, וְאַחַר־כָּךְ מְלַקֵּט עוֹד אַחַת לְאַחַת, וְעוֹשֶׂה אֲגֻדָּה אַחֶרֶת וּמְחַבְּרָם יַחַד, וְכֵן הוֹלֵךְ וּמְלַקֵּט וּמְקַבֵּץ כַּמָּה וְכַמָּה אֲגֻדּוֹת יָפִים וְנָאִים. (ד) כְּמוֹ כֵן הוּא הוֹלֵךְ בִּתְפִלָּה מֵאוֹת לְאוֹת, עַד שֶׁמִּתְחַבְּרִים כַּמָּה אוֹתִיּוֹת, וְנַעֲשֶׂה מֵהֶם דִּבּוּר. וְכֵן עוֹשֶׂה בְּתֵבוֹת שְׁלֵמוֹת, וְאַחַר־כָּךְ נִתְחַבְּרִין שְׁתֵּי הַתֵּבוֹת. וְאַחַר־כָּךְ הוֹלֵךְ וּמְלַקֵּט יוֹתֵר, עַד שֶׁגּוֹמֵר בְּרָכָה אַחַת. וְאַחַר־כָּךְ מְלַקֵּט יוֹתֵר וְיוֹתֵר, וְהוֹלֵךְ מֵאָבוֹת לִגְבוּרוֹת, וּמִגְּבוּרוֹת לִקְדֻשּׁוֹת, וְכֵן הוֹלֵךְ לְהַלָּן יוֹתֵר. מִי יְפָאֵר גֹדֶל פְּאֵר הַלִּקּוּטִים וְהַקִּבּוּצִים, שֶׁאָדָם מְלַקֵּט וּמְקַבֵּץ בְּדִבּוּרֵי הַתְּפִלָּה. (ה) וּכְשֶׁהַדִּבּוּר יוֹצֵא, וְהַדִּבּוּר הוּא יוֹצֵא מֵהַנֶּפֶשׁ, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב (בראשית ב׳:ז׳): וַיְהִי הָאָדָם לְנֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה, וְתַרְגּוּמוֹ: לְרוּחַ מְמַלְּלָא; וְהַדִּבּוּר בָּא וְנִשְׁמָע לְאָזְנָיו, כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (ברכות טו): הַשְׁמַע לְאָזְנֶיךָ מַה שֶּׁאַתָּה מוֹצִיא בְּפִיךָ; (ו) אֲזַי הַדִּבּוּר מְבַקֵּשׁ וּמִתְחַנֵּן מֵהַנֶּפֶשׁ, לְבַל תִּפָּרֵד מִמֶּנּוּ. וְתֵכֶף כְּשֶׁיּוֹצֵא אוֹת רִאשׁוֹנָה, כְּגוֹן אוֹת בֵּי"ת מִתֵּבַת בָּרוּךְ, אֲזַי מְבַקֵּשׁ וּמִתְחַנֵּן מֵהַנֶּפֶשׁ לְבַל תִּפָּרֵד מִמֶּנּוּ:
(ז) כִּי אֵיךְ תּוּכַל לְהִתְפָּרֵד מִמֶּנִּי, לְגֹדֶל הַהִתְקַשְּׁרוּת וְהָאַהֲבָה שֶׁיֵּשׁ בֵּינֵינוּ. כִּי אַתָּה רוֹאֶה אֶת יְקַר יָפְיִי וְזִיוִי וַהֲדָרִי וְתִפְאַרְתִּי, וְאֵיךְ תּוּכַל לְנַתֵּק עַצְמְךָ מִמֶּנִּי וְלִפְרֹד מֵאִתִּי. הֵן אֱמֶת, שֶׁאַתָּה צָרִיךְ לֵילֵךְ יוֹתֵר, כְּדֵי לְלַקֵּט עוֹד סְגֻלּוֹת יְקָרוֹת וַחֲמוּדוֹת גְּדוֹלוֹת, אֲבָל אֵיךְ תּוּכַל לִפְרֹד מִמֶּנִּי וְלִשְׁכֹּחַ אוֹתִי, עַל כָּל פָּנִים תִּרְאֶה שֶׁבְּכָל מָקוֹם שֶׁתֵּלֵךְ וְתָבוֹא לְשָׁם לֹא תִּשְׁכַּח אוֹתִי, וְלֹא תִּפָּרֵד מִמֶּנִּי.
(3) Every single word is an entire world. When a person stands up to pray and recites the words of the prayers, he is gathering beautiful buds and flowers and blossoms, like someone walking in a field picking lovely blossoms and flowers one at a time, until he makes a bouquet. After that he picks more, one by one, making another bouquet, and joins them together. So he goes on, picking and gathering more and more lovely bouquets.
(4) This is likewise true of prayer: a person goes from letter to letter, until several letters are joined together and form a <single> word. He does the same <for a second word>. Then the two words are joined, and he goes on, gathering more, until he completes a single blessing. After that he goes on gathering more and more—from Avot to Gevurot, and from Gevurot to Kedushot. So he goes on, further and further. Who can extol the great splendor of the gleanings and gatherings that a person makes through the words of the prayers?...
(5) And when speech emerges, it emerges from the soul, as it is written (Genesis 2:7), “thus man became a living soul”—which the Targum renders as: “he became a speaking spirit.” The utterance emerges and is heard by his ears, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said: Let your ears hear what you are bringing forth from your mouth (Berakhot 15a) .
(6) Then the utterance begs and implores the soul not to part from it. As soon as the first letter emerges—such as the letter bet of the word Baruch—it begs and implores the soul not to part from it:
(7) “Considering the great bond and love between us, how can you separate yourself from me? You see my precious beauty, my radiance, my magnificence and splendor. How can you tear yourself away from me and leave me? True, you have to move on in order to gather additional valuable treasures and great delights. <Yet> how can you part from me and forget me? At least see to it that wherever it is you move on to, you don’t forget me or separate from me.”