A Child’s Tisha B’Av Prayer

Jul 31st, 2009 by admin in Spiritual Growth

3 Comments

Child Praying

It was Tisha B’Av morning, I was sitting on the floor, saying the Morning Blessings. Meira, our three year old daughter, runs into the living-room and stops short.

“Mommy,” she asks. “Why did you break the couch? Why did you take the cushions off the couch, and put them on the floor?”

And so, I explain to her that today is Tisha B’Av, and we sit closer to the floor because we are sad. We remember the Bais Hamikdash that was destroyed.

“Well, who broke the Bais Hamikdash?”, she wonders.

“The Romans destroyed the Second Temple. We were not being nice to each other, and Hashem decided to burn down His House, and so He sent the Romans to do it”, I answer.

I expected her to go, and find some toys to play with. Instead, she climbs up to the back of the couch and onto the windowsill. She looks out the window and says: “ Oh! Here. I see Hashem in that cloud.” And she calls out with some indignation: “Hashem! Why did You let the bad guys break the Bais Hamikdash?” She continues excitedly: “I know that there is a new Bais Hamikdash in the sky, and You are also in the sky. So, can You please get it down for us? Thank You!”

With a smile on her face, she jumps from the windowsill to the couch, and clambers down to go about her three year old business.

I am still sitting with my opened Siddur in my hands. And I wonder if I will ever be able to pray like my three year old daughter.

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3 Comments

• Él-Ad Eliovson Aug 2, 2009 at 11:22 am

  Rav Nachman said that after he finished advancing and learning all the kavanot he decided it was best to return to just praying like a child. This is a beautiful example of why. Thank you for sharing this precious gem. Kninah hara, so zeese… And yes, you can daven with your *own* zeesekeit. Recapture the little child that’s still in you.

  Chazal teach us that the learning – and I would add the prayers – of children are one of the things that sustain the world (and us.)
• Rabbi Simcha Weinberg Aug 2, 2009 at 5:47 pm

  Reb Tzaddok teaches that each of us, at the beginning of an act of Service of God is as a child.
• Él-Ad Aug 3, 2009 at 4:47 am

  Thinking about Meira’s tefillah a little bit more (the little girl in the story), one aspect that strikes me is the immediacy of G-d’s presence that she experiences. G-d is *RIGHT* there for her, RIGHT now.

  Rav Aryeh Kaplan ztllh’h teaches in his book Jewish Meditation (chapter 12) that when we say the word “Attah” in Hebrew, “You” whenever we recite a blessing it refers to this relationship that we have with HaShem. This word should make us aware that we are speaking – directly – to Him. When we say this word, we should be aware of the Divine directly in front of us and feel all the love, strength and awe that exists…” [If you study and practice the content of chapters 11-12 in this book, it will change your life.]

  In the sefer Sha’arim B’Tefillah, Rav Dovid Pinkus ztllh’h also give teachings on how to achieve this sense of immediacy, particularly in the chapter on the mode of prayer called Pillul.