[The English translations are from Chabad.org]
Sometimes, despite helpful guides like Outpouring of the Soul or In Forest Fields, we get stuck when we want to talk to Hashem. In such situations, it helps to borrow the hitbodedut of spiritual giants.Their hitbodedut can be said as if it's coming from our hearts. Or it can be used as a jumping off point for our own hitbodedut or as a guide. Let's start with the hitbodedut of Yom Kippur's haftarah: Yonah Hanavi.
Yonah 2:3-10
And he said: I called out from my distress to the Lord, and He answered me; from the belly of the grave I cried out, You heard my voice. And You cast me into the deep in the heart of the seas, and a river surrounded me; all Your breakers and Your waves passed over me. And I said, I have been driven away from before Your eyes. Indeed, I will continue to gaze upon Your Holy Temple. Water has surrounded me even to the soul, the deep encompassed me; the Red Sea hangs over my head. To the bottom of the mountains I descended, the earth-its bars are closed on me forever; but You brought up my life from Gehinnom, O Lord, my God. When my soul grew faint upon me, I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came to You to Your Holy Temple. Those who keep worthless futilities abandon their kindness. But I with a voice of thanks will I sacrifice to You; what I vowed I will pay, for the salvation of the Lord.
Then there's Ezra Hasofer
Ezra 9:6-15
And I said, "O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have increased over our heads, and our guilt has grown up to the heavens. Since the days of our forefathers, we are in great guilt until this day, and because of our iniquities, we were delivered-we, our kings, our priests-into the hands of the kings of the lands by the sword, in captivity, and with plunder and with shame-facedness as of this day. And now, for a short moment, favor has been granted by the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, so that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little life in our servitude. For we are slaves, and in our servitude our God has not forsaken us, and He has extended loving-kindness upon us before the kings of Persia, to give us life, to exalt the House of our God and to erect its ruins, and to give us a fence in Judea and in Jerusalem. And now, what shall we say, O God, after this, for we have forsaken Your commandments, which You have commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, 'The land that you are coming to inherit is an unclean land because of the uncleanliness of the peoples of the lands, by their abominations with which they filled it from end to end with their uncleanliness. And now, you shall not give your daughters to their sons, neither shall you take their daughters for your sons, and you shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity to eternity, in order that you become strong and eat the goodness of the land, and you shall cause your children to inherit it to eternity.' And after all that has come upon us because of our evil deeds and because of our great guilt, because You our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and You have given us a remnant such as this. If we revert to breaking Your commandments to intermarrying with these abominable peoples, will You not be wroth with us until destruction without remnant or escape? O Lord God of Israel, You are righteous, for we are left a remnant as of this day; behold we are before You in our guilt, for we cannot stand before You because of this."
And here's one from Sefer Nechemiah.
Nechemiah 1:5-11
And I said, "I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, Who keeps the Covenant and loving-kindness to those who love Him and to those who keep His commandments. Let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to listen to the prayer of Your servant, which I pray before You today, day and night, concerning the Children of Israel, Your servants, and I confess the sins of the Children of Israel, which we sinned against You; and I and my father's house have sinned. We have dealt corruptly against You, and we have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the ordinances that You commanded Moses, Your servant. Remember now the word that You commanded Moses, Your servant, saying, 'If you deal treacherously, I shall scatter you among the nations. And if you return to Me and keep My commandments and perform them-if your exile is at the end of the heaven, from there I shall gather them, and I shall bring them to the place that I chose to cause My Name to rest there.' Now they are Your servants and Your people, whom You redeemed with Your great strength and with Your strong hand. I beseech You, O Lord, may Your ear now be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and to the prayer of Your servants, who wish to fear Your name, and cause Your servant to succeed today, and grant him mercy before this man."
And really, the entire book of Tehillim can be said as a personal prayer. In fact, Likutei Mohoran II quotes Rebbe Nachman as saying that each perek of Tehillim can be read as a personal prayer. Even the verses about fighting kings and battles are metaphors for our inner battles.
May we all always have meaningful talks with Hashem.
Sometimes, despite helpful guides like Outpouring of the Soul or In Forest Fields, we get stuck when we want to talk to Hashem. In such situations, it helps to borrow the hitbodedut of spiritual giants.Their hitbodedut can be said as if it's coming from our hearts. Or it can be used as a jumping off point for our own hitbodedut or as a guide. Let's start with the hitbodedut of Yom Kippur's haftarah: Yonah Hanavi.
Yonah 2:3-10
And he said: I called out from my distress to the Lord, and He answered me; from the belly of the grave I cried out, You heard my voice. And You cast me into the deep in the heart of the seas, and a river surrounded me; all Your breakers and Your waves passed over me. And I said, I have been driven away from before Your eyes. Indeed, I will continue to gaze upon Your Holy Temple. Water has surrounded me even to the soul, the deep encompassed me; the Red Sea hangs over my head. To the bottom of the mountains I descended, the earth-its bars are closed on me forever; but You brought up my life from Gehinnom, O Lord, my God. When my soul grew faint upon me, I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came to You to Your Holy Temple. Those who keep worthless futilities abandon their kindness. But I with a voice of thanks will I sacrifice to You; what I vowed I will pay, for the salvation of the Lord.
Then there's Ezra Hasofer
Ezra 9:6-15
And I said, "O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, for our iniquities have increased over our heads, and our guilt has grown up to the heavens. Since the days of our forefathers, we are in great guilt until this day, and because of our iniquities, we were delivered-we, our kings, our priests-into the hands of the kings of the lands by the sword, in captivity, and with plunder and with shame-facedness as of this day. And now, for a short moment, favor has been granted by the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant and to give us a peg in His holy place, so that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little life in our servitude. For we are slaves, and in our servitude our God has not forsaken us, and He has extended loving-kindness upon us before the kings of Persia, to give us life, to exalt the House of our God and to erect its ruins, and to give us a fence in Judea and in Jerusalem. And now, what shall we say, O God, after this, for we have forsaken Your commandments, which You have commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, 'The land that you are coming to inherit is an unclean land because of the uncleanliness of the peoples of the lands, by their abominations with which they filled it from end to end with their uncleanliness. And now, you shall not give your daughters to their sons, neither shall you take their daughters for your sons, and you shall not seek their peace nor their prosperity to eternity, in order that you become strong and eat the goodness of the land, and you shall cause your children to inherit it to eternity.' And after all that has come upon us because of our evil deeds and because of our great guilt, because You our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and You have given us a remnant such as this. If we revert to breaking Your commandments to intermarrying with these abominable peoples, will You not be wroth with us until destruction without remnant or escape? O Lord God of Israel, You are righteous, for we are left a remnant as of this day; behold we are before You in our guilt, for we cannot stand before You because of this."
And here's one from Sefer Nechemiah.
Nechemiah 1:5-11
And I said, "I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, Who keeps the Covenant and loving-kindness to those who love Him and to those who keep His commandments. Let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to listen to the prayer of Your servant, which I pray before You today, day and night, concerning the Children of Israel, Your servants, and I confess the sins of the Children of Israel, which we sinned against You; and I and my father's house have sinned. We have dealt corruptly against You, and we have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the ordinances that You commanded Moses, Your servant. Remember now the word that You commanded Moses, Your servant, saying, 'If you deal treacherously, I shall scatter you among the nations. And if you return to Me and keep My commandments and perform them-if your exile is at the end of the heaven, from there I shall gather them, and I shall bring them to the place that I chose to cause My Name to rest there.' Now they are Your servants and Your people, whom You redeemed with Your great strength and with Your strong hand. I beseech You, O Lord, may Your ear now be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and to the prayer of Your servants, who wish to fear Your name, and cause Your servant to succeed today, and grant him mercy before this man."
And really, the entire book of Tehillim can be said as a personal prayer. In fact, Likutei Mohoran II quotes Rebbe Nachman as saying that each perek of Tehillim can be read as a personal prayer. Even the verses about fighting kings and battles are metaphors for our inner battles.
May we all always have meaningful talks with Hashem.
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