T H E PI RCH EI SH OSH AN I M ROADMAP T O PRAYER PROJECT
The Roadmap t o Prayer
Lesson 9 Pirchei Shoshanim 2005 This shiur may not be reproduced in any f orm without permission of the copyright hol der 126 Concent rat ion in Prayer Bef ore we proceed with the main section of the daily prayer, let us examine some laws regarding the prerequisites f or Prayer. The Mechaber in Orach Chai m, Si mon 5 sei f 1 states: A person must concent rat e on t he si mpl e meani ng of t he words when reci t i ng bl essi ngs. When one ment i ons Hashems Di vi ne Name one must have i n mi nd t he meani ng of t he Name as we read i t (i .e. Adonoy) whi ch means Mast er over al l exi st ence, as wel l as i t s meani ng accordi ng t o t he way i t i s spel l ed wi t h t he l et t ers yud and hey et c. The meani ng accordi ng t o t he spel l i ng i s t hat G-d al w ays exi st ed, exi st s now and wi l l al w ays cont i nue t o exi st . When readi ng t he Di vi ne Name El oki m, one shoul d concent rat e t hat Hashem i s t he Mast er of al l powers. H H a a l l a a c c h h a a n5:n n5:n Pr e f a c e : Wh e n e v e r r e f e r r i n g t o G-d s Na m e , o n e m u s t t a k e c a r e n o t t o r e c i t e t h e n a m e i n v a i n ( i . e . o u t s i d e o f a b r a c h a , p r a y e r o r e n t i r e v e r s e ) . Co m m o n l y , o n e s u b s t i t u t e s t h e l e t t e r He y o r Y u d w i t h s o u n d o f t h e l e t t e r K . E. g . K a h i n s t e a d o f Y a h . El o k i m i n s t e a d o f El o h i m . A d o n o y i s r e f e r r e d t o a Ha s h e m . The Names of G-d (A part i al l i st ) Tetragrammaton (Hashem): (Y ud ' Kaye n ' V av ' Kaye n ' ) Pronounced A donoy. Contemplate that G-d always existed, exists and will continue to exist. He is Master of all existence Adonoy (:+) - Concentrate He is Master of all existence Lesson 9 P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 127 Elokim - All Powerf ul G-d Y (k )ah, (K)ell, T zeva(k )os, area few more ex amples of D ivi ne N ames 1 . The Tet ragrammat on G-ds Name of Four Letters is written with the letters Y ud and H ey and V av and H ey (Shei m H avayah - n " n ) 2 . One must never pronounce it the way it is written. Rather, the correct pronunciation is A donoy. Even this pronunciation of G-ds Name may never be said in vain. I t may only be recited in the context of a blessing or a prayer. Whenever one pronounces G-ds Name (Tetragrammaton) one must meditate on two thoughts. 1) Adone hakole - Master of All existence 2) Hayah, Hoveh veYihyeh - G-d always existed, He exists and He will always cont inue to exist. I n Hebrew this translates H ayah (was) H oveh (is) and Y ihyeh (will be), each word being f rom the letters of the Tetragrammaton. The Bi ur H aGra maintains that it is only necessary to meditate on both meanings of H ashems Name when reading the f irst verse of Shema. Otherwise, it is suff icient just to meditate on the meaning of the way we pronounce H ashems Name (A donoy). The M i shna Berura in Orach Chaim 3 agrees with the Gras interpretation of this law. When G-ds Name is written with the lett ers A lef, D aled, N un and Y ud, ) :+ ( - N ame of A dnus ) n:+ ( it is pronounced as it is written A donoy. Only the f irst meaning A done hak ole Master of All existence must be meditated. When uttering G-ds Name E lok i m ) up: ( , one must meditate that G-d is All- powerf ul and omnipotent. 1 The k sound is inserted to avoid reading H ashems N amein vain. 2 We ref er to it as such in order not to say H ashems Name in vain 3 Simon 5 k 3 P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 128 One who f inds it diff icult to always keep in mind these meditations should at least declare at the beginning of each day that he means to have these meditations whenever he utters the Name of G-d. (I ntroduction sefer A fi k ei Y am) 4 When ful fi l l i ng a Mi t zvah One must have specif ic intent when f ulf illing a Torah obligation that he is doing it in order to f ulf ill his obligation (L otzei s yedei chovasso). There is an argument on this point in the Gemora whether one can f ulf ill a mi tzvah without specif ic intention. There is no clear conclusion as to the f inal ruling on this matter. Therefore, the H al acha is to be strict with regard to Torah obligations (mi tzvos deorai ssa) while f or Rabbinic instituted mitzvos (mi tzvos deRabbanan) one f ulf ills the mi tzvah even if one f orgot to do it specif ically f or the purpose of f ulf illing ones obligation. Pract i cal Appl i cat i ons The mi tzvah of Kri as Shema is a mi tzvah deorai ssa (a Torah command) 5 to recite the Torah portions once in the morning and again in the nighttime. Since it is a mi tzvah deorai ssa, one must have specif ic intent when reciting it, that it is f or this purpose that he is reciting it. On the other hand, A mi dah Shemoneh E srei is a mi tzvah deRabbanan (a Rabbinic statute) according to some opinions. Theref ore, if one davens without specific intent to f ulf ill his obligation, he f ulf ills it nonetheless. The M i shna Berura adds that many times it is obvious that one perf orms the mi tzvah solely f or the purpose of f ulfilling ones obligation. I n such situations the very f act that one goes through the ef f ort of perf orming the mi tzvah shows that one is doing it to f ulf ill the obligation. Hence, no explicit intent is necessary in order to f ulf ill the mi tzvah obligation. For example, if one wears T efi lli n, it is obvious that one is doing so in order to f ulf ill the obligation; especially since one recites the blessing A sher k i dshanu bemi tzvosav vetzi vanu lehani ach T efi lli n (Who sanctif ied and commanded us to don T efi lli n). I n such a case, one f ulf ills his mi tzvah obligation automatically even 4 Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach ztl is quoted in the Sefer H al ichos Shl omo as saying that nowadays that many people do not have proper k avanah when reciting H ashems N ame, it is very reasonable to rely on the condition set f orth by the A fik ei Y am as well as by theA i shel A vraham of Butchatch. This ruling relies on the opinion of the Gra that doesnt require one to concentrate more than that G-d is the Master of all and not the specif ic intent that G-d existed always, now and f orever. 5 See Magen Avraham Simon 63: 8 for different opinions on this matter P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 129 without explicit intent to f ulf ill his obligation. Likewise, by Shemoneh E srei anyone praying is presumably doing so because in order to fulf ill the mi tzvah obligation. However, the mi tzvah of the Shema Reading (k ri as Shema) is diff erent. Kri as Shema is many times recited not f or the sake of the mi tzvah as when it is read when its not the proper time f or its recital. When M aari v prior to the correct time f or Kri as Shema of the evening; we recite the Shema even though its not the proper time f or the mi tzvah. Thus, its never obvious by M aari v that we are reciting it f or the purpose of f ulf illing the mi tzvah obligation. Additionally, the blessings f or Kri as Shema are not specif ically f or the mi tzvah of Kri as Shema. As the Rashba puts it, we dont say a blessing stating A sher k i dshanu bemi tzvosav vetzi vanu li k ros ess Shema. Technically, one can recite the blessings and omit Kri as Shema entirely if one said it bef orehand 6 . Theref ore it is imperative to have specif ic intention when reciting Kri as Shema to f ulf ill ones mi tzvah obligation. I f one did not have intent to f ulfill the mi tzvah obligation by a mi tzvah deorai ssa (Torah command) where the intent is not obvious, one must perform the mi tzvah again; this time with intent to f ulf ill the mi tzvah obligation. Shemoneh Esrei As f or Shemoneh E srei ; there is another important aspect. Since during this prayer we are considered to be speaking directly to G-d and standing bef ore Him in prayer, there are two additional aspects to keep in mind. One must bear in mind - 1. That one is standing in prayer in f ront of G-d 2. That one needs to understand the words hes praying to G-d Rav Chaim Soloveitchik ztl of Bri sk explains that the f irst k avanah is to have an awareness that one is standing in f ront of his Creator in prayer. This awareness is necessary to continue throughout the prayer of Shemoneh E srei , f or without it one is not considered doing an act of prayer at all; its considered just a rehearsal of words. On the other hand, the second level of Kavanah is to understand the words of prayer. This is only absolutely necessary during the f irst bracha of Shemoneh E srei . Rav Chaim derives this f rom the Rambam who rules that the latter Kavanah is 6 We recite the Birchas Kri as Shema even past the time for themi tzvah to read Shema P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 130 necessary only during the f irst bracha of Shemoneh E srei while implying that the f ormer Kavanah is necessary during the ent ire Shemoneh E srei . The Chazon I sh in his notes to Rav Chaim ztl essay suggests that the Rambam maintains that if one just starts the prayer of Shemoneh E srei with the awareness that one is about to be standing bef ore G-d in prayer and beseeching Him, it is suf f icient Kavanah (intent) to consider his prayer valid even if one loses this concentration during the course of the prayer of Shemoneh E srei . The Chazon I sh concludes that his own point of view is that the Rambam just means to stress the importance of Kavanah (concentrat ion) during prayer and does not mean to imply that ones prayer is invalid without it. Rather, we assume that every Jew that prays has at least a subconscious level of awareness that he is praying to his Creator, which is suff icient to validate the Shemoneh E srei . Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach ztl also has a dif f iculty understanding this concept of considering the entire Shemoneh E srei as having Kavanah, of standing bef ore G-d in prayer, just because one start ed with that int ent . He doesnt understand why when someone recites Shemoneh E srei by rote while thinking about other things we still consider the prayer valid? By all other mi tzvos we consider someone who is perf orming it without deliberation to f ulfill ones obligation as not perf orming it all. For example, if someone perf orms the mi tzvah of ritual slaughter (shechi ta) while his mind was totally preoccupied with another issue, the shechi ta is invalid. Why then should davening be any diff erent? Nonetheless, we f ind ref erences where the Gemora mentions that it was common f or people to daven by rote, and yet their T efi los were not invalid. The Y erushalmi 7 (Jerusalem Talmud) in Rosh Hashanah mentions that Rebbe Masnaya said: Lets thank our head f or knowing to bow upon reaching M odi m 8 . Likewise, the Gemora in Berachos 9 mentions that someone who is not sure where he reached up to in Kri as Shema, if he already started reciting L emaan yi rbu, we assume that he said everything up to that point without omitting anything. V etzari ch i yun - this requires f urther study. 7 Berachos D af 17b 8 Tosef os Rosh Hashanah 16b 9 D af 16a P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 131 The Main Point s of Int ent by t he Amidah I t is important that we concentrate on what we are saying in prayer. N evertheless, if one is having a dif f icult time concentrating on the A midah Shemoneh E srei prayer, one should at least concentrate on the f irst bracha (blessing) of A mi dah (A vos). The signif icance of the f irst bracha of Shemoneh E srei is that it is a bracha with an opening and a closing using G-ds Divine Name. Additionally it mentions the merit of the Patriarchs, A vraham, Y i tzchok and Y aak ov. Additionally, this bracha is recited immediately af ter the bracha of Goal Y i srael which ref ers to G-d as the Redeemer. This theme is repeated in the bracha itself maivee goel li vnei venei hem lemaan Shemo beahavah (And He brings salvation to their childrens children for the sake of His Name with love). I I n n t t i i m m a a t t i i o o n n n: n: One should make a conscious ef f ort to concentrate on the ending of each bracha. There are 113 words in total in all the endings of the blessings of Shemoneh E srei . Likewise there are 113 words in the Prayer of H annah, when she beseeched G-d to grant her a child. Her prayer is used by the Gemora as the paradigm f or our A mi dah Shemoneh E srei. Her prayer of 113 words culminated in her giving birth to a baby boy named Shmuel who grew up to be one of the greatest prophet s and leaders of Jewry. He installed both K ing Saul as well as K ing David as kings 10 . Furthermore, in the Torah the word L ev ) ( Heart appears exactly 113 times, alluding to the import ance of concentrating on the 113 words in the endings of the blessings of Shemoneh E srei . 11 If one di d not have Int ent by Shemoneh Esrei The Tur and the Mechaber require one who doesnt have the minimum concentration necessary f or Shemoneh E srei to repeat it. The Rama exempts him f rom repeating the Shemoneh E srei since it is very likely nowadays that one will not have proper Kavanah (intent/ concentration) the second time as well. The A ruch H ashulchan wonders why the Shulchan Aruch doesnt explicitly state as the Rambam does, that one who knows in advance that he cannot concentrate on his prayer that he shouldnt recite the Shemoneh E srei until he can f ocus and 10 Aruch Hashulchan 101: 3 11 I bid. P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 132 concentrate on prayer? He suggests that apparently, the Shulchan Aruch maintains that even if one cannot concentrate properly on his prayer of Shemoneh E srei , one is permitted nowadays to proceed to pray as usual. This is based on the Gemora that puts f orth an argument to exempt us f rom prayer altogether, since the troubles of living in Exile make it dif ficult to concentrate. Although this is not reason enough to exempt us f rom prayer, it may be the reason why we pray even when we dont concentrate properly. V etzarich i yun this requires f urther study. Modi m Gi vi ng Thanks The prayer of M odi m thanks G-d f or providing f or us and sustaining us every day of our lives. I t is very important to specif ically concentrate when saying this prayer since one who gives thanks without sincerity is insulting H ashem; not praising. Heari ng Ones Own Prayer The Gemora in Berachos 12 deduces f rom the prayer of H annah that one should not raise ones voice when praying Shemoneh E srei . The H al acha is that one must at least hear oneself when praying; only it should not be so loud that others will hear him. 13 I f one f inds it dif f icult to concentrate without raising ones voice louder, one may raise his voice as long as one is caref ul not to disturb others. Theref ore, at home one may def initely pray (daven) in a loud voice if necessary. Also one may raise his voice a little louder when davening Shemoneh E srei at home if he wishes to teach his children how to daven. A Ti me t o be Loud; A Ti me t o be Qui et The H al acha of being quiet applies specif ically to the A midah Shemoneh E srei which is derived f rom H annahs prayer. However, when reciting other prayers or when reciting verses of praise to G-d, it is appropriate to raise ones voice to daven loudly. The A ruch H ashulchan 14 explains that when one is davening Shemoneh E srei it is as if one is standing bef ore G-d. Therefore, it is considered inappropriate to raise ones 12 D af 31a 13 Magen Avraham 101: 3 14 Simon 102:3 P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 133 voice; acting as if H ashem cant hear him. On the other hand, the Ramban writes that when we pray we should specif ically raise our voices to beseech G-d f or our needs as the pasuk states V ayi k rau el E lok i m bechazak a :p npna up: : (A nd they called out to G-d, forcefully 15 ). This ref ers to personal prayers which require more emotion and passion. Likewise, when we exalt H ashem with words of praise, we also should raise our voices, demonstrating our excitement and joy. Cleanliness and Hygiene There are specif ic rules of cleanliness and hygiene necessary f or prayer. Some are strict that they actually invalidate the prayer while others do not invalidate the prayer. I f one prays in the proximity of excrement, the prayer is invalid 16 . I f one prays in the proximity of one who is in the midst of passing water, the prayer is invalid. I f one prays in the presence of an unclad individual, the prayer is invalid. I f one prays with excrement on ones body, even if when covered by ones clothing, the prayer is invalid. Additional laws are: One should not pray without washing ones hands in the morning. One should not pray without washing ones hands af ter def ecating, urinating, bathing, manicuring etc. One should not pray where there is urine on the f loor. One should not pray where there is a f oul odor. 15 Y onah 3: 8 16 Unless it was totally unexpected to be there. P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 134 Proper Dress Proper dress and a head covering for males are also necessary f or T efi lla (Prayer). A married woman is required to wear a head covering. Men are required to gird their waistline with a belt or some other means of separating bet ween their heart and the lower portion of their body. Heekone: Preparing Oneself in Service of Hashem The Gemora in Shabbos 17 explains that a person is obligated to daven in attire bef itting f or H ashems service. For example, a person should wear a belt or a hat to be appropriately dressed for his encounter with H ashem when davening Shemoneh E srei . The Gemoras source f or this H al acha is f rom the prophet A mos 18 . The pasuk (verse) states H eek one l i k rass H ashem E l ok echa. Rashi explains the word H eek one t o mean to beautif y. This means one must present himself in proper dignif ied attire when davening to H ashem. Another aspect of this is with relation to hygiene and cleanliness. Tosefos Yeshani m Tosefos Yeshanim in Y oma 19 writes that when one passes water avoiding touching anything unclean, one should wash his hands even on Y om Ki ppur 20 . This is because when someone has just passed water, its necessary to ready oneself f or Prayer by washing ones hands, even though there is no tangible dirt. This is derived f rom the above verse - H eek one. 17 D af 10a 18 4: 12 19 D af 77b 20 On Y om Kippur one is not allowed to wash or bathe f or pleasure. However, one may wash in order to remove dirt. P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 135 Ri t va 21 The Ritva also f ollows the opinion of the Tosefos Yeshanim. He says that one should wash his hands even on Y om Ki ppur bef ore engaging in Torah study or in preparation of Prayer. This is permitted just as one is allowed to wade through a stream of water to greet his Rebbe (Torah teacher), despite the general prohibition of bathing and washing on Y om Ki ppur. Although only a moist towel or moist f ingertips are used on Y om Ki ppur to wipe ones eyes clean in the morning, in this case one may wash his hands completely as usual, since its done as a f ulf illment of H eek one; not f or ones own pleasure which would be forbidden on Yom Ki ppur. The Ritva in M esechta T aani s 22 writes that both on T i sha BA v and on Y om Ki ppur one may wash ones hands af ter passing water because of H eek one. One does not have to resort to using some other means to cleanse his hands. Since one does this only f or H eek one, its permissible, as it is not done f or personal pleasure. (See Shulchan A ruch Orach Chai m Si mon 613 sei f 3 and related commentaries where this H alacha is discussed 23 ). Pri Megadi m 24 The Pri Megadim in Simon 7 25 concludes (pask ens) that af ter relieving oneself , even if one didnt touch any excrement or other unclean things, one still may not recite the bracha of A sher yotzar (the blessing said after relieving oneself) unless one f irst washes his hands. However, when just passing water outside of a bathroom 26 , according to strict H al acha one is allowed to recite A sher yotzar without washing ones hands. I ts only because of H eek one that it is pref erable to wash ones hands 21 Ritva R Yom Tov Ben Avraham Ashbili -Born: Seville, Spain, 1250. Died: Seville, Spain, 1330. Notes: Talmudist. Student of the Raah and the Rashba. Author of a very concise commentary on the Talmud, Chidushei HaRitva. Author of Sefer HaZikaron/The Book of Remembrance in defense of the Rambam. 22 Daf 30b 23 The Shulchan Aruch Harav 613: 4, 5 brings that there is a distinction if he needs to daven or if its at night and he will not be returning to davening. I f he didnt touch anything dirty and hes not returning to davening he may recite A sher Y otzar without washing. However if he will return to his davening he should wash up until his knuckles in order to fulf ill H eek one. 24 Pri Megadim R Yoseph Ben Meir Teomin - Notes: Author of Pri Megadim a two-part commentary including Mishbatzos Zahav, commentary to the Taz and Eshel Avraham, commentary to the Magen Avraham. Author of Rosh Yosef, Chidushim on several Talmud treatises. 25 E ishel A vraham Sk 1 26 I f he were in a bathroom, he would be required to wash his hands, even if he just enters without using the f acilities. P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 136 bef ore reciting any bracha. The Shulchan Aruch Harav also mentions just the reason of H eek one with regard to this H alacha. One Should Wash Ones Hands The Rama states in Si mon 47:13 that one should pref erably wash ones hands prior to reciting the Birchos haT orah and bef ore engaging in Torah study. However, if one doesnt have water, one may study Torah even without washing. The Biur HaGraexplains that this H al acha is based on the concept of H eek one. I n order to prepare oneself f or the lof ty mi tzvah of Torah study, one needs to wash ones hands in honor of the mi tzvah. The Gra cites that the source for this H al acha is f rom Simon 7 seif 2. Understanding t he Concept of Heekone I n Simon 7 seif 2 the Mechaber writes: I f one passes water but does not wipe oneself , although one is required to say the blessing of A sher yotzar one doesnt need to wash his hands. However it is still pref erable to do so 1. because of cleanliness or 2. because of H eek one. The Biur Halacha rules that if one wipes oneself by hand in middle of a meal, one would have to wash that hand according to the H alacha of washing f or a meal of bread as mentioned in the Gemora Yoma 27 . He would then only need to wash the second hand bef ore resuming the meal because of H eek one. Ar uch Hashul chan The Aruch Hashulchan 28 explains that the two reasons given by the Mechaber are similar in nature. He says: 3. The f irst reason is because of sensitivity to human dignity. 27 D af 30 Tannu Rabbanan H al acha baseudah etc. 28 Simon 7: 3 P I R C H E I S H O S H A N I M R O A D M A P T O P R A Y E R P R O J E C T A N A T T A C H M E N T O F T H E S O U L L E S S O N 9 137 4. The second reason that the Mechaber gives about H eek one is explaining that the need to wash is because our sensitivity to act dignif ied when davening to H ashem. Both of these ideas are extrapolated f rom the Gemora in Shabbos 29 that one needs to don appropriate attire bef ore proceeding to daven as the Gra also points out. The Biur Halacha 30 points to the Mechaber in Simon 91: 2, which states that a man must wear a belt f or davening, but it is not necessary f or reciting brochos. This seems to contradict the H al acha here that one should wash f or brochos too because of H eek one. The Aruch Hashulchan explains that although the Gemora in Shabbos is only speaking with regard to Tefi lla, we apply it to brochos in general. Thats because the Gemora in Shabbos is discussing the law of presenting oneself in a dignif ied manner when beseeching H ashem in prayer. However, here were discussing matters that are repulsive such as uncleanliness which f alls into another aspect of H eek one that applies to all brochos as well as to Torah study. 29 D af 10a 30 Simon 7 d h Oh mishum H eek one 138 Quest ions: 1. What is the dif f erence between the Tetragrammaton and the Name of A dnus i.e. Lordship (A donye 31 )? 2. What doers the Name E lok i m represent? 3. I f one performs a mi tzvah deorai ssa without specif ic intent to f ulf ill his Torah obligation, when must he redo the mi tzvah and when not? 4. What two thoughts must one keep in mind when praying Shemoneh E srei as explained by Rav Chaim Soloveitchik ztl of Bri sk ? 5. What does the Chazon I sh maintain regarding about the way one start Shemoneh E srei ? 6. What is the signif icance of the number 113 in Shemoneh E srei? 7. From where do we learn that its better not to raise ones voice during Shemoneh E srei and why is it inappropriate part icularly then? 8. What types of uncleanliness invalidates ones prayer? 9. Give two examples f or the need to wash ones hands bef ore Prayer. 10. What type of required dress is important particularly f or a man f or Prayer? 31 This Name should only be pronounced when reciting a verse in full or when reciting a blessing. Otherwise we ref er to it as Name of A dnus. 139 Answers: 1. When uttering the Tetragrammaton one should concentrate that G-d is the Master over everything and that His existence spans f rom eternity to eternity. While saying the Name of A dnus, it is suf f icient just to have in mind that G-d is the Master over everything. 2. E lok i m represents that G-d is All-powerf ul. 3. I f it is self evident that the mi tzvah deorai ssa is being perf ormed only f or the sake of the mi tzvah, it is valid even when there was no specif ic intent to f ulfill the mi tzvah. I f however the mi tzvah is somet imes perf ormed when one is not f ulf illing a Torah command then one is required to repeat the mi tzvah with the appropriate intent. 4. (1) That he is standing now in f ront of G-d (2) That he should understand the words of his prayer to G-d 5. The Chazon I sh maintains that as long as one starts Shemoneh Esrei with the intent that he is standing before G-d in Prayer that is suf f icient even if he f orgets this while reciting the rest of Shemoneh E srei. 6. There are 113 words in the endings of the brochos of Shemoneh Esrei corresponding to the 113 words in H annahs heartf elt prayer to G-d for a son. There is also 113 times that the word L ev (heart) appears in the Torah. 7. We learn this f rom the quiet but verbalized prayer of H annah f or a son. Since during Shemoneh E srei one is considered to be standing in f ront of H ashem, one need not raise his voice. 8. I f there is excrement, f lowing urine or someone that is unclad. 9. One is when ones hands touched something unclean, af ter waking up in the morning, after bathing or manicuring. 10. A belt.