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How long is your shmoneh esrei? what do you do to make it more meaningful?
During the week 19 berochos; on Shabbos 7.
How long is your shmoneh esrei?
Exactly 19 b’rachos. Oh, you wanted a time? Sorry… I don’t time myself.
what do you do to make it more meaningful?
Concentrate on the meaning of the words.
The Wolf
Mine? 3 – 15 min.
Focus on Whom you’re standing in front of.
Know that you’re Daveneing and beseeching the One Who has the wherewithal to grant you your request.
Just concentrate on the plain words.
usually between 4-5 minutes.
if you know what the words mean then daven with your eyes closed so you can concentrate without any distractions around you. if you don’t know the meaning then use a english translated artscroll siddur so your davening will come from your true heart & have hundreds of times more value to Hashem.
MA, I actually find davening from the siddur is better for me than davening with my eyes closed. In fact, over the last several years, I’ve pushed myself to daven from a siddur all the time, even for stuff I know my heart (Shema, Ashrei, Aleinu, Birchat Hamazon, Amidah, etc., even Kedusha.) My pronunciation is much less mumbled when I use a siddur.
“daven with your eyes closed so you can concentrate without any distractions around you”
I find that there are a lot more distractions inside my head than around me. I daven at the same minyan, in the same seat, every single day. I rarely find anything around me distracting.
I don’t understand why so many people – and by people, I mean men – don’t daven from a siddur. Is it too heavy for them, or something? I’m not judging their concentration. I just think that using a text is the way to go. Why else does it exist? You just memorize it in school and then you’re set for the rest of your life? I’m also not saying that I always read every word and that I never lose focus, even though I use a siddur. But when I space out (I’m human, too, and often shluffin), I can find the place because I know which page I’m up to. Would someone care to explain? Do men never space out? What if you do, and you think you’re in an entirely different place than you really are? This is not rebuke. This is a sincere question. I know it’s not ALL men. But a lot.
“and by people, I mean men”
I found that comment very interesting!
When a person holds his siddur even all the way up to his eyes he can still see the 2 or 3 people near him and cause him distractions this one is heading to work OTHER to store etc…
Some people daven better with their eyes closed; others when reading from a siddur. Each person should do what he feels is best for him, though it’s definitely good to daven from a siddur. It’s good to point your finger at each word as you say it (not for halachic reasons, but for better concentration and in order to avoid losing your place).
To daven with one’s eyes open and looking around is a grave transgression.
Many people who know davening by heart, especially shemoneh esrei, still daven in a siddur because seeing the words, the holy words, aids in concentration. look at the words as you say them and think about the words, the prayers and who you are standing in front of.
Above all remember that hashem is the one who gives everything and ask him for what you need.
I.M. Shluffin: do what works best for you, but don’t assume it works best for everyone.
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