A MEDITATION ROOM

From Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, “A Call to the Infinite” (Moznaim), p. 106.

A Meditation Room
(Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, Sichoth HaRan 274, 275)

It is very good to have a special room set aside for Torah study and prayer. Such a room is especially beneficial for meditation and conversation with God.

It is very good even to sit in such a room. [The atmosphere itself is beneficial, even if you sit there and do nothing].

Even if you do not have a special room, you can still seclude yourself and converse with God. You can create your own “special room” under your prayer shawl. Just drape your Tallith over your eyes and converse with God as you will.

You can also seclude yourself with God in bed under the covers. This was King David’s custom, alluded to in the psalm, “I pray every night on my bed in tears” (Psalms 6:7).

You can also converse with God while sitting before an open book. Let others think that you are merely reading or studying. There are many other ways in which you can accomplish this if you truly want to express your thoughts to God. Above all else, this is the root and foundation of holiness and repentance.