One of the names of G-d is known as the name 42. In Hebrew,
G-d the “blessed” the one who “blesses”, begins with this very same number and
name, 42. It’s no wonder that when the Israelites traveled from Egypt their
place of slavery and where they were born as an independent people, until they
reached the ultimate destination, the land of Israel, there were….. you guessed
it, 42 journeys.
Our sages tell us, life is a series of journeys and growths,
until we reach the ultimate. All told, everyone must go through all 42 stops
and growths. In the number 42 there is the blessings and the path of G-d.
Every day too, is a world unto itself and from the moment we
wake up until we conclude the day and make it a productive day where meaningful
destinations were reached, there is a series of stops and goes. This all begins
with our morning prayers, the booster rockets for the rest of the day.
Prayer done properly, elevates a person from the ground he
is on to a much higher rung and perspective in life. Prayer is a “ladder firmly
embedded in the ground with its top in the heavens.” In our morning prayers
there are many elevations possible that have the power to raise and uplift a
person from the “narrow and constricted, to the wide and expansive”. And then again, the next day, we begin from
where we left off, to continue moving and transporting ourselves higher and
higher.
First, a person both mentally and physically must prepare
themselves for this exercise. Before one stands in front of the infinite G-d he
must disengage and detach from the thoughts and surroundings of this world.
They must purify and cleanse themselves of the dirt and distractions of this
world. The code of Jewish law says, we must cleanse our bodies and wash our
hands before we can approach the holy.
Internally and externally. The radios, TV, smartphone, news
of the day etc. are all impediments and obstructions in the effort to plug in
and connect the soul inside, with G-d, to influence the mind and the emotions
with stronger and deeper vibrations.
The first expression and the first actual phase in our
prayers, designed by the prophets and Rabbis of the great assembly, is to acknowledge
and subordinate to G-d. The only true
and everlasting existence in the universe is G-d. All that the physical eye
sees is an illusion that appears real but is really not. "Reality is
merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." - Albert Einstein
This first meditation elevates the person from the finite
natural constraints he has come to believe are immutable. The person becomes
aware of a spiritual element that broadens his perspective and possibilities
and becomes an exodus from the plateau he was on not too many minutes before
this.
In our daily prayers and exercises connecting with G-d out
there and inside ourselves, there are generally four stages until we reach the
highest for which we stand and is known as the “eighteen blessings prayer.”
At this point, the person should be so fired up absorbed and
fixated on the real deeper reality and meaning to life, so completely freshly
excited and yet humbled, he feels he
can’t even speak on his own, with his own thoughts, and he prays, “G-d open my
lips so my mouth can express its praise for You.”
At this point, a person knows they are never alone. They
will feel, G-d is the source and everything makes sense for the good.
And this begins all over again, like taking a shower or
eating breakfast every morning, from the experiences of yesterday to the new
challenges of the day ahead.
No matter how many days we already prayed and connected,
life is a constant journey moving higher and higher. No matter what level a
person begins his journey from, the Egypt of today, “the road of a million
miles begins with the first step.”
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