Jewish Prayer - Related Customs

Related Customs

Many Jews sway their body back and forth during prayer. This practice (referred to as shoklen in Yiddish) is not mandatory, and in fact the kabbalist Isaac Luria felt that it should not be done. In contrast, the German Medieval authority Maharil (Rabbi Jacob Molin) linked the practice to a statement in the Talmud that the Mishnaic sage Rabbi Akiva would sway so forcefully that he ended up at the other side of the room when praying (Talmud tractate Berachot).

Many are accustomed to giving charity before, during (especially during Vayivarech David) or after prayer, in the hopes that this will make their prayer more likely to be heard.

Read more about this topic:  Jewish Prayer

Famous quotes containing the words related and/or customs:

    One does not realize the historical sensation as a re-experiencing, but as an understanding that is closely related to the understanding of music, or rather of the world by means of music.
    Johan Huizinga (1872–1945)

    He is a barbarian, and thinks that the customs of his tribe and island are the laws of nature.
    George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)