Focused Prayer: How to Achieve a State of Flow

The flow state is when we reach a special mental state of high attention, where reality operates almost automatically and we forget ourselves. In a state of flow, our concentration and performance are much better than usual. You can bring yourself into such a state through several actions.

1. Eliminating external distractions. The amount of stimuli surrounding us is truly frightening - WhatsApp, social networks, notifications, advertisements, background noises, and even Shabbat pamphlets during prayer time. All these take over the little attention we still have left. Research shows that even when we turn our phones to silent mode, some of our attention remains connected to the phone - maybe someone is looking for me? Maybe I received a message? (The series "Smart Generation" published here on the Hidabroot site discusses this topic). The only solution is to leave the phone at home or turn it off completely, in such a way that we won't feel like we're missing out on something. Due to most people's addiction to the dopamine we get from checking messages, it may hurt at first, but the more you practice it, the easier it becomes. After several times, you'll feel more relaxed and free - guaranteed.

2. Eliminating internal distractions. This is more difficult. If you stop what you're doing right now for a minute and pay attention to what's happening in your mind, you'll notice countless thoughts running: tasks you need to complete, bodily sensations, thoughts about the world, new ideas, words of Torah. The brain never stops flowing. But as we've seen, the only way to reach a state of flow is to "turn off" that incessant thinking. One way to release all this burdensome "baggage" is simply to let it go, much like in the tale of "Rumpelstiltskin". This tale tells of a king who becomes impoverished. A poor miller exploits the situation and tells the king that his daughter can turn straw into gold - a complete lie. The daughter is placed in a barn and ordered to do so, and if she fails, she will be executed. Suddenly, a little gnome appears and promises to help her if she agrees to give him her firstborn when the child is born. She agrees, of course, and forgets about it. Indeed, several years later, when the son is born, the elf comes to claim his prize, but the girl refuses. The elf agrees to relent only if she can discover his secret name within three days. One day, the miller’s daughter walks in the woods and hears the elf singing to himself, mentioning his name. Then, at the crucial moment, when she utters his name in his presence, the elf disappears and vanishes. The same happens with our nagging thoughts: often, it seems they won’t let go, but when we name them and put them on paper, they dissolve. The practice is simple: write down everything that comes to you, in a stream, without internal criticism, for a few minutes, until you feel mental peace. Of course, you should keep these pages to yourself, as they will likely contain personal things. I always carry notes and a pen in my tefillin bag, and if I have a thought I "must remember," I simply pull out a note (in permissible places during prayer), release the thought onto the paper, and I have a clear head. Miraculously, it works (from a halachic standpoint, it's permitted to write even before prayer if it serves the purpose of the prayer).

Another way is by practicing meditation. The meaning of meditation in Hebrew is observation, reflection. The "Jewish meditation" was highly developed in ancient generations (see Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s book on the subject), especially during the Second Temple period, when the sages would wait an hour before and after the prayer. What exactly did they do there? We can only guess, but it’s likely they prepared themselves mentally and spiritually for prayer. Sitting like this for a few minutes before prayer, along with preparation that includes relaxation and immersion in spiritual thoughts, was forgotten over long periods and preserved only by those knowledgeable of the secrets. Now that we've returned to Israel, it's appropriate to resume practicing both observation and spiritual preparation for prayer, which is a major key to concentration and achieving "clear intellect." We will expand on this topic, with Hashem’s help, in a full article dedicated to meditation.