Chapter 1 : Chapter 1 Laws Upon Awakening in the Morning

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§1

"I have set Hashem before me always."¹Psalms 16:8. This is a fundamental rule of the Torah and of the attributes of the righteous who walk before God. For we cannot compare a person's lifestyle, his activities and affairs when he is alone, to his lifestyle, and activities and affairs when he is before a great king. Similarly, his conversation and speech when he is amongst family or relatives, [cannot be compared] to what they would be in the presence of a king, because then he would certainly take special care that all his activities and conversations be refined and correct. How much more so when you contemplate that Hashem, the greatest of kings, the Holy One, blessed is He, Whose glory fills the entire world, stands above you and views your actions, as it is said: "If a person will hide in hidden places will I not see him? Says the word of Hashem, Do I not fill the heavens and the earth!"²Jeremiah 23:24. [Bearing this in mind] it is certain that you will immediately acquire a feeling of reverence and submissiveness for the awesomeness of Hashem, Blessed be He, and be ashamed [to sin] before Him.

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§2

Also, while lying in bed you should realize before Whom you lay and as soon as you awaken you should remember the kindnesses of Hashem, Blessed be His Name, that were granted to you; that He returned your soul to you. You committed it to Him faint and weary and it was returned to you new and refreshed, enabling you to worship Hashem, Blessed be His Name, with all of your capacity and serve Him the entire day; because this is the essence of Man, as it is said in Scripture: "They are new every morning how great is Your faithfulness."³Lamentations 3:23. This verse teaches that every morning a person becomes a new creation, and he should give thanks with all his heart to Hashem, Blessed be His Name, for this (good fortune). While still in bed you should recite: I give thanks to You, living and everlasting King for You have restored my soul with mercy. Great is Your faithfulness. (Even though your hands are not yet clean, you may say this, since the name of Hashem is not mentioned.) You should pause slightly between the word chemlah "with mercy," and the word, rabbah "great."

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§3

Yehudah son of Taima says: "Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a deer and strong as a lion to do the will of your Father in heaven."⁴Avos 5:20. "Bold as a leopard" means, you should not be ashamed before people who mock you for worshipping Hashem, Blessed be His Name. "Light as an eagle" refers to what the eye sees. This alludes to the requirement to be swift to close your eyes to prevent the seeing of evil because the sight of evil constitutes the beginning of sin. The eye sees and the heart desires and the organs capable of action culminate the sin. "Swift as a deer" refers to the legs, for your legs should run to do good things. "Strong as a lion" is a reference to the heart, because true valor in serving the Creator, Blessed is He, emanates from the heart. He also states: "Strengthen your heart to serve Him, and overpower your evil inclination and defeat it as a hero triumphs over his enemy, defeating him, and casting him to the earth."

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§4

Therefore, it is imperative for a person to be strong as a lion. Immediately upon awakening (and reciting the Modeh Ani prayer) you should rise with alacrity for the service of the Creator, Blessed and Elevated is He, before you are over-whelmed by your evil impulse with various excuses not to rise, and be outsmarted and seduced in the winter [with this argument]: "How can you rise now so early in the morning when the weather is so cold?" Or, in the summer it will argue: "How can you rise from your bed while you are still not satisfied with enough sleep?" or other similar claims. The evil impulse knows very well the art of entrapping a person with all kinds of snares to prevent him from rising. Therefore every sensitive person who fears and trembles before the word of Hashem must triumph over the evil impulse and not listen to it, even if it is extremely difficult because of physical considerations or laziness. Your aim must be to fulfill the will of the King of kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He. You should realize that if you were called by any individual to participate in a business transaction in which there is profit, or to collect a debt, or if someone called with a plan to save your wealth from disaster, for example, if a fire occurred in the city or something similar occurred, you certainly would be quick to awaken immediately because of your concern for your wealth and you would not act sluggishly. Similarly, if you would need to go to the service of the king you would rise with alacrity and not be sluggish lest you be denigrated. [Or you would rise with alacrity] in order to find favor in the eyes of the king. How much more so should this apply for the service of the King of kings, the Holy One, Blessed is He, that you should be concerned to rise quickly and with alacrity. Once you accustom yourself to this practice four or five times you will no longer find it difficult, [as our Sages have said:] "He who makes an effort to purify himself is [Divinely] assisted in his efforts."⁵Maseches Yoma 38b.

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§5

If you are able to awaken and rise at midnight⁶According to Mishnah Berurah somewhat before midnight. to recite the prayer of Tikun Chatzos⁷These are prayers lamenting the destruction of the holy Temple. it is most praiseworthy, as it is said: "Rise, cry out in the night at the peak of the night watches" etc.⁸Lamentations 2:19. For the Holy One, Blessed is He, [also] laments at that time, as it is said: "Hashem from His high place cries, and from the Dwelling Place of His Holiness He sends forth His voice, as He cries for His Sanctuary."⁹Jeremiah 25:30. And He says, "Woe unto the children that on account of their sins I destroyed My house, and I burned My Sanctuary, and I exiled them among the nations."¹⁰Maseches Berachos 3a. If you cannot rise at midnight, you should nevertheless exert yourself to rise before daybreak, as said King David, may he rest in peace, "I will awaken the dawn,"¹¹Psalms 57:9. [He meant] "I awake the dawn but the dawn does not awaken me." You may recite Tikun Chatzos, even after midnight and then afterwards engage in Torah study according to your ability [or capacity]. A lesson in Mishnah is preferable to any other study, (and by so doing you will be worthy of [your] neshamah [soul] [as inferred from the word] Mishnah which has the same letters as neshamah.¹²נְשָׁמֶה - מִשְׁנֶה If you are not capable of this [studying Mishnah], you should recite Psalms and Ma'amados¹³Various selections of Scripture and other sources. and study works of ethics. A little learning or recitation with concentration is better than a great deal without concentration. Rabbi Chiyah taught: "Whoever studies Torah at night the Divine Presence is before him, as it is said: "Rise, cry out in the night at the peak of the night watches. Pour out your heart like water before the Presence of Hashem."¹⁴Lamentations 2:19. This verse signifies that the Divine Presence is before us at that time. It was also said by our Sages, of blessed memory: "Whoever studies Torah at night is called a servant of Hashem, as it is written: [Behold, Bless Hashem] all [you] servants of Hashem who stand in the House of Hashem, during the nights."¹⁵Psalms 134:1. During the short nights when it is difficult to rise so early, you should at least endeavor to rise while there is sufficient time to prepare yourself to go to the synagogue to pray together with the congregation.

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§6

Chapters of the Psalms, and other sections of the Torah, Prophets and Scriptures, in which all are not sufficiently fluent, must not be recited by heart. Even someone who knows [them sufficiently] to recite them by heart should be careful not to recite them by heart.¹⁶According to Mishnah Berurah you may recite Psalms by heart, since it is similar to saying prayers. However, a blind person may recite them by heart.

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§7

We must object to the practice of those who recite the supplications of the Ma'amodos and conclude: "Blessed are You Hashem, Who listens to prayer." Rather, the proper conclusion is: "Blessed is the One Who listens to prayer," omitting the Name of Hashem. (See Turei Zahav, end of Chapter 131).