Le patron des patrons - Rav Simha Buchinger

It says the following: first of all, the lowest level, the minimum level of kavanah, is to at least understand what we are saying in the Amidah. But it doesn't stop there: You must be conscious that you are praying before, that you are standing in the presence of the Almighty. We know it is sometimes difficult to ask for forgiveness from our spouse, or simply to ask for a favor from someone around us. And it is even more difficult to ask our boss for forgiveness or a favor , and all the more so, obviously, if we are standing before the Almighty.

We must think that with if you have an important appointment, for example, if you were granted half an hour with the President of the United States, you know you have that meeting from 4:00 to 4:30, what do you do days in advance? When I walk in, what do I do? First the right foot, then the left foot, what, do I sit down? Do I remain standing?

What is the first sentence? The second sentence—I prepare the entire scenario beforehand. And that is for a human, a flesh and blood person; all the more reason to think. So, obviously , we must prepare ourselves even more.

I'm skipping ahead a bit here, and it says that one must be at a certain level close to prophecy, in the sense that we disconnect from everything around us and connect 100%. It is the level, nothing more or less, of a navi, of a prophet. You must think about all sorts of things that make you a bit more humble, which allow you to have the kavanah, and not think about all sorts of things that are frivolous or trivial. Today there are all sorts of possibilities where, when I speak, it appears on my screen.

Imagine if everything we thought about during the Amidah, along with the words, was displayed. The car is broken, I need to finish folding the laundry. A strange Amidah. All of this is part of our everyday life.

We weren't even talking about anything else.