05-31-2009, 04:24 PM
(This post was last modified: 05-31-2009, 04:28 PM by Director Michael.)
First you asked about prayer. A person can pray to G-d in any place, as long as he/she is following the guidelines for proper prayer (for example, that one is not in a restroom or a house of idol worship, or near any filth or bad smell, etc.) On the other hand, there is a principle that some places are especially fitting for prayer:
- a place that you designate for your prayers, and you regularly pray there
- an Orthodox synagogue
- the graves of Tzaddikim
- holy sites in the Land of Israel, like the Western Wall, the Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb, the Tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, etc.
If a person wishes to visit the holy grave or tomb of a Tzaddik but is not able to, he/she should remember that the soul of a Tzaddik is eternal and spiritual, and once it is freed from its limitation in a physical body, it is no longer limited by physical space. So for example, your request for a blessing can be written down and read from a piece of paper, and then placed into a book of Torah, wherever you might be.
You may have heard of the ancient custom that people write down prayers on a piece of paper and place them into a crack in the holy Western Wall on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It is now available to send a written message to an office at the Western Wall by postal service, fax or email, and someone will insert it into the Wall for you, as a free service.
Likewise with a letter that you wish to read at the holy grave or tomb of a Tzaddik. You could send the letter to an agent near that location by postal service, fax or email, and the agent could place it there for you.
- a place that you designate for your prayers, and you regularly pray there
- an Orthodox synagogue
- the graves of Tzaddikim
- holy sites in the Land of Israel, like the Western Wall, the Tomb of the Patriarchs, Rachel's Tomb, the Tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, etc.
If a person wishes to visit the holy grave or tomb of a Tzaddik but is not able to, he/she should remember that the soul of a Tzaddik is eternal and spiritual, and once it is freed from its limitation in a physical body, it is no longer limited by physical space. So for example, your request for a blessing can be written down and read from a piece of paper, and then placed into a book of Torah, wherever you might be.
You may have heard of the ancient custom that people write down prayers on a piece of paper and place them into a crack in the holy Western Wall on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It is now available to send a written message to an office at the Western Wall by postal service, fax or email, and someone will insert it into the Wall for you, as a free service.
Likewise with a letter that you wish to read at the holy grave or tomb of a Tzaddik. You could send the letter to an agent near that location by postal service, fax or email, and the agent could place it there for you.