A
1)
A person should hope and long for the good of the community, even though he himself stands to lose by it.
2)
When a person prays in a synagogue it is as if he brought a pure meal-offering.
3)
God can be found in the synagogue.
4)
Using flattery prevents a person's prayers from being heard.
5)
When a person studies Torah despite difficult circumstances, his prayers are heard.
6)
When you pray for your friend - even though you require the very same thing - God will answer your [needs] first.
7)
A humble person's prayers will not be rejected.
8)
Don't wait for trouble to begin before you start praying.
9)
Whenever anyone strengthens himself in prayer from below, his adversaries are unable to accuse him from Above.
10)
Before entreating [God] for mercy, a person should always pray that everyone will support him - even the ministering angels - and that there should be no Opposition to his [prayers] from Above.
11)
Another person's prayers are more effective than when one prays for himself. Even a Tzaddik requires the prayers of others.
12)
Praying for the death of a slanderer is permissible. [One may also pray that a
slanderer] forget his Torah studies, have no share in the World to Come, and that he be deprived of having wise children.
13)
God fulfills the wishes of a person who occupies himself with Torah Study.
14)
It is good to cry out to God: before the decree has been passed and even afterwards.
15)
A person should not excessively pray for anything.
16)
When rain falls, it is a time of increasing salvation in the world and the advocates of merit are granted an audience before God.
17)
The prayers of an individual will not be heard unless he prays with an attentive heart.
But the prayers of the congregation will be listened to even if everyone does not pray wholeheartedly.
18)
Don't pray for two things [at the same time].
19)
It is forbidden to burden God [by requesting that Hel alter the dictates of Nature.
20)
When a person overlooks personal af fronts his prayers are heard.
21)
One who praises God excessively will be uprooted from the world.
22)
A synagogue in which people calculate business accounts will eventually be the site of a deserted corpse [whose burial becomes the obligation of those who find it].
23)
Anything holy requires preparation and readiness.
24)
When asking for one's needs, a person should not be so brazen as to ask for something great. For Torah and the fear of God, however, a person should ask for all that he desires.
25)
It is a mitzvah to wear respectable clothing while praying.
26)
Accustom yourself to reciting the blessings in this world so that you will be familiar with them in the World to Come.
27)
A person should ask for mercy that he not become impoverished.
28)
A person's fortune can be changed through prayer.
29)
Speaking in a loud voice brings feeling and movement to all one's limbs.
30)
One who thinks about entreating God will thereby find favor in His eyes.
31)
God listens to the prayers of those who trust in Him.
32)
Don't pray in a place built by a contentious person.
33)
Before starting to pray, give charity and bind yourself to the Tzaddikim of the generation.
34)
The amount of vitality and spiritual strength a person receives depends upon the particular place in which he prays.
35)
While the community prays, it is a time of favor.
36)
One who has a synagogue [nearby] but doesn't go there to pray, brings exile upon his descendants.
37)
Whatever you need - big or small - pray for it.
38)
Come early and stay late in the synagogue so that you will live long.
39)
One who is capable of requesting mercy for his neighbor and does not is called a sinner.
40)
When a person answers nature's call, washes his hands, dons tefillin, recites the Sh'ma and prays, it is tantamount to having built an altar and brought a sacrifice on it; and as if he immersed in a ritual bath.
41)
Avoid speaking about holy things in unclean places and you will be rewarded with long life.
42)
Prayer is even greater than good deeds and sacrifices.
43)
Torah study, good deeds, prayer and engaging in worldly matters all require encouragement.
44)
Pray only in a place which has windows.
45)
Giving charity with both hands causes a person's prayers to be heard.
46)
While praying, a person should spread out his hands as if he were receiving something.
47)
Stealing or embarrassing one's neighbor prevents a person's prayers from being heard.
48)
The Sabbath and New Moon are particularly propitious times for elevating prayers.
49)
When a person is arrested, it is a sign that his prayers are not being accepted.
50)
The yearning for God which a person expresses at night makes it easier for him to pray in the morning.
51)
When your prayers are accompanied by tears, they will be accepted.
52)
When asking [God] for something, mention the merit of your forefathers.
53)
When God punishes a wicked man whom He knows won't repent and the Tzaddik prays excessively for this man, then the Tzaddik will also be punished.
54)
When a person falls into a state of constricted consciousness while praying, it is a sign that his prayers will not be accepted.
55)
When you are not at peace with the world, your prayers will not be accepted.
56)
You should pray that there be peace in the city in which You live.
57)
God honors the person who prays joyously and punishes his oppressors.
58)
By reciting the Midnight Lament, God is reminded of the good which He guaranteed to the Jewish People.
59)
One who speaks favorably of the Jewish People arouses salvation which will then come about through him.
60)
A person who does not pray when Jews suffer is called a sinner.
61)
One should pray for his children and for all his descendants.
62)
It is forbidden for a person to deny the good he has received, be it from a Jew or gentile.
63)
When a person prays for the Jewish People, God pardons all his sins.
64)
When a sick person tearfully prays for himself, God will heal him and accept his prayers.
65)
When you want to elevate your [personal] prayers, pray for the Jewish People.
66)
The Holy One wants a person to pray to Him.
67)
When a person saves a pauper from his oppressor, he will find it easy to put energy into the letters of prayer.
68)
When a person trusts in God, his prayers are heard.
69)
A person's humility enables him to cry out from the heart.
70)
By being happy, your prayers will reach [all the way] to the King's sanctum.
71)
One who is not pleased with his prayers should sing while praying.
72)
God listens to the prayers of the person who prays energetically.
73)
The prayers of a person who has made some vow will not be accepted until he fulfills his pledge.
74)
The prayers of a faithless person are not heard.
75)
When a person brings joy to the Tzaddik, his prayers will be heard.
76)
Before praying, a person should bind his spirit to the Creator. This attachment will cause the words to flow from his mouth of their own accord.
77)
In reward for remaining silent when disgraced, God will answer your requests.
78)
When a person prays for his neighbor, God will increase his prosperity doublefold.
79)
A prayer not accepted Above will be consumed by fire.
80)
One who mourns the [Temple's] destruction merits praying with his heart and body.
81)
A joyous prayer is both pleasing and sweet to God.
82)
When a person is humble, God will fulfill his prayers even if he prays only in thought.
83)
There are times when God won't accept the Tzaddik's prayers on behalf of another person. This is because He knows that this person will eventually draw the Tzaddik to his own sinful ways.
84)
A person's thoughts follow in line with his service. (This can be explained as follows:
When a person serves God, he attracts and is followed by confusing thoughts, more so than other people.)
B 1)
A person who doesn't plead for mercy for his friend falls into captivity. He can redeem himself by providing food for some living creature.
2)
Prayer is most effective when one faces Heavenward.
3)
A person who requests compassion for his generation will be rewarded with a revelation of the Divine Presence.
4)
The Shekhinah is drawn down [from Heaven] by reciting the hymns and praises [of God].
5)
The prayer leader's supplications can be likened to engaging in battle.
6)
One who fulfills, "Your neighbor's money should be as precious to you as your own"
(Avot 2:12), merits praying with an attentive heart.
7)
Reciting Psalms is asegulah forbringing the rains. [Thiscan be seen from the Hebrew word for] Psalms - TeHiLiM which is an acronym of "Lim'tar Hashamayim Tishteh Mayim - [the Land of Israel] drinks water from the rain of Heaven" (Deuteronomy 11:11).
8)
Whenapersonfeelsthesufferingof otherjewsandprays for them, even if he directs his words against Heaven he will not be punished.
9)
Certain prayers are accepted Above only after sufficient money, equivalent to the number of letters in the appropriate prayer, is given to charity. For example, when a person prays, "Give me children," he must contribute a sum equal to the letters of these very words.
10)
Through prayer a person can exchange the marriage partner designated for him in Heaven.
11)
When the masses pray together, their prayers are more effective than when they pray in separate places.
12)
There are times when one person's prayers for salvation are not enough; [help] will only come when a number of people pray for it.
13)
A person with enemies finds it difficult to concentrate while praying.
14)
One should be careful to utter God's Name in holiness and purity. That is, he should sanctify his speech to such a degree that it becomes an aspect of the spirit of prophecy.
Then his spirit will go out and defeat those who put their trust in emptiness and vanity.
Hence the verse, "Bshem YHVH Elohenu Nazkir - we will utter the Name of God, our Lord" (Psalms 20:8) [the first letters of which forms an acronym for the Hebrew word for prophet] is followed by "they were subdued and defeated" (Ibid. 20:9).