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Hisbonenus

התבוננות

Contemplation (hisbonenus)

Contemplation: thinking deeply with the mind (Binah) on G‑d’s greatness, as in the prayers, so that love and awe may be born in the heart and the hidden is brought into the open.

Where it’s explained

  1. Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 6, ¶2There are kinds of contemplation: one that enters the heart, so the heart becomes a vessel for it (called “Adam”, a being of mind and middos); one that the mind grasps but the heart is too small to hold, for it would expire; and one even the mind cannot bear, the silent prayer, a bittul above what the soul can hold.ויש התבוננות שהיא למעלה בהשגת מוחו ובינתו והלב קטן מהכיל התבוננות זו
  2. Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 1, ¶2Contemplating G‑d’s oneness in Binah alone, however deeply, is only “hearing”: once the mind turns away one can stray. Daas binds the depth of the heart to what Binah contemplates, joining Chochmah to Binah, so that by the strength of the contemplation it becomes like sight (“from my flesh I see G‑d”).שיגרום ברוב חוזק ההתבוננות עד שיהיה בהבינה בחי׳ ראיה ראית החכמה
  3. Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 3, ¶7Two “keys”: the inner, contemplating the exaltedness of Or Ein Sof itself, beyond memaleh and sovev, which draws mesirus nefesh in the G‑dly soul; the outer, contemplating how He fills and creates all worlds, only His “name” and ziv. Through the outer the animal soul, which stands behind screens, is transformed, seeing that the separate “yesh” is nullified before the ziv that gives it life.והבחינה הב׳ בהתבוננות הוא נקרא מפתחות החיצוניות שהוא להתבונן איך הוא יתברך ממכ״ע
  4. Likkutei Torah, Yom Kippur 1, ¶3Beside the fire from above, the natural love, one must bring “fire from below” by contemplating G‑d’s greatness, each by his measure. It gives birth to strong love when one contemplates something new: that He renews creation from nothing every day, as one sees in oneself waking each morning. This is turning one’s face back to G‑d.וההתבוננות המוליד אהבה עזה שהיא כרשפי אש הוא כאשר מתבונן בדבר חדש
  5. Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 20, ¶21The world’s nullification before the light that creates it is hidden, a “secret”; contemplation is the “wine” that brings the secret out, so that love for this hidden life follows and one’s will is drawn after G‑d’s. It is also the way to joy in Torah and mitzvos, though they are above contemplation.ועל ידי יין שהוא בחינת ההתבוננות יצא הסוד בגילוי

Stated differently

Whether “hearing” (as in “Shema”) is contemplation, or above contemplation

Torah Ohr, Ki Sisa 2, ¶7ובזה פי׳ שמע לשון שמיעה שאינו יכול להיות בו שום התבוננות כלל שהוא למעלה מההתבוננות

The first love depends on contemplation, which is everyone’s duty and in his choice; the second “you shall love” is ahavah rabbah that comes from above. In this sense “Shema” means hearing, in which there can be no contemplation at all, for it is above contemplation.

Torah Ohr, Vayechi 4, ¶7שמע לשון הבנה להתבונן כי ה׳ אחד

“Shema” means understanding: to contemplate that G‑d is One, that the seven heavens, the earth and the four directions are nullified to the Alef, the Master of the world.

Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 1, ¶2אבל בחי׳ שמיעה דהיינו בחי׳ התבוננות בלבד במחשבה עמוקה

Hearing is contemplation alone, deep thought in Binah, like hearing of a thing from others; it is below seeing, which is Chochmah.

Whether teshuvah from the depth of the heart comes through contemplation

Likkutei Torah, Shabbos Shuvah 3, ¶31ואין התשובה באה מחמת התבוננות הדברים האלה אשר ישים אל לבו

Teshuvah is from the depth of the heart, far above intellect and contemplation; the “words” do not arouse it through understanding and grasp, they only bring that depth of the heart from concealment into the open.

Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 4, ¶3ע״י תשובה מעומקא דליבא בהתבוננותו כי ברגע קטן עזבתיך

Teshuvah from the depth of the heart comes through contemplating that the whole “leaving” (all six thousand years, Gan Eden, the days of Mashiach and the resurrection) is but a moment, one thought, and that the soul’s descent is great; this arouses the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy.

Likkutei Torah, Rosh Hashanah 5, ¶8שמחמת התבוננות הזה בא לידי תשובה בכלות הנפש

Contemplating that the world and time are as a moment before Him, who is above time, brings one to teshuvah with the soul’s expiry (kelos hanefesh).

Main sources

Torah Ohr, Mishpatim 1, ¶2Likkutei Torah, Shemini Atzeres 6, ¶2Likkutei Torah, Vayikra 3, ¶7Likkutei Torah, Yom Kippur 1, ¶3Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 20, ¶21Likkutei Torah, Shir HaShirim 32, ¶37Torah Ohr, Ki Sisa 2, ¶7

Where it appears

In 424 paragraphs of 215 maamarim.

Written with AI from the paragraphs of Torah Ohr and Likkutei Torah, each entry checked by a second AI reader and every Hebrew quote checked by code; not yet reviewed by a person. Our English: CC BY-NC 4.0.

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