Nachman Davies’ book, The Cave of the Heart (Kuntres Maarat Ha-Lev): A Treatise on Jewish Contemplative Prayer, provides an excellent and insightful program in a little known area. Other traditions have contemplative traditions and practices, but Judaism has always lagged behind in this regard. One reason is the Jewish emphasis on communal worship and activities. Judaism view narrowly does not appear to sanction solitary, contemplative work. But this is not correct. There have always been small numbers of people engaged in Jewish contemplation.
Inside us, Davies writes, is a heart that yearns for individual connection to HaShem. Davies tell us:
When we attempt to meet G-d in private, on a one-to-one basis… we are being drawn into that cave. When we enter it in the contemplative prayer of attentiveness, we can become vehicles for the Presence of G-d. The Shekhinah then prays through us and thereby, each of us can attain a close intimacy with the Divine; with the rest of Knesset Yisrael (the Community of Israel); and with Kol ha-Olam (all creation). -Why do I call it a cave of the Heart? The heart of something is its essential core, its deepest.
Davies’ cave of the heart is both a place and an idea. It is a place in that we seek it alone, like a person isolated in a cave. It is an idea in that it exists within us just waiting for us to tap into it. This book is crucial for anyone trying to do deep religious/spiritual work in the Jewish tradition.
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