Modernishe Solitude
And so we come back again to that important principle that the Chovos Halevavos taught us: ןֹמוָה∆ה¿ךֹו ̇¿ּב ּ̇ו„¿„ֹוּב¿ ̇ƒה – solitude in the midst of company. Like Avraham when he was teaching his baalei bris, or Dovid when he walked in the marketplace – in the midst of company they were alone with Hashem.
So let’s say you’re at Cousin Chaim’s bar mitzvah party in Boro Park and everybody is chatting. All around you all the tongues are clacking and you're like a fish on dry land and you're sitting among them. So close your eyes for a moment. They’ll think you’re dozing off but actually you have retired into your cave and you're talking in your thoughts to Hakadosh Baruch Hu.
You are acting like you're listening but your mind is someplace else. You are in a forest now like the Baal Shem Tov went in the forest. And when somebody asks you something, so you come out of the forest to answer.
And if they'll say that you’re absentminded, so say “I’m sorry. I was thinking about something.” They think you're thinking about your business or something. Let them think so.
The truth is you don't have to say much because they're willing to do all the work themselves. He doesn't want to hear what you say. You say ‘yes,’ ‘yes’ and act like you're listening attentively; meanwhile your mind is on the hill and the dale far away from here, with Hashem.
