Hashkata Meditation
Hashkata is a meditation that combines successively introspection, verse repetition and chanting, as a means for spiritual and ethical transformation.
This technique was taught in the twenties by Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, a great Hasidic teacher and leader, known as the rabbi of the Warsaw Ghetto, before who was murdered in the Holocaust.
The primary source for Hashkata is the testimony of one of his students in the mid-1930s -although the rebbe alludes to Hashkata in some of his books, for example, in Chovat Ha-Talmidim (“A Student’s Responsibility”).
While the end goal of Hashkata is tikkun midot (healing our character traits), it starts with working on quieting the ego: the starting point of the Rebbe is noticing how the ego gets in the way of our encounter with the Source of Life- when we are self-centered, Heavenly Inspiration (hashraah m'marom) can't flow through us.
Hashkata, "quieting", is therefore the first step:
sitting quietly and "looking at our thoughts" until we reach a a sleep-like state of consciousness while staying aware. This is an accurate description of a meditative state.
Then the work of word-repetition, akin to Mantra in other traditions, in order to nurture the positive quality that we wish to reinforce within us (patience, compassion, trust, generosity, etc.), can begin.
How to practice Hashkata
STEP I - OBSERVING YOUR THOUGHTS
First, the invitation is to observe your thoughts for a little while, a few moments. Ask yourself: “What am I thinking about?” You’ll then notice that your mind is slowly emptying, and the flow of thoughts is slowing down. You gain control over your awareness and may use it as you see fit.
STEP II – VERSE REPETITION
The next step includes repeating a verse from the Bible. The rebbe gives an example: “But the Lord is the true God, He is the living God, and an everlasting King” (Jeremiah 10, 10). After emptying the mind of mundane thoughts, the idea is to then connect to “one thought of holiness”: Bring your awareness to the spiritual.
STEP III – ASKING FOR INSPIRATION
Now you may ask for Divine Inspiration, the core of Hashkata Meditation. For example, you may ask for help fixing specific character traits, strengthening your faith, working on your love for God, etc.
When working on strengthening your faith, you can whisper something like: “I believe with complete faith that God is the only existence in the universe. There is no reality other than God. All the world and all that is, is just an instance of His Light.”
You may repeat this several times, but the rebbe insists on the importance of keeping a low voice and whispering softly. An essential part of the Hashkata practice is to quiet your ego. When speaking loudly, the ego can be awakened and disturb the practice.
You may use this practice to work on whichever trait you wish, as long as you keep a positive framework and phrasing, asking for the characteristics you’d like to enhance, rather than the ones you’d like to eliminate.
For instance, rather than saying, “I wish I wasn’t lazy”, or “I wish I would stop being lazy”, the invitation is to say, “Please, God, help me have energy for action”, or “I believe in my ability to act quickly when the thought of an action comes to my mind.”
STEP IV – SOFT CHANTING
We seal the practice by chanting this verse from the Tehilim (Psalm 86,11):
הוֹרֵנִי יְהוָה דַּרְכֶּךָ
אֲהַלֵּךְ בַּאֲמִתֶּךָ
יַחֵד לְבָבִי לְיִרְאָה שְׁמֶךָ.
Horeini Hashem Darkeikha
Ahalekh be amiteikha
Yached Levavi le-ira shmeicha
Teach me Your way, O LORD
I will walk in Your truth
Let my heart be undivided in reverence for Your Name.