Traveler's Prayer and Supplications in Times of Danger

(4) Rabbi Eliezer says: One whose prayer is fixed, his prayer is not supplication and is flawed. Rabbi Yehoshua says: One who cannot recite a complete prayer because he is walking in a place of danger, recites a brief prayer and says: Redeem, Lord, Your people, the remnant of Israel, at every transition [parashat ha’ibur], the meaning of which will be discussed in the Gemara. May their needs be before You. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer.

We learned in the mishna that Rabbi Eliezer says: One whose prayer is fixed, his prayer is not supplication. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of fixed in this context? Rabbi Ya’akov bar Idi said that Rabbi Oshaya said: It means anyone for whom his prayer is like a burden upon him, from which he seeks to be quickly unburdened. The Rabbis say: This refers to anyone who does not recite prayer in the language of supplication, but as a standardized recitation without emotion. Rabba and Rav Yosef both said: It refers to anyone unable to introduce a novel element, i.e., something personal reflecting his personal needs, to his prayer, and only recites the standard formula. Rabbi Zeira said: I could introduce a novel element in every prayer, but I am afraid that perhaps I will become confused. Consequently, there is no room to require the masses to introduce a novel element into their prayers. The brothers, Abaye bar Avin and Rabbi Ḥanina bar Avin, both said: One whose prayer is fixed refers to anyone who does not make the effort to pray with the reddening of the sun, just after sunrise and just before sunset, which are auspicious times for prayer. As Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: It is a mitzva to pray with the reddening of the sun. And Rabbi Zeira said: What is the verse that alludes to this? “Let them fear You with the sun and before the moon, generation after generation” (Psalms 72:5). Prayer, the manifestation of the fear of God, should be undertaken adjacent to sunrise and sunset. Nevertheless, in the West, Eretz Yisrael, they cursed one who prays with the reddening of the sun, adjacent to sunset. What is the reason? Perhaps, due to preoccupation, he will become confused about the hour and the time for prayer will pass. We learned in the mishna that Rabbi Yehoshua says: One who is walking in a place of danger, recites a brief prayer…at parashat ha’ibur. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of parashat ha’ibur? Rav Ḥisda said that Mar Ukva said: This can be interpreted in a manner underscoring two connotations of the term ibur: Even at a time when You are as filled with anger [evra], towards them, as a pregnant woman [ubara], may all of their needs be before You. Some say a different version of what Rav Ḥisda said that Mar Ukva said: Even when they violate [ovrim] the commandments of the Torah, may all of their needs be before You. One formula for the prayer recited in places of danger is cited in the mishna. Additional formulas are cited in the Tosefta. The Sages taught: One who walks in a place where there are groups of wild beasts and robbers recites an abbreviated prayer. Which is an abbreviated prayer? Rabbi Eliezer says, “Carry out Your will in the heavens above, and give peace of mind to those who fear You below, and perform that which is good in Your eyes. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer.” Rabbi Yehoshua says that he recites: Hear the cry of Your nation, Israel, and quickly fulfill their request. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer. Rabbi Elazar, son of Rabbi Tzadok says that he recites: Hear the shout of Your nation, Israel, and quickly fulfill their request. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer. Aḥerim say that he recites: The needs of Your nation, Israel, are many and their intelligence is limited, and, consequently, they are unable to effectively articulate their thoughts in prayer (Maharsha). So may it be Your will, Lord our God, to provide each and every one with his necessary sustenance, and to each and every body all that it lacks. Blessed are You, Lord, Who listens to prayer. Rav Huna said: The halakha with regard to the version of the prayer recited in a place of danger is in accordance with the opinion of Aḥerim. On the topic of prayers recited while traveling and in times of danger, the Gemara discusses the traveler’s prayer. When he appeared to him, Elijah the Prophet said to Rav Yehuda brother of Rav Sala Ḥasida: Do not get angry and you will not sin. Do not get drunk and you will not sin. And when you set out on a journey, consult with your Creator, and then set out. The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of: Consult with your Creator, and then set out? Rabbi Ya’akov said that Rav Ḥisda said: That is the traveler’s prayer. And Rabbi Ya’akov said that Rav Ḥisda said: It is not only good advice, but established halakha that anyone who sets out on a journey must recite the traveler’s prayer prior to embarking on his journey. The Gemara asks: What is the formula for the traveler’s prayer? The Gemara answers: May it be Your will, Lord my God, to lead me to peace, direct my steps to peace, and guide me to peace, and rescue me from the hands of any enemy or ambush along the way, and send blessing to the work of my hands, and let me find grace, kindness, and compassion in Your eyes and in the eyes of all who see me. Blessed are You, Lord, Who hears prayer. Abaye said: At all times a person should associate himself with the congregation and should not pray for himself alone. How should he say it? May it be Your will, Lord our God, that You lead us to peace, etc., in the plural. The Gemara discusses specific details pertaining to this prayer. When does one pray? Rabbi Ya’akov said that Rav Ḥisda said: From when one sets out on his journey, and not before. How long must one’s planned journey be in order to require him to recite this prayer (Ba’al Halakhot Gedolot)? Rabbi Ya’akov said that Rav Ḥisda said: At least a parasang. How does he recite this prayer? Rav Ḥisda said: Only while standing in one place. Rav Sheshet said: Even walking or sitting. The Gemara relates: Rav Ḥisda and Rav Sheshet were walking along the path, Rav Ḥisda stood and recited the traveler’s prayer. Since he was blind and did not see his colleague, Rav Sheshet asked his servant: What is Rav Ḥisda doing now? His servant said to him: He is standing and praying. Rav Sheshet said to his servant: Stand me up as well and I will pray. Even though Rav Sheshet held that there is no need to stand during this prayer, nevertheless: From being good, do not be called wicked. In other words, one should do better if he is able. Rav Sheshet said that one is not required to stop and stand. He did not say that it is preferable to walk or sit. Since standing in this case required no special effort on his part, as Rav Ḥisda had stopped to stand and pray anyway, why insist on sitting? The mishna mentioned both a brief prayer recited in times of danger and an abridged prayer, with regard to which there was a dispute between the tanna’im. The Gemara asks: What is the practical halakhic difference between the abridged prayer: Grant us understanding and the brief prayer recited in times of danger? The Gemara answers: One who recites: Grant us understanding is required to recite the first three blessings and the last three blessings of the Amida prayer, and when he reaches his home, he need not pray again. One who recites the brief prayer, however, need recite neither the first three blessings nor the last three blessings of the Amida prayer. However, when he reaches his home, he must pray again. Grant us understanding has the legal status of the Amida prayer, despite its brevity, while the brief prayer is merely recited in place of the Amida prayer in exigent circumstances. The halakha is: Grant us understanding, as mentioned above, has the legal status of the Amida prayer, and must therefore be recited while standing. The brief prayer, since it does not have that status, may be recited whether one is standing or whether one is walking.

The Traveler and Laborers - What Should They Pray? And the Order of the Prayer During Travel and of the Study Hall.
(1) In a extenuating circumstance, such as when one is on the road or when one was standing in a place where one is distracted, and one fears that they will interrupt one, or if one is not able to pray the full [Amidah] prayer with intention - one prays "Havineinu" [i.e. the digest version of the middle 13 Amidah blessings] after the first three [blessings of the Amidah] and, after it, say the last three [blessings of the Amidah], and it is necessary to say them while standing. And when one arrives at one's house, it is not necessary to go back and pray [again]. And one does not pray "Havineinu" in the rainy season, and not at the departure of Shabbat [i.e. Saturday night] nor a holiday.

(2) The laborers who do their work near the proprietor - if [the proprietor] doesn't give them payment beyond their meals, they pray eighteen [blessings the Amidah], they do not descend before the Ark [i.e. they do not appoint a prayer leader to lead them], and they do not "raise their hands" [i.e. if any of them are Kohanim, they do not recite the Priestly Blessings]. And they are given payment, they pray "Havineinu." And nowadays, it is not the way [of proprietor] to be strict regarding this, and it's assumed that they hired them with the understanding that they will [interrupt their work to] pray the Shemoneh Esrei [i.e. the full Amidah].

(3) The one who is walking in a place [where there are] bands of wild animals or robbers prays "The needs of your people are numerous, etc.", and there is no need - not the first three [blessings of the Amidah], and not for the final three. And one may pray this on the road, as one is going, but if one is able to stand, one [should] stand. And when one arrives at a settlement and one's mind has calmed down, one goes back and prays the Eighteen Blessings [i.e. the full Amidah]. (And if one did not go back to pray, it is considered as if one forgot to pray entirely.) (And this is also understood from the Beit Yosef)

(4) One who leaves to travel should pray: "May it be your will Lord our God and the God of our ancestors, that you lead us to peace, etc." And one must say it in plural language, and if it is possible, one should refrain from going while one says it. And if one was riding, one need not dismount.

(5) It is not necessary to say [this prayer] more than once a day even if one rests in a city in the middle of the day. But if one's thought is to lodge in the city, and then afterwards, one reconsiders and leaves it [so as to] to pass outside of it or to return to one's home, one must go back and pray [the prayer] another time.

(6) The Mahar"am of Rottenburg, when he was traveling in the morning, he would say it [i.e. the prayer for travelers mentioned above in Seif 4] after the [morning blessing of] "May it be your will..." in order to juxtapose it with the blessing of "The One who bestows kindness" and it would therefore be a blessing that is juxtaposed with another.

(7) One should say it after one has hit the road. And one should not say it other than in the case that one has to go a parsah [approx. 4 km]; but [if] less than a parsah one should not end [the prayer] with "barukh...". And ab initio, one should say it within the first parsah (Rashi and the R"i) And one forgot to say it, one may say it the entire time one is on the road, as long as one did not yet reach within the parsah adjacent to the city in which one wants to lodge; and from that point on, one should say it without the blessing.

(8) One who enters the study hall prays "May it be your will, Lord, our God and the God of our ancestors, that I not falter in any legal matter, etc." And upon one's departure, one says "I give thanks before You, Lord my God, that placed my portion among those who sit in the the study hall, etc."

The Traveler's Prayer (Tefilat Haderech) should be recited when embarking on a journey, once one has left the city on the first day of travel from home. It is preferable to say it while standing if it can be done easily. On subsequent days while still traveling until returning home, it should be recited each morning, even if one is staying at an inn. It concludes with "Blessed are You who hears prayer," without mentioning God's name:

"May it be Your will, Lord our God and God of our fathers, that You lead us in peace, guide us in peace, support us in peace, and bring us to our destination in life, joy, and peace. [If one intends to return immediately, say: "and return us in peace"]. Save us from every enemy and ambush, from robbers and wild animals along the way, and from all kinds of calamities that may come into the world. Send blessing in all the work of our hands, and grant us grace, kindness, and mercy in Your eyes and in the eyes of all who see us. Bestow upon us good kindness and hear the voice of our prayer, for You hear the prayer of every mouth. Blessed are You, Lord, who hears prayer."

The abridged prayer of Havineinu:

(recite first three blessings of Amidah first, then say:) Grant us, Lord our God, understanding to know Thy ways,

and open our hearts to Thy awe,

and forgive us, so that we may be redeemed,

and keep us far away from pain,

and satisfy us with the pleasant produce of Thy earth,

and gather our dispersed from the four (corners of the earth),

judge those who stray from Thy opinion,

and may Thy Hand be upon the wicked to humble them,

and may the righteous rejoice over the rebuilding of Thy City

and in the restoration of Thy Temple,

and in the flowering pride of David Thy servant,

and in the preparation of a lamp for the son of Jesse, Thy anointed Messiah,

before we call, may You answer,

Blessed art Thou, O Lord, Who hears prayer. (Continue with last three blessings of Amidah)

(10) Yaakov left Beer-sheba, and set out for Haran. (11) He came upon a certain place and stopped there for the night, for the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of that place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place.

(2) ויפגע AND HE LIGHTED — similar are (Joshua 16:7) “and it reached (ופגע) unto Jericho”, and (Joshua 19:11) “and reached (ופגע) to Dabesheth”. Our Rabbis explained it in the sense of “praying”, just as (Jeremiah 7:16) “Neither make intercession (תפגע) to me”. Thus we may learn that Jacob originated the custom of Evening Prayer. Scripture purposely changed the usual word for “praying”, not writing יתפלל, “And he prayed” (which would have been the more appropriate word, but ויפגע which means to hit upon a place unexpectedly), to teach you also that the ground shrunk before him (the journey was miraculously shortened) as it is explained in the Chapter גיד הנשה (Chullin 91b).

(2) “And Yaakov departed ….” (Bereshit, 28:10)
Why did Yaakov Avinu not pray for his journey immediately upon leaving Beer Sheva, but waited until here (Beit El, north of Jerusalem) for his prayer, “if God will be with me and guard me …” for this was the prayer for his journey? This matter may be understood based on what is written in the Gemara (Bechorot, 56a), “Rav Asi said, Rabbi Yochanan said, if one acquires ten embryos in ten pregnant cows [and the animals were born after he had already owned them], all are brought into a pen and tithed.” The Gemara asks, “are we not taught, if one buys from a friend, or receives as a gift, he is exempt from having to tithe [for he must tithe only those animals born while in his possession]? Rabbi Elazar said, I say that Reb Yochanan appeared in my dream and solved it favorably. [He must tithe the unborn animals, even if they were received as embryos in animals that did not need to be tithed], for it is written, ‘so you shall do,’ [“Give Me the firstborn of your sons, so you shall do to your cattle …” Shemot 22] meaning at the time they are being ‘done’ [or fit to be offered in the Temple].” This means that if he acquired them at a time when he was obligated to tithe, then he is exempt from tithing except for the unborn animals he acquired.
It is similar here with Yaakov Avinu. The solution of Rabbi Elazar only came to him after he saw Rabbi Yochanan in a dream, meaning that the only one who would understand this is the one to whom the Holy One, blessed be He, shows His attribute of mercy. Rabbi Yochanan represents this quality of God’s mercy, as it says in the Gemara (Berachot, 57a), “whoever sees Yochanan in his dream, the miracle of miracles will be done for him.” Therefore Yaakov Avinu could not pray first. In his prophetic spirit he saw all that would happen to him on his journey, and he also knew that his prayer would finish with “all that you give me I will give a tenth thereof,” so he then asked the same question as mentioned earlier in the Gemara, that one who acquires something is exempt from tithing. Therefore he could not offer this prayer, for with Yaakov it was said (Bereshit, 31:41), “I have worked six years with your sheep,” and if so, he was one who had acquired. It was only after God had appeared to him in a dream, and with Yaakov Avinu God was addressed with the title “the merciful,” as it is said (Bereshit, 33:5), “the children which God has been merciful in giving His servant.” This is akin to what is said in the Gemara, “I saw Reb Yochanan (the attribute of mercy) in a dream.”
Therefore Yaakov knew that something new would be done for him, as it is written, “at the time of doing,” and Yaakov bought the sheep from Lavan in their mother’s wombs, before “the time of doing,” or birth, as his conditions with Lavan concerned the sheep that would be born from now on, and the blessing of God came upon them in their mother’s wombs. Thus they were required to be tithed. Once he understood this reason he could well pray, “if God will be with me … I will give a tenth … ”