Tetzaveh: Chidah: Solitude in Holy Service

The root of everything is hisbodedus, for it is a great and lofty medium to merit holiness. I will give you a hint from earlier great sages: the verse says, “Bahd kodesh yilbash, wear a holy garment.” “Bahd” can allude to the root of the word “hisbodedus.” Meaning, if one engages in the practice of hisbodedus, he will be clothed in holiness.

Similarly, the acrostic formed by the first letters of the Hebrew verse “know Him in all your ways — bekol derachecha da’ehu” spell “badad,” meaning “isolated” or “secluded.” This is because when one engages in isolation, he will cleave unto Hashem even in his physical needs (Tziporen Shamir 51).

I find this an effective meditation when wrapping in my Tallit: “Clothed in Holiness.” Responding to God’s “Hug” (as Tallit is described by Ramchal) with imagining myself alone with God, Cleaving to Him.