Rav Kook Torah

Rav Kook on Tehillim (Psalms)

Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaCohen Kook, Chief Rabbi, in Washington DC, 1924
Expanses, expanses,
Expanses divine my soul craves.

Confine me not in cages,
Of substance or of spirit.
My soul soars the expanses of the heavens.

Walls of heart and walls of deed
Will not contain it.

Morality, logic, custom -
My soul soars above these,
Above all that bears a name,
Above all that is exalted and ethereal.

I am love-sick -
I thirst, I thirst for God,
As a deer for water brooks.
Chadarav, p. 39
Psalms 1,2: Two Aspects of Spiritual Growth
Psalm 2: Rejoice with Trembling
Psalm 3: David's Song
Psalm 3: Enemies from Within
Psalm 4: Restraining Evil Impulses
Psalm 5: Awakening Love and Awe
Psalm 6: Crying Without Tears
Psalm 9: Nations Who Forget God
Psalm 10: You Prepare Their Heart
Psalm 12: Circles and Straight Lines
Psalm 13: Trust, Happiness, and Song
Psalm 19: The Power of Holy Speech
Psalm 19: Words Acceptable to God
Psalm 20: Grasping the Middle of the Beam
Psalm 24: Climbing and Standing
Psalm 24: Opening the Temple Gates
Psalm 26: Connected to the Klal
Psalm 26: Two Levels of Love
Psalm 27: Unanswered Prayers
Psalm 29: Shabbat and Water
Psalm 30: Mizmor Shir: Melody and Song
Psalm 31: "My Times Are in Your Hand"
Psalm 31: Like a Lost Vessel
Psalm 32: The Joy of Tzaddikim
Psalm 32: Praying for Results
Psalm 33: Our Inner Source of Trust
Psalm 34: Who Wants a Good Life?
Psalm 34: Freeing Ourselves from Bad Habits
Psalm 34: Amen – Response of the Inner Soul
Psalm 35: From My Very Bones
Psalm 36: "Man and Beast, You Deliver"
Psalm 37: "My Feet Will Not Stumble"
Psalm 39: When Will I Die?
Psalm 41: Supporting the Sick
Psalm 43: Fight Against A Merciless Nation
Psalm 49: Parables and Riddles
Psalm 50: Torah from Zion
Psalm 63: Two Songs, Two Worlds
Psalm 68: Song from the Womb
Psalm 68: The Golden Dove
Psalm 68: Each Day's Blessings
Psalm 69: A Favorable Time for Prayer
Psalm 72: Prayer at Sunrise
Psalm 73: The Complacency of the Wicked
Psalm 81: Aiming for Greatness
Psalm 81: The Strange God within Us
Psalm 82: The Holiness of the Synagogue
Psalm 84: Preparing for Prayer
Psalm 84: Better than a Thousand
Psalm 86: A Sign of Forgiveness
Psalm 87: The Beloved Gates of Halacha
Psalm 87: Children of Zion
Psalm 89: Knowing the Teru'ah-Blast
Psalm 90: Teach us to Count Our Days
Psalm 91: "Dwelling On High"
Psalm 92: Faith in the Nights
Psalm 94: Fortunate Misfortune
Psalm 95: Bowing Before Our Maker
Psalm 97: Light Sown for the Tzaddik
Psalm 99: The Leadership of Moses and Aaron
Psalm 100: Serving God in Joy
Psalm 100: Manifest Kindness
Psalm 103: Reaching Inwards to God
Psalm 104: The Inner Meaning of Hallelujah
Psalm 104: The Hidden Light of Creation
Psalm 104: God's Messengers
Psalm 104: Let Sin Be Uprooted
Psalm 105: Deepening Our Wonder
Psalm 105: Our Ties to the Land of Israel
Psalm 111: The Divine in the Details
Psalm 112: No Fear!
Psalm 115: The Earth He Entrusted to Humanity
Psalm 115: Why Do We Love Life in This World?
Psalm 119: King David's Nightly Schedule
Psalm 119: A Time to Act for God
Psalm 122: The Peace of Torah Scholars
Psalm 125: Judging Scholars Favorably
Psalm 126: We Were Like Dreamers
Psalm 128: Striving for Excellence
Psalm 128: Seeing the Goodness of Jerusalem
Psalm 130: Prayer Out Of The Depths
Psalm 132: Searching for the Temple Site
Psalm 135: Deliverance from Powerful Enemies
Psalm 135: Eternal Inheritance
Psalm 140: The Tzaddik and the Yashar
Psalm 144: No Breach in Our Street
Psalm 145: The Two Features of Ashrei
Psalm 145: To Pray "in Truth"
Psalm 146: God Raises the Bowed
Psalm 149: The Double-Edged Sword of Shema