The BIBLE and rabbinic sources stress that observances and PRAYERS should be conducted with inner devotion and steadfast intent. The concept of devotion is of special importance in KABBALISTIC literature, since prayer can influence the upper realms. Kabbalists maintain that devotion in prayer can be attained by the mystical action of combining the letters of God's name. (See also DIVINE EMANATIONS; GOD, NAMES OF.)   

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Reprinted with permission from A Concise Encyclopedia of Judaism,
by Dan Cohn-Sherbok. Oneworld Publications