Saying the Words: “In Memory of the Exodus”
An Opening Question Three times a day, a Jew opens his mouth and says: “In memory of the Exodus from Egypt.” He says it in the morning prayers, in the afternoon prayers, and in the evening prayers. Again and again, day after day, year after year. And not only by day. Our Sages also set it up so that we mention it at night. A person might ask himself: Why all this repeating? The miracle was a great miracle. No doubt about it. But I already know it. I have said it a thousand times. What does saying it one thousand and one times add? The answer to this question is really a whole secret about how to serve Hashem every single day. What “Egypt” Really Means: A Narrow Place “Egypt” is not just the name of a place on the map. It carries inside it a deep picture of the inner self. In Hebrew, the word for Egypt comes from the word for a narrow place. It means tightness, limits, a feeling of being choked. It is a state where a person’s view shrinks. It is as if he is looking through the narrow opening of a tunnel. He sees only what is right in front of him. He has no space, no depth, no air. How many times a day does a Jew feel that he is there? It might be a young married man, or a working man with a family. He feels it when making a living is not flowing. He feels it when there is tension at home with his wife. He feels it when raising his children is not simple. He feels it when his spiritual life seems dry. “This is how it is. This is how it will stay. There is no way out.” That is tunnel vision. That is his own private Egypt. The Power Planted When We Left But Hashem did not only take the Jewish people out of the physical Egypt. In that going out, done “with a strong hand,” He planted a real power deep in the nature of every Jewish soul, for all generations. It is the power to break out of narrow places. The teaching of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of the Hasidic movement, explains it this way. The inner meaning of the Exodus is going out of limits and narrowness. It did not happen only once in history. It is a living power that is truly inside the soul. That power has not faded. It is only waiting to be switched on. Speaking Is the Key And here is the depth of it. How do we switch it on? In the words of the Psalms: “From the narrow place I called out to Hashem. Hashem answered me with wide-open space.” Notice the order of things. The calling out, the speaking, is what opens up the wide space. It is not thinking alone. It is not a hidden intention in the heart. It is calling out with the mouth: “From the narrow place I called out to Hashem.” This is exactly how “in memory of the Exodus” works. A Jew opens his mouth and says these words: “In memory of the Exodus from Egypt.” This is not just a description of something that once happened. It is an action. By speaking, he wakes up the hidden power in his soul. He carries out his own personal exodus from his own Egypt, here and now, this very morning. Speaking is not the preparation for going out. Speaking is the going out.
Putting It into Practice
So here is the tool, my friend. The next time you stand in prayer and reach the words “in memory of the Exodus from Egypt,” stop for a second. Ask yourself: What is my Egypt right now? What is the specific narrow place where I feel stuck this morning? Is it in making a living? In my relationships? Inside my own head? And then say the words. Not out of habit. Say them like someone who is using a power he was given at Mount Sinai. Because that is how it works: “From the narrow place I called out to Hashem,” and the wide space opens up. Three times a day. Three real chances. Not to remember a miracle from the past, but to make a miracle in the present.
Questions and answers
Q: Why do we mention the Exodus from Egypt three times a day, and even at night?
Rabbi Landau answers: Three times a day, a Jew opens his mouth and says: “In memory of the Exodus from Egypt.” He says it in the morning prayers, in the afternoon prayers, and in the evening prayers. Again and again, day after day, year after year. And not only by day. Our Sages also set it up so that we mention it at night. A person might ask himself: Why all this repeating? The miracle was a great miracle. No doubt about it. But I already know it. I have said it a thousand times. What does saying it one thousand and one times add? The answer to this question is really a whole secret about how to serve Hashem every single day.
Q: What does "Egypt" mean as a narrow place inside a person?
Rabbi Landau answers: “Egypt” is not just the name of a place on the map. It carries inside it a deep picture of the inner self. In Hebrew, the word for Egypt comes from the word for a narrow place. It means tightness, limits, a feeling of being choked. It is a state where a person’s view shrinks. It is as if he is looking through the narrow opening of a tunnel. He sees only what is right in front of him. He has no space, no depth, no air. How many times a day does a Jew feel that he is there? It might be a young married man, or a working man with a family. He feels it when making a living is not flowing. He feels it when there is tension at home with his wife.
Q: What power did Hashem plant in every Jewish soul when He took us out of Egypt?
Rabbi Landau answers: But Hashem did not only take the Jewish people out of the physical Egypt. In that going out, done “with a strong hand,” He planted a real power deep in the nature of every Jewish soul, for all generations. It is the power to break out of narrow places. The teaching of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of the Hasidic movement, explains it this way. The inner meaning of the Exodus is going out of limits and narrowness. It did not happen only once in history. It is a living power that is truly inside the soul. That power has not faded. It is only waiting to be switched on.
Q: What does "From the narrow place I called out to Hashem" teach about the power of speaking?
Rabbi Landau answers: And here is the depth of it. How do we switch it on? In the words of the Psalms: “From the narrow place I called out to Hashem. Hashem answered me with wide-open space.” Notice the order of things. The calling out, the speaking, is what opens up the wide space. It is not thinking alone. It is not a hidden intention in the heart. It is calling out with the mouth: “From the narrow place I called out to Hashem.” This is exactly how “in memory of the Exodus” works. A Jew opens his mouth and says these words: “In memory of the Exodus from Egypt.” This is not just a description of something that once happened. It is an action.
Q: What should I think about when I say "in memory of the Exodus from Egypt" in prayer?
Rabbi Landau answers: So here is the tool, my friend. The next time you stand in prayer and reach the words “in memory of the Exodus from Egypt,” stop for a second. Ask yourself: What is my Egypt right now? What is the specific narrow place where I feel stuck this morning? Is it in making a living? In my relationships? Inside my own head? And then say the words. Not out of habit. Say them like someone who is using a power he was given at Mount Sinai. Because that is how it works: “From the narrow place I called out to Hashem,” and the wide space opens up. Three times a day. Three real chances. Not to remember a miracle from the past, but to make a miracle in the present.