Book excerpt: "When the summer begins to approach, go out to meditate in the meadows. When every bush of the field begins to return to life and grow, they all yearn to be included in your prayer." Rebbe Nachman emphasized the greatness of spontaneous, improvised prayer uttered in one's own language and springing from the heart -- hitbodedut. This handbook of his teachings on prayer includes Rabbi Kaplan's scholarly introduction setting hitbodedut in its context in the history of Jewish prayer and meditation.