Psalm 27 — One Thing I Ask
Psalm 27's declaration of singular desire — 'One thing I ask of the Lord, this alone I seek: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life' — is the classic expression of single-pointed spiritual longing.
Psalm 27 is recited throughout the month of Elul (the month before the High Holidays) and through the Days of Awe — accompanying the entire season of teshuvah (return). Its opening is a declaration of fearless confidence: 'The Lord is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?' Then comes the singular desire: 'One thing I ask of the Lord, this alone I seek: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His Temple.' The Kabbalists teach that this singular desire — to be in God's presence — is the root of all other human desires: every desire for love, beauty, meaning, and connection is ultimately a refracted form of the soul's desire to return to its source. The closing verse is among the most beloved in the entire Psalter: 'Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the Lord.'
One thing I ask of the Lord, this alone I seek: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
Philosopher Harry Frankfurt's analysis of 'wholeheartedness' — the integration of all one's desires around a single ultimate concern — describes the spiritual state that Psalm 27 seeks: the organization of the entire self around the one desire that encompasses all desires.
Tanakh