We know that the Mishnah is the 'Oral Torah', but what really does this mean? The word "Mishnah" means "repetition". It comes from the verb "shanah" which means "to study, to review" and is related to the adjective "shanai" which means "secondary".
The secret is that the words of the Mishnah are meant to be recited aloud, to be repeated over and over. In Eastern mysticism, this is called 'mantra yoga'. By reciting the verbal formulas of the Mishnah iteratively, the mystic begins to "engrave" pathways into his mind. By intense mental concentration on the Mishnaic verses, the mystic "carves" out the hidden inner meanings, leading to profound insight into the world of divine thought.
This formula is in reference to Sefer Yetzirah, which speaks of "haqiqa" and "hatziva", that is, engraving and carving. Engraving means making a permanent impression into the mental substance of consciousness. Carving means removing all that is irrelevant and unnecessary to the achievement of a goal.
The technique of using the Mishnah as a system of mantric verses was practiced by one of the great masters of halakhah, Rabbi Yosef Karo, author of the Shulchan Aruch. Rabbi Karo wrote about his experiences in a mystical diary called "Maggid Mesharim". In this text, which was never intended for publication, but was published posthumously, Karo describes being visited by an angelic being as he would recite the verses of the Mishnah. Karo wrote that the being would then speak into his mind, "I am the Mishnah which you have recited!"
The Mishnah is thus a massive repository of coded linguistic formulas designed to lead to states of intellectual illumination, expanding the mind into higher-dimensional thought-spaces. By practicing the technique of oral 'repetition', one 'petitions' the system of divine thoughts to enter inside one's own mind-space. By iterating the Mishnah's language of 'verses', one 'reverses' the hidden inner light so that it becomes outwardly manifest in one's own consciousness.
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