There is no need to emphasize the importance of making sure to answer amen whenever we hear a brachah. Everyone knows that the obligation to answer amen is an explicit halachah in Shulchan Aruch (215 2): “One who hears any person in Am Yisrael making one of the brachos...must answer amen after him.” At the same time, sometimes, the brachah is heard when we are doing something, and without realizing, we do not answer amen to it. This can happen more than once or twice throughout the day.
But lack of attention does not exempt us from the obligation to answer amen. There is a famous story about Harav Mordechai Yaffeh, the Baal Halevushim, that is brought in Derech Moshe (Day 11). When he inadvertently didn’t answer amen to the brachah of the young son of a certain wise man, the sage excommunicated him and rebuked him for the severity of what he had done – not answering amen to a brachah, even one recited by a child.
I thought to suggest, therefore, that anyone who is going to make a brachah should first call the attention of those around him to the fact, and thus he will invite them and encourage them to answer amen to his brachah. As a matter of habit one can say, even in the middle of a conversation or while he is doing something: “I’m going to make a brachah...” and then immediately launch into the brachah. It is unbelievable how many amens will get added by doing this, and of course, that will also elevate the brachah itself to shleimus as it will be answered by amen!
The idea is not my own. Chazal also instituted in the nusach of Kaddish that the chazzan should instruct the tzibbur: “V’imru amen!” These words are not part of the requests in Kaddish. Rather, it is a directive to the tzibbur to answer amen after the requests uttered by the one saying Kaddish. Just like the one saying Kaddish urges the tzibbur time and again “v’imru amen,” likewise, the mevarech should make sure to update those around him that he is about to make a brachah and that they should listen and say amen.
By way of remez, we can advise the words of Chazal (Brachos 6b): “Any person who has yiras Hashem has his words heard,” in other words, every yerei Shamayim makes sure that his brachah is heard by those standing near him, so that they should answer to his brachah.
Let us be strict to make all our brachos when they are heard by those who are around us and completed by them with amen, and may this zechus advocate for us that we see much brachah and hatzlachah in all our affairs.
Good Shabbos
Yaakov Dov Marmurstein
