The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 228:1) rules, that upon seeing seas and rivers one should recite “oseh ma’aseh bereishis”, and upon seeing the Yam HaGadol [Mediterranean Sea], which is the sea one passes through to get to Eretz Yisroel and Mitzrayim one should recite “oseh Yam HaGadol”. The Mishnah Berurah (s.k. 3) cites from poskim that the correct nussach [textual version] is “she’osah es HaYam HaGadol”. However, earlier (s.k 2) the Mishnah Berurah brings, that many Achronim argue on the Mechaber and maintain that only on the Pacific Ocean which encompasses most of the world should one recite a special berachah. However, on all other rivers and seas one should recite “oseh ma’aseh bereishis”.
However, the Biur Halachah writes, if one recites “oseh ma’aseh bereishis” on the Pacific Ocean, bedieved [post-facto] one fulfills his duty. Similar to the berachah of she’hakol where if one my mistakes recites she’hakol bedieved he fulfills his duty. Moreover, even on wine, if one recites ho’eitz he fulfills his duty, certainly in our case as well if one recites “oseh ma’aseh bereishis” by mistake, he fulfills his duty.
What Berachah to Make on the Mediterranean Sea
Most poskim take on, that on the Pacific Ocean one recites “she’osah es HaYam HaGadol”, since the sea surrounds the entire world, whereas on the Mediterranean Sea one recites “oseh ma’aseh bereishis”. However, since there are those who maintain that one should recite “she’osah es HaYam HaGadol”, on the Mediterranean Sea, the Minchas Yitzchok (1:110) and R’ Shlomah Zalman Auerbach (Halichos Shlomah, Vol. 1, 23:29) write, that on the Mediterranean Sea one should recite “oseh ma’aseh bereishis” and toich k’dei dibbur [within around three seconds] add “she’osah es HaYam HaGadol”.
What About the Dead Sea?
Although the Dead Sea is one of the wonders of the world, it is unclear if it gets a berachah so one should not say “oseh ma’aseh bereishis”. The reason for this is because it is apparent from Chazal that the Dead Sea did not exist since Creation; rather, channels of water flowed to the area, resulting in the Dead Sea (see Shevet HaLevi 9:47).
What About the Kinneret?
On the Kinneret, one should say, “oseh ma’aseh bereishis” (see Halichos Shlomah 23:27).
What if One See’s To Different Sea’s
If one saw for example the Mediterranean Sea and made a berachah on it, and then within 30 days he saw yet another sea, i.e., he saw the Kinneret, R’ Shlomah Zalman maintains he should make a berachah a second time (Halichos Shlomah, Vol. 1, 23:27).
Does One Make a Berachah if He Sees the Sea from Very Far Away or At Night?
The berachah of “oseh ma’aseh bereishis”, was established for one who hasn’t seen the sea for over 30 days. The Shevet HaLevi maintains that if one see’s the sea from very far away, and it appears like nothing more than a blue cloud far away in the sky, it is not considered seeing. Only when one sees it from up close and sees the wonders of Hashem’s creation properly should one make a berachah. Similarly, R’ Shlomah Zalman maintains that if one sees the sea at night he shouldn’t make a berachah, as at night one doesn’t really see the niflo’as haboreh [wonders of Hashem’s creation’s] (see Sefer V’Zois HaBerachah pg. 154).
If One Never Made a Berachah At First Site, Can He Still Make a Berachah?
A very common scenario that occurs when one travels to the beach during bein hazmanim is that before one actually gets there he sees it from the car window, then it gets covered over by trees etc. and it is out of sight before one realized that he is supposed to make the berachah as soon as he sees it. The question is, the halachah is that if one sees the place where a big nes [miracle] happened to Klal Yisroel he is supposed to make a berachah. However, the Biur Halachah writes (218:1 d.h. bemokam hazeh) if one saw such a place, and then it went out of site and he never made a berachah upon the initial seeing, he can no longer make a berachah. Moreover, even if he sees the same place again a few days later, if it is within 30 days of the original seeing, he shouldn’t make a berachah even if when he initially saw the site he never made a berachah.
The above is very similar to the halachah, that although one is supposed to recite shehechayanu upon seeing a new fruit, if one saw a new fruit and he never made a berachah the first time, he can no longer make a berachah. We pasken that the berachah is made upon eating and not seeing, so the above isn’t so practical for us, but we see the same idea. The question is, do we say the same thing in regards to the berachah of “oseh ma’aseh bereishis” which one recites upon seeing a sea?
There is a new sefer called Shlomom M’Tzion (Parshas Ma’asei) where it is brought down that R’ Bentzion Felman zt”l held that one loses out on the berachah, and he brings that: בפשיטות ל''זצ שטיינמן ל ''הגראי למעשה הורה ןוכ – “this is what R’ Aharon Leib Shteinman held as well”.
However, the Shevet HaLevi held, that even if one didn’t make a berachah upon first sight, he can make a berachah when he sees it a second time, as it’s all considered one big seeing. Similar to what we find in regards to the berachah of shehechayanu on a new fruit, where the halachah is, if one never made a berachah straight away, as long as he is still eating the fruit he can still make the berachah (see Shu”t Betzel HaChochma, Vol. 5, 27:2). Similarly, I heard b’shem Rabbi Falk zt"l that one makes the berachah when one has 'hispaiylus' from seeing the sea, and therefore it is best to wait until one gets closer and sees the sea at large before making a berachah.
