It is not a matter of platitudes, saying the right thing, or performance, doing the right thing, but it is an all-encompassing attitude that permeates the essence of the individual. It is evident in the humility by which they present themselves, in the way they treat others and in the scrupulousness by which they adhere to the laws of the Torah. The will of God, not the individual, is foremost in every decision. While this is a beautiful concept, how does one practically engender this proper attitude or set this moral compass?
In between the portrayal of the material bounty of the Land of Israel and the description of the risks entailed in that wealth sits a pivotal verse that is the secret antidote to the formidable perils of wealth. In the Pesukim, two verbs are followed by a third verb that is key to understanding how to combat the negative effects of material success. One Pasuk begins, “when you will eat and be satisfied...and your heart will grow haughty...” (˃ֶ֑בָבְל םָ֖רְו... ָתְּﬠָ֑בָשְׂו לַ֖אכֹתּן־ֶפּ).”
Yet just prior to that there is an alternate version of the same scenario, “and you will eat, and you will be satisfied, and you will bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you (ו ָ֖תְּלַכָאְ ˄ֱא קָ֣וֹקְת־יֶא ָ֙תְּכַרֵֽוּב ָתְּﬠָ֑בָשְׂו ֶ֔קי˃ ץֶרָ֥אָל־הַﬠ רֶ֥שֲׁא הָ֖בֹטַּה ˂ָֽן־לַתָֽנ ). The parallel language and juxtaposition of these verses indicates that the Torah sees Birkat HaMazon as being the crucial counterforce in combating the negative attitudes spawned by material success.
This insight can also more fully address the question posed by the Sefer HaChinuch, “Why did the Torah prescribe that one bless God only after one has eaten?” At the moment of highest risk (ָתְּﬠָ֑בָשְׂו), the Torah enjoins one to look outside of themselves, to shake their smugness and turn to God wholeheartedly and say thank you. It is not just gratitude for the food one consumed, but for the great land that God provided to facilitate one’s success (ץֶרָ֥אָל־הַﬠ ˂ָֽן־לַתָֽנ רֶ֥שֲׁא הָ֖בֹטַּה). It is not just an acknowledgement of the discrete pleasure one has just experienced, but a greater recognition of the tools and the means that God granted the individual to create the bounty they are enjoying.
Using this paradigm, Chazal extrapolated this concept when they extended the necessity for blessings to not only after one has experienced pleasure and contentment, but also to before they engage in enjoyable experiences. The Gemara states that it is only logical that one bless God before they partake of worldly pleasures since anyone who benefits from this world without a Beracha is as if they have misappropriated that which God has provided them, or, in other words, it is as if they have stolen from God.
This is most evident in the Beracha recited before one eats bread which thanks God for “taking bread out of the land (הארץ מן לחם המוציא).” The wheat is God’s creation, but the processing of the wheat to produce bread is largely the result of man-made toil. Yet, we still credit God with producing the bread from the land (לִיָ֑ח וֹת֣שֲׂﬠַל ַחֹ֖כּ ֛˃ְל ןֵ֥תֹנַּה וּא֗ה יִ֣כּ). A Beracha beforehand prompts one to recognize that everything belongs to God and fosters the acknowledgment that the enjoyment of the upcoming benefit is all a blessing from God and not solely a celebration of personal achievement.
Similarly, blessings of thanksgiving for mundane activities (יצר אשר) and the passage of time (שהחיינו) when reflected upon properly and said with true gratitude engender a realization and nurture a sense of appreciation for all the gifts that God bestows upon each individual.
This week’s parsha reminds us to count our blessings and to be more meticulous and conscientious in our making of Berachot because it helps orient the person towards recognition of God’s central role in the successes or achievements that they have attained (ןֵ֥תֹנַּה וּא֗ה יִ֣כּ לִיָ֑ח וֹת֣שֲׂﬠַל ַחֹ֖כּ ֛˃ְל). That acknowledgement helps inoculate the person against the perils of haughtiness and the temptation to reject compliance with God’s will even when they are blessed with material success and that is the power of a Beracha.
Shabbat Shalom
שלימה לרפואה ,ישראל בארץ ל"ז הנרצחים נשמת לעילוי ושמירה והצלחה ,ולשבוים לנעדרים קרובה לגאולה ,לפצועים לחיילי ובמיוחד ישראל כלל לכל ונחמות וישועות טובות ובשורות אלקינו וערי ארצנו משמר על העומדים ל"צה
:הֶֽבְּרִי ֖˃ְר־לֶשֲׁא לֹ֥כְו ˃ֶ֑בָבְל םָ֖רְו ָ֙תְּחַכָֽשְׁו ˄ֱא קָ֣וֹקְת־יֶא ֶ֔ק יתֵ֥בִּמ םִיַ֖רְצִמ ץֶרֵֶ֥אמ ֛˃ֲיאִוֹמּצַה י˃ :יםִֽדָבֲﬠ )י,ח דברים-יד(
מן הנהנה וכל .ברכה בלא הזה העולם מן שיהנה לאדם לו אסור :הוא סברא ,אלא ברכה בלא הזה העולם- מעל...להקב גוזל כאילו"ה ישראל וכנסת .לה ברכות)-(:לה
