The minhag in many places is that they blow shofar for women on Rosh Hashanah afternoon. Since this is only done in the afternoon, the Ba’al Tokea who blows has already fulfilled his obligation in the morning. The Rema (589:6) writes: “The minhag of Bnei Ashkenaz is that women recite a berachah on time bound mitzvos, however, someone else shouldn’t make a berachah on their behalf, if he has already fulfilled his obligation, and the shofar is only being sounded for the women.”
The Mishnah Berurah (s.k. 11) writes that women should make a berachah on the mitzvah of shofar themselves. The question is, however, if one woman can recite the berachah on the shofar and she’hechayanu and be moitzi other women, or if it is best that each woman makes her own berachah.
The poskim have a similar shailah when it comes to Megillah reading for a group of women. The Shulchan Aruch (Hilchos Megillah 692:3) writes that even if one has already fulfilled his duty, he can make a berachah when being moitzi others. The Mishnah Berurah (s.k. 10) explains that even though some poskim hold that if the one listening knows how to make a berachah himself/herself he/she should, the minhag is to be lenient and the ba’al koreh is moitzi everyone. Practically, this is not the minhag, like the Shu”t Minchas Yitzchak (3:53, and 54) writes at length, and if the ba’al koreh has already fulfilled his duty, then each person makes their own berachah, especially when reading for women where there are opinions that say there is no arvus between men and women, therefore, every woman should make her own berachah, and even if there is a group of ten women each woman should make her own berachah, and we don’t get one woman to be moitzi everyone, as it’s a זילא בהו מילתא – it’s a degrading thing for a woman to be moitzi others (see Sha’ar HaTziyun, 689:15). Consequently, every woman makes by herself the berachah “lishmo’a Megillah” (and not “al mikra Megillah”, see Rema 689:2 and Mishnah Berurah 692:11).
Some argue on the above ruling. In Luach Eretz Yisrael, R’ Yechiel Michal Tukachintsky writes that one woman should be moitzi the others. This was also the minhag in the household of R’ Shlomah Zalman (Halichos Shlomah, Vol. 2, Perek 19, he’orah 5). He cites proof that we aren’t worried about the Sha’arei Teshuvah who says it is זילא בהו מילתא for one woman to be moitzi others, from kiddush on Shabbos, where we find that one woman can be moitzi others (see Mishnah Berurah 271:4, and Elyah Rabbah there), and from zimun where we find that one woman can lead zimun for a group of other women (see Orach Chaim 199:6).
However, R’ Yom Tov Sanger shlita writes, that it could be that there is no proof from what happened in R’ Shlomah Zalman’s house, as perhaps what happened was that the Rebbetzen made a berachah, and one of the family members leined the Megillah, however, for a woman to get up in public and to make a berachah on Megillah instead of the ba’al koreh and be moitzi others, when she is not related to the ba’al koreh would be considered זילא בהו מילתא.
Therefore, concludes R’ Yom Tov Sanger: Practically it would seem that one should follow the opinion of the Minchas Yitzchak that each woman makes her own berachah. This can also be implied from the Shu”t Salmas Chaim (siman 269). R’ Chaim Kanievsky related that by his father the Steipler when he would read Megillah in front of women, he would tell the women to make their own individual berachah. Based on this, by tekias shofar as well, it would seem that each woman should make her own berachah.
In Halichos Shlomah (Perek 2, Orchos Halachah 55) they bring that R’ Shlomah Zalman Auerbach said that in a hospital when all the nurses gather together to hear shofar, one nurse should make a berachah for all of them.
However, R’ Yom Tov Sanger writes that this doesn’t contradict our pesak as it could be that the case of the hospital is different, as there are many nurses who aren’t able to make a berachah themselves, if, however, a woman is able to make a berachah herself then that is best.
