The adanim were sockets that held together the structure of the mishkan. Without having them in place, the physical building simply could not remain standing. We are told that there were 100 silver adanim to hold the tapestries together (see Shemot 38:27). The Ba’al ha-Turim, in his short and pithy fashion, states that when the Rabbis established the requirement of reciting 100 blessings every day it was done as a reminder of these 100 silver sockets. The simple but powerful message is that brakhot are the sockets that hold together our lives just as the sockets held together the mishkan. Let’s dig more deeply into the one hundred blessings.
Menachot 43b states that every person is required to recite 100 blessings a day based on a creative read of a Biblical verse (Deuteronomy 10:12). The midrash (Bamidar Rabba, Korach, 18:21, and Tanchuma Bamidbar 12) connects the practice of 100 blessings to a plague in the time of King David that was killing 100 people a day. This institution was made to stop that mysterious plague (the Tur, OC 41 quotes this in the name of Rav Natronai Gaon, see the opening paragraphs of the Siddur of Rav Amram Gaon). The requirement is codified in the Rambam (Hilkhot Tefila 7:14) and the Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chayyim 46:3, see the Shulchan Aruch ha-Rav there).
The opportunity to make a brakha gives us a chance to slow down and bring an awareness of the Divine into many moments of everyday life. There is a beauty and depth to slowing down to appreciate the wonders and benefits of the world in which we live. At the very same time, the laws of making brakhot are complex and detailed. For some, the technical requirements can detract from that spiritual vitality. I would like to share ways in which the halakhot of brakhot and the aggadot behind them can be seen as complementary.
Let’s begin with a simple categorization question. Rambam (Hilkhot Brakhot 1:4) groups all blessings into three basic categories: 1) Blessings of enjoyment (like on food or smells), 2) Blessing over Mitzvot (like the lulav or counting the Omer) and, 3) Blessings of Praise (like shehecheyanu). The blessings that we recite as part of Birkot ha-Shachar raise an interesting problem. When we thank God for “clothing the naked” or “giving sight to the blind,” are those blessings of praise or blessings of enjoyment? The simple implication of this basic question of categorization is what happens if I sleep with my clothing on–do I recite that blessing? What about a person who is in fact blind? Is this series of brakhot meant to praise God for the existence of sight and clothing or for the fact that I am getting dressed and that I can see?
Rambam–Personal Benefit
Rambam makes it clear that this entire group of blessings, Birkot ha-Shachar, is meant to fall into the first category–blessings of benefit. Therefore, an individual who did not receive that particular benefit may not recite the blessing. In the seventh chapter of the law of prayer (Halakhot 4-6) Ramabam summarizes the birkot ha-shachar as they appear in the Gemara (brakhot 60a/b and Menachot 43b). He then goes on (Hil. Tefila 7:7-9) to make a simple halakhic claim, behind which there is a deep spiritual message:
Any blessing in which one is not obligated should not be recited. What is implied? One who sleeps in his outer garment should not recite the blessing “who clothes the naked” upon rising. One who walks barefoot does not recite the blessing, “for You have provided me with all my needs”.... One who does not relieve himself does not recite the blessing, “who created man in wisdom”.... The same applies regarding the remainder of the blessings. It is the custom of the people in the majority of our cities to recite these blessings one after another in the synagogue, whether or not they are obligated in them. This is a mistake and it is not proper to follow this practice. One should not recite a blessing unless he is obligated to.
When the Gemara in Brakhot 60b outlines these various blessings, they are clearly meant to be part of a waking ritual. The idea that every step we take in the morning should be done with awareness reflects a deep spiritual yearning. We all rush too quickly through so many aspects of our daily routine. Bringing mindfulness to simple physical activity can change the nature of that moment and even that day. Rambam’s categorization of the blessings as brakhot on benefit reflects the impulse of the Gemara and echoes a kind of contemporary desire for spiritual awareness. If only we were able to pause regularly throughout the day to reflect on the wonderful blessings that God gives us every moment.
When Rambam comments on “the custom of the people in the majority of our cities to recite these blessings one after another in the synagogue,” he is reflecting the well developed Gaonic practice that had already spread throughout the Jewish world. Rav Yosef Karo (Orach Chayyim 41:3) notes that the practice is to recite the blessings in shul because peoples hands are not clean when they first get out of bed and because many do not know the brakhot. However, he also concurs with Rambam that if a person does not experience that benefit they may not recite the brakha (Orach Chayyim 41:8). Here he is seemingly trying to hold onto the spiritual message while maintaining the letter of the law.
Ramban –The Way of the World
The polar opposite position is found in Ramban’s commentary on the gemara (Pesachim 7b, s.v. v’ha d’amar Shmuel). There he says, “This entire order of blessings in the morning (ie. Birkot ha-Shachar) are blessings of praise on the Way of the world (nohag ha-olam).” For Ramban, this unit is not about my personal experience of the world, rather these are recited in response to a more abstract awareness of God’s gifts to the universe. Even if I did not experience one of these specific benefits, I am made to reflect on the divine grace that showers the world with blessings.
Tosafot –Both/And
There is a third, in between, position of the Ba’alei ha-Tosafot that is a bit more complex. They claim that while some of these blessings are responding to individual benefits, others are more abstract divine praises. This debate can be seen in particular around the blessing of “Who gives the sechvi (I am leaving this difficult word untranslated on purpose) wisdom to distinguish between night and day.”
In their comment on this enigmatic brakha (page 60b), Tosafot (s.v. Ki Shama Kol Tarnigola) writes, “And one is required to recite this blessing even if you did not hear [the sechvi] for this blessing is over the ability of the rooster to distinguish between night and day.” The Rosh (Brakhot 9:23) fleshes out this idea a bit more: “If you didn’t hear the crow of the rooster you can still recite this blessing for it is thanks to God for having given us the wisdom and understanding to distinguish between night and day via the crow of the rooster.” Here, the Rosh makes it clear that we are thanking God for a human characteristic that is also reflected by the rooster. Therefore, even if I don’t live on a farm, or anywhere near a rooster, this blessing still applies to me as a human being.
In the next piece, we will take this debate about the nature of the Birkot ha-Shachar and expand our thinking to include how this might reflect on God’s presence in the world.
Rabbi Jeffrey S. Fox, Rosh HaYeshiva and Dean of Faculty at Maharat, was the first graduate of Yeshivat Chovevei Torah. Upon graduation he served as the Rabbi of Kehilat Kesher: The Community Synagogue of Tenafly and Englewood for seven years. In Rabbi Fox’s tenure at Kesher, the community grew three-fold from 30 families to nearly 100. During that time Rabbi Fox also taught at Yeshivat Chovevei Torah as well as in the Florence Melton Adult Education School in Bergen County. He also served on the board of the Synagogue Leadership Initiative of the UJA of NNJ. Rabbi Fox was a Senior Rabbinic Fellow of the Shalom Hartman Institute and has also been a member of the faculty of the Drisha Institute, the Florence Melton Adult Education School in Westchester County, and Hadar.