Blessings on Wonders of Nature

 

In this chapter, Rav Ganzfried continues to relate the laws of "birkhot ha-hodaah" - blessings of praise and thanks.

 

We learned last chapter that the "shehechyanu" blessing, the best-known blessing of praise, relates especially to events which have a cyclical or timely nature.  The blessings of this chapter relate to events which have NO particular timing, such as a thunderstorm which can come and go in a few moments.  This lack of "timeliness" means that an occasion for blessing can reoccur any time, raising the question of how often a new blessing can be made.  The halakha's answer to this question provides us with an important insight into the nature of the "birkhot ha-hodaah."

 

We see from the laws in our chapter that different blessings are repeated at different intervals.  The critical factor is how quickly we are inured to a particular experience.  The excitement of a storm is very great, so that a new blessing is said as soon as there is a new storm - even in the same day (seif 3).  But we rapidly grow accustomed to most of the sights mentioned, and for these shehechiyanu is repeated only after thirty days (seif 12).  And the blessing "Who varies His creatures," said on strange animals, is, on some sights, said only once in a lifetime.  Sometimes, after having once been astonished by some "freak," we realize that it is not a freak at all, but rather an ordinary, if unfamiliar, part of Hashem's world.  (Seif 13)

 

This suggests that the real source of our obligation to bless on wonders of nature is not the wonders themselves but our SENSE of wonder at seeing them.  The occasion for praise is ultimately our own emotional involvement.  So at one time a particularly moving experience warrants a berakha, yet later, when our emotional involvement is dulled, no blessing will be said on the very same experience.

 

Indeed, in the previous chapter Rav Ganzfried writes explicitly about the "shehechiyanu" blessing: "The blessing is only on the joy of the heart, that one is joyful as a result of one's purchase" (59:7).  And he further explains that the criterion for a "significant garment" (one that requires a blessing) is dependent on the individual's own standard of living.  (59:12.)

 

The subjective sense of wonder as the SOURCE of the obligation to bless does not contradict the wording of the blessings, which acknowledges Hashem as the Author of the various wondrous phenomena.  To the contrary, this is an example of a principle which we have previously emphasized: blessings must always be grounded in some concrete aspect of our experience, to emphasize that our connection to holiness is mediated through the physical world.  Our Sages teach us, "One hour of repentance and good deeds in this world is greater than the entire life of the World to Come" (Avot 4:17).

 

For instance, in chapter 58 we explained that even though the SOURCE of our obligation to make a blessing on pleasant fragrances is our enjoyment (since that blessing is a "birkhat ha-nehenin" - blessing on enjoyment), the OBJECT of the blessing is some particular, physical object from which we derive this enjoyment.  This is why we make no blessing on a "smell with no source."  Blessings are meant to connect us to the world - specifically, what is good and holy in the world - and not to detach us from it.  Engagement with the physical world is life; detachment from it is death.

 

Of course, the halakha, as a legal system, embodies certain guidelines and principles, even when dealing with the area of the subjective.  So understanding that the underlying obligation evolves from our own awe does not necessarily imply that I should make the blessing, "Who effects the work of creation" daily if I personally am dazzled by the sunrise, nor does it mean that I can neglect saying the blessing if I am one of those rare individuals left nonplused by lightning.  These are questions for a qualified halakhic authority.

 

THE RAINBOW

 

The unique blessing on seeing the rainbow recognizes the rainbow not only as a wonder of nature but also as a sign of God's covenant with Noah - a covenant at the root of human existence. (Seif 4).  It is surprising, then, that Rav Ganzfried immediately warns us not to gaze excessively at the rainbow, in accordance with the words of our Sages who warned that this "dims the eyes" (Chagiga 16.)

 

Here is one way of understanding the words of our Sages explaining the significance of the rainbow as the sign of the covenant with mankind.  (See Zohar Noach I:71b.)

 

When we "see" a rainbow, what we are really seeing is the sun as its light is refracted through a very fine and subtle cloud.  Now a cloud's normal effect is to BLOCK the sun's rays so that we can not see the sun at all.  But if the cloud is fine enough, the opposite takes place.  Far from blocking the sun's rays, this fine mist REVEALS to us their true nature.  Normally, we see sunlight as a simple white color.  Through the rainbow, however, it is revealed that the sun's rays actually comprise a profusion of scintillating colors - in fact, a rainbow!

 

This natural phenomenon may be viewed as a metaphor for our material, sublunary existence.  Unfortunately, the usual effect of involvement in material affairs is to block God's spirit.  Of course even the densest clouds seldom block out all sunlight, and a stormy day is still not like night.  Likewise, even a person quite sunken and entrenched in worldly affairs still apprehends a spiritual aspect to things.  Such a person is not completely benighted, and the divine light still illuminates his world.  However, he is unable to clearly recognize the SOURCE of this light.  He doesn't know God.

 

Conversely, when we completely free ourselves of our attachment to matter, when we return to the World of Truth, then nothing dims our perception of the source of spiritual enlightenment.  There is a cloudless sky, and we see the blinding, clear light of Divine judgment.

 

However, there is an intermediate level.  The truly righteous person maintains a refined involvement with this world.  Such a person resembles the mist through which the rainbow shines.  The Godly person demonstrates that only through measured involvement in this world can we perceive the dazzling spectrum of colors in Hashem's rainbow. 

 

This is the covenant that Hashem made with Noach and with mankind.  The Torah introduces Noach as a righteous man who walked with God (Bereshit 6:9).  Through such a person, the material world becomes a lens revealing God's splendor - not a fog occluding His enlightenment.  Therefore, a world founded by Noach would never need to be destroyed.

 

What about the prohibition of GAZING at the rainbow? We have pointed out that looking at the rainbow in the sky is really a way of seeing the sun.  However, if we focus our gaze on the rainbow itself, then we have lost sight of the sun and are looking at the cloud! Instead of looking THROUGH the mist, we are looking AT it.

 

The message is that while we are able to perceive wonderful divine currents if we live a life of moderation and righteousness, we must never make the mistake of thinking that such splendor actually originates in the material world itself.  This is like mistaking the rainbow for an effulgence originating in the cloud itself! (We could identify this with the heresy of pantheism.) We are allowed and even commanded to see the world, as long as we are able to see through its deceptions.

 

 

CHAPTER 61 - THANKS AND REQUESTS FOR SPECIAL HELP

 

THE "HAGOMEL" BLESSING

 

The chapter begins with the rules of the blessing "Who bestows good on the culpable, Who has bestowed all goodness on me." This blessing is recited by someone who has been safely delivered from a dangerous situation: a perilous trip, a dangerous accident, a severe illness, and so on.

 

When we recite "hagomel," we are not actually thanking God for saving us from danger.  Perhaps such a blessing would not really be appropriate - we could just as easily implore God not to bring us into any more dangerous situations to begin with!

 

Rav Kook suggests that the blessing is really thanking Hashem for ALL of His mercies which we enjoy ALL of the time.  However, God's blessings are so constant and manifold that it is easy to forget that there is something supernatural about His providence.  It is exactly when a dangerous situation reminds us how dependent we are on Divine protection that we become conscious of His goodness and providence which surround us in so-called "normal" times.  (Olat Rayah 309-314).

 

The occasions for reciting "ha-gomel" do not exactly correspond to what we might consider "objective" danger to which a person might be subject.  Crossing the ocean in a plane is probably safer than crossing a busy highway, but most people recite "ha-gomel" after a trans-Atlantic flight and do not after jaywalking.  Rather, the criterion is to what extent a person is conscious that there he is in need of some special protection.  And this consciousness is aroused by a few bumps in a big plane more than by a tractor-trailer bearing down on us on the road.  This halakhic observation fits well with the CONCEPTUAL explanation of Rav Kook.

 

A VAIN PRAYER (Seif 6)

 

Rav Ganzfried explains that it is forbidden to pray to change the past.  The Torah is founded on the idea of free will (for it is impossible to "command" someone who can not make choices), and morally free will implies that our actions have consequences: our choices affect the future, but can not influence the past.

 

We have pointed out before that the examples used by our sages to illustrate a principle generally have an educational lesson in themselves ( chapter 10:2).  This halakha is a good example. 

 

The exemplars of a "vain prayer" taken by Rav Ganzfried from the Talmud are: one who hears of a tragedy and prays that it should not have occurred in his house, and one whose wife is already pregnant and prays that she should give birth to a boy.

 

These are instructive examples of a vain prayer as a certain degree of vanity exists in these prayers, even were there to have been the possibility of their being answered.  If one knows of a portending FUTURE misfortune, then although it is not strictly forbidden to pray that the misfortune should fall on someone else, there is certainly something unseemly about it.  The Mishna tells us that "we do not put one soul before another," that is, a person should not save himself at his fellow's expense.  (Ohalot 7:6.)

 

Likewise, it is not strictly forbidden for a man to pray prior to his wife's pregnancy that she should conceive a boy, but again there could be something unseemly about doing so.  The Talmud points out that while it is natural for a man to prefer sons to daughters, we should also recall that the world needs both boys and girls.  (Bava Batra 16b.) The most important thing is, as Rav Ganzfried concludes, to pray that the youngster should grow up into a human being who is good to Heaven and good to other people.

 

 

"BLESSING INHERES IN WHAT IS HIDDEN FROM THE EYES"

 

In seif 7, Rav Ganzfried presents us with the halakhic expression of a basic philosophical tenet of Judaism: "Blessing inheres only in what is hidden from the eyes." For this reason, one may pray for a blessing in the crop only until the time it is measured.

 

The Meiri points out that one CAN still obtain good or bad fortune from a crop after it has been measured - for instance, it may fetch a high or a cheap price.  Even so, measurement and publicity are bound to compromise any kind of success that the merchandise will bring.  (Meiri Taanit 8b.)

 

The idea that blessing is found only in what is hidden is the flip side of the concept of the "evil eye" - the idea that excessive publicity brings with it bad luck.  (See Kitzur 129:21, 183:6.)

 

In the mundane example of our chapter, the expression that "blessing inheres only in what is hidden" means that the potential for blessing in the produce is reduced when the UNKNOWN quantity becomes revealed.  But the deeper meaning of the expression is that true blessing only inheres in that which is UNKNOWABLE - what is INHERENTLY hidden from the eye.

 

It's wonderful to be bright, comfortable and beautiful, and the halakha recognizes the importance of these revealed blessings.  But the essence of blessing is being close to God and infused with spirituality, and these qualities are, by their very nature hidden, and immeasurable.

 

SPECIAL REQUEST

 

I would appreciate hearing from any readers who have used material from these shiurim in teaching others, in any context.  (Shiurim, sermons, shmuessen, and anything else.) Please e-mail me directly at [email protected].