Chitas Idea

Seder Bircas Hanehenin - Chapter 1 Laws Governing Blessings Before and After All Foods

1:1 - Scriptural/Rabbinic Obligation

Scriptural: After eating sustaining foods

Rabbinic: Before any food or drink

1:2-3 - General/Special Before-Blessings

General

  • Borei pri Haadamah: Produce that grows from earth (Produce)
  • Borei pri Haetz: Produce that grows on trees (Fruit)
  • Shehakol nih’yah bidvaro: All other foods & drinks

Special

  • Borei pri Hagafen: Wine (originally Haetz)
  • Hamotzi lechem min haaretz: Bread (originally Haadamah)
  • Borei minei Mezonos: Grain Products

1:3 - Mezonos on Bread

If one recited Mezonos on Bread, then

  • Opinion 1 Fulfilled obligation
  • Opinion 2 Didn’t fulfill obligation
  • Practice Safek Bracha L’hakel → Opinion 1

1:4-5 - Wrong Blessing Before

If recited

  • Haadamah on Fruit → Fulfilled obligation
  • Haetz on Produce → Didn’t fulfill obligation
  • Shehakol over any food → Fulfilled obligation

Therefore, if doubt

  • Haadamah/Haetz → Haadamah
  • Eyno yodea klal → Shehakol
  • Difference of opinion among halachic authorities → Shehakol

Only applies after the fact or after one has studied

1:6 - Fruit & Produce Before a Person

If Fruit & Produce before a person, he recited Haadamah on Produce → Haetz on Fruit

If Fruit & Produce before a person, he recited Haadamah on Produce & Fruit

  • Opinion 1 No Haetz
  • Opinion 2 Specific intent only applies after the fact/case of Bracha L’vatalah (ex. Haadamah only on Fruit) → Haetz on Fruit
  • Practice Never intend to cover Fruit with Haadamah

1:7 - After-Blessings

Borei Nefashos: Everything except Bircas Hamazon, Meiein Shalosh

Bircas Hamazon: Bread

Meiein Shalosh (Al Hamichyah, Al Hagefen, Al Hapeiros)

  • Seven Species (wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pommegranates, olives, dates)
  • Wine, since product of grapes
  • Spelt, since sub-species of wheat
  • Oats & rye, since sub-species of barley

1:8 - Mezonos/Al Hamichyah

Mezonos/Al Hamichyah only recited on Grain Products when one eats them in their usual form, ex.

  • Cooked dish made from flour
  • Grain split 2, 3, 4 parts, cooked in liquid (porridge)

Grains husked then cooked

  • Opinion 1 Mezonos/Al Hamichyah
  • Opinion 2 Mezonos/Al Hamichyah only if grains husked, crushed, shells dissolved/kernels stuck together through lengthy cooking → Haadamah/Borei Nefashos
  • Opinion 3 Doubt → Only in Meal
  • Practice L’chatchilah Opinion 3, B’dievad Opinion 2

1:9 - Liquid Mezonos

If flour (from Dagan) mixed with liquid, soft & thin, only fit for drinking → Shehakol/Borei Nefashos

If flour (from Dagan) mixed with liquid, somehwat thick - not thick enough to chew, fit to be eaten/satisfy hunger → Mezonos/Al Hamichyah

1:10 - Dochen/Orez

Dochen: Kitniyos → Shehakol/Borei Nefashos on Bread made from its flour

Orez

  • Bread from its flour → Mezonos/Borei Nefashos
  • Cooked until becomes one mass → Mezonos/Borei Nefashos
  • Cooked without becoming one mass, grains intact
    • Opinion 1 Shehakol/Borei Nefashos
    • Opinion 2 Mezonos/Borei Nefashos
    • Practice Opinion 1
    • Haadamah Only B’dievad

1:11 - Translation Troubles

Translation of Dochen/Orez

  • Opinion 1 Orez rice, Dochen millet
  • Opinion 2 Orez millet, Dochen rice
  • Practice L’chatchila Only in Meal, B’dievad Shehakol/Borei Nefashos on all

1:12 - Meiein Shalosh & the Holy Land

Seven Species from Diaspora: Conclude Al haaretz v’al hamichyah, Al haaretz v’al hagafen, Al haaretz v’al hapeiros

Seven Species from Eretz Yisrael: Conclude Al haaretz v’al michyasah, Al haaretz v’al gafnah, Al haaretz v’al peiroseha

1:13 - Meiein Shalosh on Mazon, Wine & Fruits

If ate grain, wine, fruit from Seven Species, then combine into one blessing

  • Beginning: Al hamichyah v’al hakalkalah, v’al hagefen v’al pri hagefen, v’al haetz v’al pri haetz
  • Conclusion: Al haaretz v’al hamichyah, v’al pri hagafen, v’al hapeiros. Baruch atah Hashem al haaretz v’al hamichyah v’al pri hagafen v’hapeiros.

1:14-15 - Meiein Shalosh on Normal Fruits

If one ate grapes & apples together → Al Haetz on both

If one drank wine & ate apples together → Al Hagefen on wine, Borei Nefashos on apples

If one ate grapes/raisins & drank wine together

  • B’dievad Al Hagefen OK if Specific Intent to cover both
  • L’chatchilah Al Hagefen v’al Haetz

Note: If Al Haetz on wine, then fulfilled obligation B’dievad

1:16 - Hagafen on Grapes/Raisins

If one had in mind to cover grapes/raisins in blessing over wine

  • B’dievad Fulfilled obligation
  • L’chatchilah Hagafen on wine, Haetz on grapes/raisins

1:17 - After-Blessings for Foods before Meal

If one ate food before meal solely for pleasure

B’dievad (recited Bircas Hamazon)

  • Fruits from Seven Species → Not covered, Al Haetz
  • Foods for which Borei Nefashos is recited → Not covered, Borei Nefashos
  • Dates → Covered
  • Wine → Covered
  • Grain Products → Covered

L’chatchilah (remembers omission before Bircas Hamazon) → Recite specific After-Blessing

1:18 - Al Hamichyah on Borei Nefashos Foods, Borei Nefashos on Al Hamichyah Foods

If one recited Al Hamichyah on foods for which Borei Nefashos must be recited → Didn’t fulfill obligation

If one recited Borei Nefashos on foods for which Al Hamichyah must be recited → Didn’t fulfill obligation

1:19 - Safek Al Hamichyah/Borei Nefashos

If one is in doubt whether Al Hamichyah or Borei Nefashos must be recited & eaten outside meal → Eat together with food for which Al Hamichyah must be recited & for which Borei Nefashos must be recited

1:20 - Safek Al Haetz/Borei Nefashos

If one is in doubt whether Al Haetz or Borei Nefashos must be recited

  • Option 1 Eat together with food for which Al Haetz must be recited & include in Al Haetz
  • Option 2 Eat together with wine/Grain Products & include Al haetz v’al pri haetz
  • Option 3 Only in Meal
  • Practice Best Option 1; If not possible L’chatchilah Option, B’dievad Option 2

1:21 - Hagafen & Other beverages

Since wine is most prominent, its blessing Hagafen/Al Hagefen covers all other drinks

If when one recited Hagafen, other beverages were in front of him or he intended to drink them later - even if he didn’t have in mind to cover them explicitly → Other beverages covered by Hagafen & Al Hagafen

If when one recited Hagafen, other beverages were not in front of him & he didn’t intend to drink them later → Other beverages not covered by Hagafen, covered by Al Hagefen

If one drank less than reviis of wine, more than reviis of other beverages → Borei Nefashos on other beverages, even though he made Hagafen