Posts
Dear Rabbi Abrams and Talmudim:
One Brachah which I repeatedly say when I travel internationally or when I leave my Island home is the Wayfarer's Prayer. These blessings are more than 2500 years old and are all listed in our Talmud Bavli's first tractate, Berachot. I am pleased, Rabbi, that G!D 'lead you toward peace,, emplaced your footsteps toward peace, and made you reach your desired destination for life, gladness and peace."
I am happy you got to Alaska. Ellen and I have been blessed to be there twice, the last time in June 06, and we were exactly where you were. The first time was 15 years ago. The mountains were snow capped, not covered with greenery. The Glaciers were tall and wide, and blue, and not receding, shallow and brown. I am glad you saw some blue ones and witnessed some calving.
( For you movie fans out there, the Edward Harriman that Rabbi Abrams mentions is the very same one that is mentioned in the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid as the commercial baron who, annoyed by how frequently the eponymous bandits stole money from trains traveling Harriman-controlled frontier railways, sent bounty hunters after the pair. His son Averell, among other things, being a member of the Skull and Bones society at Yale, brokered the deal with the Anglo-Iranian Oil company, placing the Shah in power and was complicit in the '63 assassination of the Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem.)
KIng David told us to bless G!d at least 100 times a day. At one time this seemed like an impossibility to me, but as an answer to your second question, the opportunity for blessings, thank, praising, and showing gratitude to G!D for his bounty is actually endless.
Sheckyanu's are not just for when we see things for the first time, but when we eat a fruit for the first time in that season, or when doing a mitzvoth for the first time that is tied to that season. We bless G!D for our first breath in the morning but in reality, we show gratitude to Him for each of our breaths all day. We praise G!D even when our bowels are functioning, because as anyone knows, if one of these organs or 'tubes' get blocked, we cannot stand before God to do His will. We praise G!d upon seeing unusual animals. Any trip to the zoo would have us reciting that prayer over 100 times. We praise G!d on seeing lightening or hearing thunder, or when we see a large lake, river, or ocean. We praise G!d when we see comets, beautiful people or nature, or odd looking people. We praise G!d when we meet a Torah scholar or a secular scholar as all wisdom comes from G!d.We all know we praise G!d before and after we eat, and before we study Torah and Talmud.
As Jews, the derivation of our very name comes from Leah calling her 4th son Judah, Yahuda, literally meaning, 'thanking G!D.' As Jews, what better thing to do each day, but to thank G!D and be grateful to Him for everything He has granted us. So there are brachot opportunities for all of us, millions of times a day. Remember also that the word brachot is not derived from the word for prayer or blessing, but comes from 'bending our knee'. As the book of Daniel (6;10) reminds us , we Jews prayed on our knees, thrice a day, as a sign of humility and knowing Who our Father and King is.
The answer to your first question of whether knowing the brachot ahead of time help you appreciate nature, or is just saying a prayer is enough, is clearly answered in Tractate Beracoth. Any reciting of a prayer by memorization is discouraged as there is no spiritual intention, called kavenah. The rabbis are so clear in this that they would rather one say a blessing to G!D in his own words, from his heart, in his own language, then mumble something in Evrit which he doesn't understand.
In other words, one saying sincerely, "Far out G!D, I am so grateful to You for creating these wonderful gorgeous whales and I will do my best to do Tikun Olam to try to maintain this Earth which You have given mankind dominion over to protect," is much better than trying to remember a prayer in Hebrew and losing what we are feeling in our hearts to G!D.
However, by studing Tractate Berachot, we can learn how our rabbis were teaching us to appreciate every little thing about life. That even in captivity in Babylon they were able to praise G!D. They are teaching us to look at the world not as a cup half empty, and not even as a cup half full, but as a carafe over flowing with G!D's divine never ending love and care for us.
Even in Alaska, Ellen and I dovened in Juneau with the Frozen Chosen. The opportunities for prayer and the places in this world we can do such, from our homes, to shuls in every corner of this earth, to watching a sunrise over the Grand Canyon, are endless. Can I get a Baruch Ha Shem?
Have a delightful Shabbat.
Rabbi Dr. Arthur L. Segal
Topics of the day:
1. New Study Materials: Alaska...What a Jewish Experience!
BH
Go to http://www.maqom.com/current.html so you=20
can see the pictures and video of the glacier=20
calving. Enjoy!
Alaska=8AWhat a Jewish Experience! Copyright, Judith Z. Abrams, 2007
I have just returned from a short trip to Alaska,=20
including a three-day cruise through the glaciers=20
of Prince William Sound (near Anchorage). I=20
probably said the shehecheyanu (the prayer we say=20
on seeing things for the first time) and=20
she-kachah lo-ba'olamo ("That thus it is in His=20
world," the blessing we say upon seeing beautiful=20
things of nature) more in those three days than=20
in any ten years of my life.
Easily the most inspiring experience was in=20
College Fjord. In 1899, Edward Harriman=20
assembled an expedition to the area and the team=20
named the glaciers after colleges and=20
universities. As you enter the fjord, the=20
several slender glaciers to the left are all=20
named for "Seven Sister" colleges (e.g., Smith,=20
Wellesley, etc.). At the end of the fjord is the=20
massive Harvard glacier.
The incredible blue in the glaciers is caused by=20
the weight of millennia pressing down on the snow=20
and ice, pushing all the oxygen out of it. It is=20
truly a beautiful and magical phenomenon. More=20
brachahs.
But the most amazing thing was watching the=20
glacier calve. You stand watching the glacier=20
and, quite suddenly, you hear what they call=20
"white thunder." It is like hearing a massive=20
explosion. Sometimes, it is within the glacier=20
itself and you can't see the fall of ice that=20
comes with it. But sometimes it is in the face=20
and huge blocks of ice and snow come off and fall=20
into the fjord. The blessing I said on hearing=20
this sound (with the shehecheyanu, of course, for=20
the first time) was "=8Ashekocho u'gevurato malei=20
olam" "Blessed is the Lord our God, ruler of the=20
universe, whose strength and might fill the=20
world." This blessing is said when witnessing=20
lightening and thunder and I thought the sages=20
would have prescribed it upon hearing this sound=20
and seeing this sight. Take a look and listen=20
for yourselves:
The wildlife was also amazing and inspiring.=20
Even the naturalist on our boat said she'd never=20
gotten this close to a pod of Orca whales.=20
Another shehecheyanu, another "she kacha lo=20
ba'olamo.
Dall's porpoise, which bear a resemblance to the=20
black and white orcas, swam around the boat in=20
this area as well, cruising around it, going=20
under it, jumping beside it, just having a good=20
time.
As we left the glaciers, as a final act of grace=20
and beauty, this rainbow appeared and I was able=20
to say another berachah: "Blessed are You, oh=20
Lord our God, who remembers the covenant" (i.e.,=20
the covenant with Noah, symbolized by the=20
rainbow, that God would never destroy the earth=20
again).
There is much, much more to show and tell but I think that gives you the ide=
a.
Discussion Questions
1. Does knowing the blessings to say ahead=20
of time, help you appreciate the beauties of=20
nature? Or do you think just saying a prayer is=20
good enough? (After this trip, I see the=20
importance of knowing the blessings ahead of=20
time. Otherwise, I would have been too stunned=20
to put my sense of wonder into words.)
2. Where else in the world do you think=20
there are so many "brachah opportunities"?
Start the year off right. Easy ways to stay in shape in the new year.
