GATEWAYS TO TORAT HAYIM

 
CONNECTING TO JEWISH LIVING WISDOM RESOURCES

 

Why Do We Make Blessings on Food? To Redefine Who We Are

by Jacobson, Rabbi YY

Why does the Torah require us to say blessings over food?

 

Each beracha (blessing) over food begins with:

Baruch ata Hashem Elokeinu Melech Ha’Olam…”

“Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the Universe…”

 

By stating that Hashem is the King of the Universe, we acknowledge that we and every thing of the creation are His property. Therefore we are not allowed to benefit of anything unless we recongnize this.

 

The beracha we pronounce creates awareness in our consciousness that the human being, as every aspect of the creation, is not separate from Hashem.

 

When we are not conscious of this, we live in a superficial reality, in the illusion of a world determined by multiple powers other than God, which leads us to mistakingly think that our achievements depend solely upon our capacities and endeavours.

 

The beracha redefines the person aligning him/her to kedusha (holiness) and awareness of our Creator.