"Blessings On Everything
"It's hard to overstate the importance of brachot in Jewish prayer and daily service. A typical siddur, or Jewish prayer book, contains hundreds of blessings recited on virtually every occasion affecting a Jewish person, literally 'from the womb to the tomb.'
"What are brachot? Simply put, they are moments throughout the day when Jews step back and acknowledge the immensity and brilliance of God's creation. Brachot are these acknowledgements, given in thanks to just about every component of our existence — the beauty of our world, majesty, sadness, love, compassion, and suffering in the world.
"Some brachot are quite spontaneous, like those said when viewing the Grand Canyon, or whenever one is moved to offer prayer or thanks. However, brachot can also be, and are, fixed elements of Jewish worship. Religious Jews recite certain brachot every day or at specific times, like on the Sabbath. Here, the Kiddush, or the blessings over the wine, is an example of a blessing recited in the observance of a commandment — 'Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.' (Exodus 20:8)
"The Talmud details many different types of brachot, including blessing said:
- "Over food (the sages considered reciting a blessing over a food as a form of 'payment,' in order not to 'steal' from God's world)
- "Over pleasant scents
- "When experiencing natural phenomena
- "When seeing sages
- "When visiting a place where a miracle has occured
- "When hearing good or bad news
- "Over the performance of certain commandments
"For Jews, these prayers, or blessings, serve as a constant reminder of God's presence in daily life. Fulfilling the laws of Brachot literally requires remaining in a prayerful state at all times, which means that even sitting down to a simple meal of bread and water, and offering a prayer over it, can have profound meaning. But the intention of brachot is not to trivialize prayer. While it's possible to simply go through the motions when praying brachot, the Talmud admonishes against such apathy."
