Brochas: Daf Lamed Hei, amud aleph and beis

Rav Yehuda said in the name of Shmuel: One who derives benefit from this world without saying a blessing, it is as if he enjoyed objects consecrated to Heaven, as it is stated: “The Earth and all it contains are the L-rd’s” (Psalms 24:1).  Rabbi Levi pointed out a contradiction.  It is written: “The Earth and all it contains are the L-rd’s,” and it is written elsewhere: “The heavens are the L-rd’s and the earth he has given over to mankind (Psalms 115:16).  This is not difficult, the former is before a blessing, the latter afterwards.

R. Chanina bar Pappa said: Anyone who derives benefit from this world without saying a blessing, it is as if he stole from G-d and from the community of Israel.

The Maharal (Gevuros Hashem 693) explains that “b’Din v’Mishpat” (in strict legal terms) the entire cosmos, both Heaven and Earth belongs to G-d.  However, out of His goodness, He has given Earth to mankind.  [The gift is however conditional upon our recognition of the goodness that has been bestowed upon us.]  By saying a blessing we demonstrate our awareness of this, which in turn allows G-d to bestow yet more goodness.

The Iyun Yaakov tells that the true intention of creation is not to benefit mankind, but rather to bring “Kovod Shomayim”, honour to HKBH. Thus it is only when man makes a blessing and thus manifests an awareness that bringing honour to G-d is in fact the purpose of the creation that it becomes permissible to derive benefit from the world.

The Rif elaborates that a person who fails to say a blessing undermines the flow of goodness that Hashem wishes to bestow upon the world.  This consequence is a diminished store of things over which we can make new blessings.  As such, a failure to make an individual blessing not only undermines Kovod Shomayim directly, but sets in motion a chain reaction which has further ramifications in terms of the quantum of Kovod Shomayim in the world.  The reverse is surely also true: one who makes a blessing with the appropriate Kovonas (intentions) actualises positive spiritual energies which increase goodness in the world, thereby increasing our stock of physical objects over which we have the opportunity to utter further blessings, and thus manifest increased Kovod Shomayim.