Baruch Hashem!!!
We are experiencing revealed miracles, and we have so much to be thankful for, baruch Hashem!
It is noteworthy that when we want to express thanks to G-d in hebrew, we don’t typically use the common term for thanks – todah – but rather we way “BARUCH Hashem,” which literally means “Bless G-d.” Why do we “bless” G-d when we are grateful rather than simply thanking Him?
What does it mean to “bless” G-d, and what is the connotation of this term “baruch” that we use to begin so many of our prayers – “Baruch atta A-donai/Blessed are You, G-d…”? Does G-d need our blessing, and is He not already blessed whether we bless Him or not? Isn’t it truly we who are blessed by G-d, rather than He who is blessed by us?
The root of “baruch,” ב-ר-ך, is found in the Talmud in the word “מַבְרִיך/mavrich,” which means “to draw down,” as in the phrase “hamavrich es hagefen/to draw down a vine” (Sotah 43a) and plant it in the ground so that it grows a new plant. It is also found in the word “בְּרֵיכׇה/breichah,” which means “pool.” Both of these derivatives provide us a more thorough understanding of what it means to “bless.” Just as “mavrich” means to draw down, and just as a pool is a place where rain has gathered after falling from above, a blessing is an attempt to draw down, consolidate, and manifest something in this lower realm which originates in a loftier source above.
Understood in this sense of “drawing down,” the phrase “baruch atta A-donai” becomes both a request and a mechanism for G-d to be revealed in this world of concealment. Rather than “blessed are You, G-d,” it is now rendered, “may You be drawn down and revealed, G-d.” This forms the introduction to manifold prayers and blessings in Torah practice, because this is the ultimate intention of the variety of actions and meditations which one performs throughout the day. “May You be revealed” through my eating of this food; “May You be revealed” through my lighting of these candles; “May You be revealed” through the washing of my hands.
When we say “baruch Hashem,” we are not simply thanking G-d for the good that He has bestowed on us. We are recognizing the fact that He has been drawn down and revealed at this moment, for all goodness that we experience in life is a manifestation of the Godliness that has been present but concealed until now. In effect, we are saying: “there you are, G-d! We knew You were here, because You are One and infinite, but we didn’t see you until You made Yourself apparent in this kindness that we are now experiencing.”
Further, by declaring “baruch Hashem,” we are requesting that just as You, G-d, have revealed Yourself in this present gift of Your revealed kindness, so may You be drawn down and revealed even moreso from this moment onward. May this joy and gladness that we are currently experiencing precipitate even greater revelation of Hashem’s infinite presence and love in the days and weeks ahead of us!
— Pnei Hashem is an introduction to the deepest depths of the human experience based on the esoteric teachings of Torah. www.pneihashem.com
