"When you have eaten and are replete, then you shall bless"

Synopsis

Rabbi Chiya speaks here about, "And satisfies the desire of every living thing," indicating that the person who has eaten must bless God in order to give joy above. Rabbi Chizkiyah says that even one who is drunk may say the Blessing After a Meal, because the blessing is tied to satisfaction on this level, but a person who is drunk must not pray, because prayer rises higher, to that place where there is neither eating or drinking.

Relevance

There is a link between our daily bread and our spiritual lives, which on this earthly level, feed each other constantly and interactively. The blessing of a meal awakens divine sparks of Light within the food so that we may nourish both our bodies and our souls. Otherwise, all we receive from the meals we eat is the one percent physical matter of the food. We miss out on the remaining 99 percent - the eternal spiritual nourishment. This passage extracts all the sparks of Light from all the foods eaten by man throughout time. Further, we are uplifted to the highest levels of the spiritual atmosphere, where the Light is so all-embracing that there is no need of food or drink.

Food Hands Olive

499. Rabbi Chiya opened the discussion saying, "When you have eaten and are replete, then you shall bless Hashem your Elohim... " (Devarim 8:10). HE QUESTIONS, Before a person eats to satisfaction and fills his stomach, should he not bless the Holy One, blessed be He? How are we to explain the passage, "When you have eaten and are replete" and afterwards, "then you shall bless?" HE ANSWERS, Even if a person eats as much as an olive but desires it, and he considers that eating to be his main food, then this is considered being sated, as it is written, "You open Your hand, and satisfies the desire of every living thing" (Tehilim 145:16). It is not written, 'The food of every living thing,' but rather "The desire of every living thing" TO TEACH that the desire he has for that food is called 'satisfaction.' Even if there is only a small thing in front of the person like an olive and no more, the desire for satiety has been put on it. It is therefore WRITTEN, "And satisfies the desire of every living thing." "Desire" is written and not 'food.' "Then you shall bless" certainly, for the person is obligated to bless the Holy One, blessed be He, in order to give joy above.

499. פָּתַח רַבִּי חִיָּיא וְאָמַר, וְאָכַלְתָּ וְשָׂבָעְתָּ וּבֵרַכְתָּ אֶת יְיָ' אֱלֹהֶיךָ וְגוֹ.' וְכִי עַד לָא אָכִיל ב"נ לְשַׂבְעָא, וְיִתְמְלֵי כְּרֵיסֵיהּ, לָא יְבָרֵךְ לֵיהּ לְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, בְּמַאי נוֹקִים וְאָכַלְתָּ וְשָׂבָעְתָּ, וּבָתַר וּבֵרַכְתָּ. אֶלָּא אֲפִילּוּ לָא יֵיכוּל בַּר נָשׁ אֶלָּא כְּזַיִת, וּרְעוּתֵיהּ אִיהוּ עָלֵיהּ, וְיִשָׁוֵי לֵיהּ לְהַהוּא מֵיכְלָא עִקָרָא דְּמֵיכְלֵיהּ, שָׂבְעָא אִקְרֵי. דִּכְתִּיב פּוֹתֵחַ אֶת יָדֶיךָ וּמַשְׂבִּיעַ לְכָל חַי רָצוֹן. לְכָל חַי אֲכִילָה לָא כְּתִיב, אֶלָּא רָצוֹן. הַהוּא רְעוּתָא דְּשַׁוֵּי עַל הַהוּא מֵיכְלָא, שָׂבְעָא אִקְרֵי, וַאֲפִילּוּ דְּלֵית קָמֵיהּ דְּבַר נָשׁ אֶלָּא הַהוּא זְעֵיר בִּכְזַיִת, וְלָא יַתִּיר הָא רְעוּתָא דְּשָׂבְעָא שַׁוֵּי עָלֵיהּ. וּבְגִין כַּךְ, וּמַשְׂבִּיעַ לְכָל חַי רָצוֹן, רָצוֹן כְּתִיב, וְלָא אֲכִילָה. וְעַל דָּא וּבֵרַכְתָּ וַדַּאי, וְאִתְחַיָיב בַּר נָשׁ לְבָרְכָא לֵיהּ לְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, בְּגִין לְמֵיהַב חֶדְוָה לְעֵילָּא.

Grades Meals Prayer World to Come, The

500. After him, Rabbi Chizkiyah opened the discussion with the passage, "When you have eaten and are replete." From here, IT IS UNDERSTOOD that one who is drunk may say the Blessing After a Meal, which is not so pertaining to prayer, for prayer is not so. AND ONE WHO IS DRUNK IS PROHIBITED TO PRAY, because prayer is good without eating. What is the reason? It is because the prayer rises higher, higher to the place where there is neither eating nor drinking, MEANING TO BINAH. Pertaining to this, we learned that there is no eating or drinking in the World to Come, but there is EATING AND DRINKING in the other levels below.

500. פָּתַח רַבִּי חִזְקִיָּה, בְּהַאי קְרָא אֲבַתְרֵיהּ וְאָמַר, וְאָכַלְתָּ וְשָׂבָעְתָּ. מֵהָכָא, דְּשִׁכּוֹר שָׁרֵי לֵיהּ לְבָרְכָא בִּרְכְתָא דִּמְזוֹנָא, מַה דְּלֵית הָכִי בִּצְלוֹתָא. דִּצְלוֹתָא לָאו הָכִי, דְּהָא צְלוֹתָא מָעַלְיָא בְּלָא אֲכִילָה אִיהִי, מַאי טַעֲמָא, בְּגִין דִּצְלוֹתָא סַלְּקָא לְעֵילָּא לְעֵילָּא, אֲתָר דְּלֵית בֵּיהּ לָא אֲכִילָה וְלָא שְׁתִיָּה. וְעַל דָּא תָּנֵינָן, עָלְמָא דְּאָתֵי לֵית בֵּיהּ אֲכִילָה וּשְׁתִיָּה וְכוּ.' אֲבָל שְׁאַר דַּרְגִּין דִּלְתַתָּא אִית.

Blessing Food Meals Prayer

501. בְּבִרְכַּת מְזוֹנָא, אִשְׁתְּכַח גַּוְונָא אָחֳרָא וּמָעַלְיָא, הַהוּא בִּרְכְתָא דְּאִשְׁתְּכַח בְּשַׂבְעָא. בְּגִין דְּבִרְכַּת מְזוֹנָא, אִיהִי בַּאֲתָר דְּאִית בֵּיהּ אֲכִילָה וּשְׁתִיָּה, וּמִנֵּיהּ נָפַק מְזוֹנָא וְשַׂבְעָא לְתַתָּא, וְעַל דָּא אִצְטְרִיךְ לְאַחֲזָאָה קָמֵיהּ שָׂבְעָא וְחֶדְוָה. בַּאֲתָר דִּצְלוֹתָא, לָאו הָכִי, דְּהָא סַלְּקָא יַתִּיר לְעֵילָּא לְעֵילָּא וְעַל דָּא, שִׁכּוֹר לָא יִצְלֵי צְלוֹתָא.

Bread Jeremiah Meals Wine

502. By the Blessing After a Meal, a drunk person may recite the Blessing After a Meal, as is understood from this passage, "When you have eaten and are replete, then you shall bless." "When you have eaten" refers to eating, "and are replete" refers to drinking, as satiety is with wine, because WITH WINE he becomes sated. In wine, there is certainly satiety and this refers to the drunk, as it is written, "Then you shall bless HASHEM YOUR ELOHIM." Et (the) is precise, FOR IT ALLUDES TO MALCHUT THAT IS CALLED 'ET (THE),' THAT CONTAINS BOTH EATING AND DRINKING. From this, we understand that the Blessing After a Meal requires joy and satisfaction, BECAUSE IT IS WRITTEN, "For the good land" (Devarim 8:10). What is the meaning of 'good?' Satisfaction, as it is written, "For then we had plenty of bread, and were well off" (Yirmeyah 44:17), so it requires joy and satisfaction.

502. בְּבִרְכַּת מְזוֹנָא, שִׁכּוֹר שָׁרֵי לֵיהּ לְבָרְכָא בֵּרַכְתָּ מְזוֹנָא. מַשְׁמַע מֵהַאי קְרָא, דִּכְתִּיב וְאָכַלְתָּ וְשָׂבָעְתָּ וּבֵרַכְתָּ. וְאָכַלְתָּ: זוֹ אֲכִילָה. וְשָׂבָעְתָּ: זוֹ שְׁתִיָּה דְּהָא שָׂבְעָא, בְּחַמְרָא אִיהִי רַוֵּי. חַמְרָא שָׂבְעָא וַדַּאי, וְדָא אִיהוּ שִׁכּוֹר. דִּכְתִּיב וּבֵרַכְתָּ אֶת דַּיְיקָא, דְּמַשְׁמַע דְּבִרְכַּת מְזוֹנָא אִצְטְרִיךְ חֶדְוָה וְשַׂבְעָא. עַל הָאָרֶץ הַטּוֹבָה. מַאי טוֹבָה. שָׂבְעָא. כד"א, וַנִּשְׂבַּע לֶחֶם וַנִּהְיֶה טוֹבִים בְּגִין כַּךְ אִצְטְרִיךְ חֶדְוָה וְשַׂבְעָא.