Birkat HaChamah: The Blessing of the Sun By Mark Mietkiewicz This coming April 8 - the 14th of Nissan - Jews around the world will have the opportunity to do something they haven't done since 1981 and won't be able to again until 2037 - make a blessing. Not just any blessing but a blessing on the sun.' Birkat HaChamah or "The Blessing of the Sun" is recited every 28 years or once every 10,227 days when, according to Jewish tradition, the Sun returns to the position it occupied at the beginning of the fourth day of Creation. It's always a Wednesday (the fourth day of the week) and always on the vernal equinox, (the first day of spring when day and night are equal.) [tinyurl.com/chamah02] The blessing itself is quite brief: "Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, who reenacts the works of creation." For a relatively brief blessing that is recited so infrequently, there is a surprising amount of discussion and even controversy. First of all, doesn't Rosh Hashanah mark the creation of the world? And secondly, doesn't spring begin in March? As for Rosh Hashanah, apparently there is a dispute in Jewish tradition about whether the New Year falls in Tishrei or six months earlier in Nisan. The Gemara concludes that although we count the years from Tishrei, when we calculate the moon and sun's cycles, the halachah is that the world was created in Nisan. [tinyurl.com/chamah04] The Chabad site adds somewhat cryptically that "All agree that the world was created in Tishrei, but that G-d conceived the idea of creation in the month of Nissan." [tinyurl.com/chamah03] As for the question about the first day of spring, it gets quite complicated but much of it is due to the legacy of the switchover from the Julian to Gregorian calendars. [tinyurl.com/chamah10] To make matters even more interesting, this year's Birkat HaChamah falls on Erev Pesach just hours before the first seder. If you didn't have enough on your mind with the cleaning and chometz and the cooking, there's this, too. This year's timing has created some buzz on the Internet with claims that the final redemption (Geulah) is imminent since this is only the third time in history that this blessing falls on the eve of Passover. Proponents say the only other times this has happened is when the Israelites left Egypt and in the time of events recorded in Megillat Esther. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be true. After performing some fancy calculations, the author of the Keitzmeguleh blog concludes, "The incidence of Birkat HaChamah with Erev Pesach is rare, but not unheard of. It last occurred only a few cycles ago in 5685 (1925). Persistence with a good Hebrew Calendar program will show you that this has happened between 5-10 times in the last thousand years. We simply cannot say that the third time is the Geulah." [tinyurl.com/chamah09] The Berachot.org site lists some of the Jewish laws associated with this special blessing: € A minyan of 10 is not needed but being part of a large group is preferable. € A blind person should either hear the blessing from someone else and answer "amen" or say it by himself without saying G-d's name. € The Shecheyanu blessing is not recited. Some people have the custom to wear a new shirt and then say shecheyanu on the clothing. [tinyurl.com/chamah01] And what happens if after 28 years of anticipation, you wake up to cloudy skies? € If the sun is covered with clouds for the entire first three hours of the day, the blessing may still be said so long as the sun's outline can been seen through the clouds or if any part of the sun is visible. € If the sun is completely obscured by clouds - and one is not able to say it before 3 hours into the day, he may say the blessing without G-d's name. If you prefer not to wait another 28 years to recite this blessing, you're in luck. It is also recited upon seeing lightning, very tall mountains or the Mediterranean Sea. [tinyurl.com/chamah07] Next time, more on Birkat HaChamah and links for downloading the entire sun blessing ceremony. Mark Mietkiewicz is a Toronto-based website producer who writes about the Jewish Internet. He can be contacted at highway@rogers.com
Links: Birkat Hachamah - Blessing G-d for the Sun - http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/817861/jewish/Birkat-Hachamah.htm Quick Guide to Birkat Hachama http://www.kehillaton.com/en/articles_birkat_hachama.asp?c=1