Translation:Mishnah/Seder Zeraim/Tractate Berakhot/Chapter 9

Mishnah 1

He that sees a place where a miracle was done for Israel say,

“Blessed are you that did miracles for our fathers in this place.”

A place in the land of Israel that had idol worship uprooted from it say,

“Blessed are you that uprooted idol worshippers from our land.”

Mishnah 2

On comets, and on earthquakes, and on lightning and on thunder, and on storms say,

“Blessed be He whose strength and might fill the world.”

On mountains, and on hills, and on seas, and on rivers, and on deserts say,

“Blessed are His works that He made in the beginning.”

R’ Yehuda says, “One who sees the great sea says,

‘Blessed is He that made the great sea.’ Only if he sees it occasionally.”

On rain and on good news say, “Blessed is He who is good, and does good.”

And on bad news say, “Blessed are you the true judge.”

Mishnah 3

When one builds a new house, and acquires new vessels, he says,

“Blessed is he that kept us alive (and sustained us and brought us to this time).”

Bless upon the bad which contains good, and upon the good which contains bad.

He who prays over what has already happened, this prayer is in vain.

How? If his wife was pregnant and he said,

“May it be your will that my wife give birth to a boy."

This prayer is in vain.

If he came on the way and heard the sound of screaming in the city, and he said,

“May it be your will that these are not the children of my house.”

This is a prayer in vain.

Mishnah 4

One who enters a fortified city should pray twice.

Once on his entrance, and once on his exit.

Ben Azzai said, “Four, twice on his entrance, and twice on his exit,

and give thanks for what is past, and supplicate for the future.

Mishnah 5

A person is obligated to bless upon the bad just as he blesses upon the good.

As it says, “And you shall love the Lord your God, with all your heart and all your soul and with all that you have.”

“With all your heart” – this is the two inclinations, On the inclination of good and the inclination of evil.

“And in all your soul” – even if He take your soul.

“And with all that you have” – With all your money.

Alternatively, “With all that you have” – with every measure that is measured for you thank him very much.

Man must not be light with his head (frivolous) near the eastern gate;

It is near the foundation of the house of the holy of holies.

One may not enter the holy mount with his staff,

Or with his sandal, or with his belt-pouch, or with dust on his feet,

And do not make a shortcut,

And spitting is forbidden, as deduced from lesser to greater.

All that ended the blessings when they were in the Temple would say, “From the world.”

From the damage of the heretics (The Sadducees),

They said, “there is no world but this one,”

They (the Sages) corrected this and they said,

“From the world and until eternity.”

And they corrected this that one shall inquire after peace of his friend with the name of God, as it says,

“And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the harvesters, ‘God be with you’

And they said to him ‘God bless you.’” (Ruth 2:4)

And it says “God is with you, great and valorous one.” (Judges 6:12)

And it says, “Do not scorn, because your mother is old.” (Proverbs 23:22)

And it says, “It is time to do for God, they have broken your Torah.” (Psalms 119:126)

R’ Nathan says, “’They broke your Torah’ – because it is time to do for God.”