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If you don’t know if you need to say a bracha on the food that you’re eating, because you already said the bracha for another food, my friend’s rabbi sums up the shaila with, “When in doubt, leave it out.”
In other words, it’s better not to say a bracha, then to say an unnecessary bracha.
What’s the reasoning here? As in, what does saying an extra bracha do, in the spiritual world?
While I’m not expecting you to tell me, per se, what’s going on spiritually, I would like you to explain why saying a bracha in doubt is wrong. Please.
Thank you 馃檪
All brochos except for Birchas Hamazon and Limud Hatorh are Drabonon. The general rule is safeik drabonon l’hakeil (we are not stringent when there is a doubt in a din drabonon).
iacis,
On top of that we have an issue of Bracha leVatoleh, which according to some, saying an unnecessary bracha is a deOreisa of Lo Sisah.Lightbrite – It’s not a competition between Hashem and the Rabbonim. Hashem gave us certain mitzvos, and gave the Chaza”l (the Rabbanim) the ability to create additional commandments and restrictions.
In general, our rule is 住驻拽 讚讗讜专讬讬转讗 诇讞讜诪专讗 讜住驻拽 讚专讘谞谉 诇拽讜诇讗. When faced with a doubt in Torah Law, we must be stringent. When faced with a doubt in Rabbinic law, you don’t have to take the more stringent side. (Why this is so, when according to many, every Rabbinic ediction is also Biblically mandated, is subject to debate. There numerous answers.)
When faced with a 住驻拽 讘专讻讛, you have two doubts: (A) A 住驻拽 rabbinic commandment to make a blessing, and (B) a 住驻拽 prohibition to say G-d’s name in vain. There is a 诪讞诇讜拽转 whether this would be Biblically prohibited or only Rabbinically prohibited, seeing as it is said in the context of blessing, and not entirely in vain. Therefore, we say that 住驻拽 讚专讘谞谉 诇拽讜诇讗 allows you to be lenient and not make the blessing, and because of 住驻拽 讘专讻讛 诇讘讟诇讛 you are not allowed to make the blessing*.
So you don’t make a brocho. It is a 诪讞诇讜拽转 whether you are now allowed to eat. There is a prohibition [although almost certainly rabbinic] to eat without a prior blessing. Although you do not make a 讘专讻讛 when in doubt, you are left with a possibility of 讗讬住讜专**.
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* I’m not sure why you are not allowed to make the blessing according to the authorities that a 讘专讻讛 诇讘讟诇讛 is only rabbinically forbidden – we should apply the same dictum and say 住驻拽 专讚讘谞谉 诇拽讜诇讗.** Here you don’t necessarily say 住驻拽 讚专讘谞谉 诇拽讜诇讗. It’s complicated why, but it doesn’t fit the parameters. There is a 讞讝拽转 讗讬住讜专 – it was once definitely forbidden. It may be 讚讘专 砖讬砖 诇讜 诪转讬专讬谉.
GAON: What is deOreisa of Lo Sisah, please?
It is the source for the prohibition to say G-d’s Name in vain.
诇止芝讗 转执砖旨讉指譀讗 讗侄转志砖讈值纸诐志讬职讛止讜指芝讛 讗直诇止讛侄謻讬讱指 诇址砖旨讈指謶讜职讗 – You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.
There are two rules – Safeik D’oraisa L’chumrah and Safeik Drabbonon L’kulah. If you have a doubt if you shook the lulav and esrog on the first day of sukkos, you would have to do it again as it is a mitzvah D’oraisa; however, if your doubt is if you made the brocha before shaking the lulav (but you do know you shook it) you would not make another brocha as that is a safeik in a drabbonon.
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