Bracha On Manna

By Rabbi Berach Steinfeld

What Bracha did the Yidden make on the Manna in the Midbar? On bread we make Hamotzie lechem min Haaretz. Did they make the same bracha? There are seven opinions.

The Sefer Chassidim writes that they made the Bracha of Hamotzi lechem min Hashomayim. Eliyahu Hanavi made that bracha on the cakes of retzafim. The Rema Mipani says we will make this bracha on the Livyasan may it come quickly in our day. Since we never have a meal without bread so during the seudas Livyasan they will pull out the Manna that was hidden in the time of King Yoshiyahu. Hashem had commanded Moshe to take a Tzintzenes of manna to put away for the future. The Torah Lishma also agrees that they made the bracha of Hamotzi lechem min Hashomayim.

The Nishmas Adam 152:1 says that we find that Moshe was mesaken Birchas Hazan when the Manna came down. But one thing is for sure they did not make a bracha rishona at all. The Bnei Yissoschor agrees that Manna did not require bracha rishona as it is called lechem abirim it got seeped into the 248 limbs of a person. Since the reason we say a bracha rishona is to purify the food and take out the kedusha but the Manna was already purified thereby not requiring a bracha. The Maharsha explains that the Gemara says one is not allowed to have hanaah from Olam HaZeh without a bracha that would exclude the Manna which came from Olam Haba.

The Bnei Yissoschor says that while the Rema Mipani is right that during the week, they did not make a bracha on the Manna but on Shabbos they did make the bracha they made on Kodshim. The bracha was Asher kideshanu BeMitzvosav vetzivanu le’echol Seudas Shabbos. This is a birchas HaMitzvos not birchas Hanehenin. That is pshat in Rashi on Vayekadesh oso that Hashem blessed us with Manna and was mekadesh us with a Bracha.

The Kli Chemda says they made a Hadama based on the Seforno Shmos 16:27 that the Manna was a gidulei karka. Therefore, if one picked the Manna on Shabbos, he would be oveir on the issur of toleish. This is the reason one makes a hadama on hops that even though it has no roots in the ground one is oveir if he plucks it on Shabbos thereby requiring the bracha to be hadama on the Manna.

The Pardas Yosef says that since every person could have in mind whatever food he or she wanted therefore one would make the bracha on whatever he thought the taste should be that was the corresponding bracha.

Rav Chaim Palagi says you would make a mezonos because it was a tzapichis bidvash so it was pas haba bekisnin. He does say that if you were kovea seuda on it then you would make Hamotzi. So, it would depend how much you ate from the Manna to ascertain what bracha to make on it.

The Sifsei Tzaddik Beshalach 67 based on the Seforno that one would be oveir on tolesh by picking the Manna on Shabbos says one should make a Hamotzi.

There is a nafka mina lehalacha in today’s day and age. The Yerushalmi in Klayim 7:6 brings a safek on bread made from wheat grown in a flowerpot without holes. Does one make Hamotzi or maybe not as it is not grown from the earth. Based on this Yerushalmi the Chayei Adam 51:17 says we don’t make Hamotzi but rather Borei Minei Mezonos and Birchas Hamazon. This is even though we have a rule that we only bentch when we start with Hamotzi here would be the exception to the rule. This is just like the Manna despite the fact we don’t start with Hamotzi, but we say birchas haMazon. The Sdei Chemed argues and says that we do say Hamotzi. This will also be a nafka mina on wheat grown on water.

May we all be zocheh to say Brachos properly.