By Rabbi Berach Steinfeld
Should someone’s birthday be celebrated by making a meal? Is it considered a Yom Tov?
The Ben Ish Chai in Parshas Re’eh 17 writes that some people have the minhag to make a Yom Tov on their birthday every year. They do so as a good siman. The Ben Ish Chai also had the minhag himself to do so. He also brings down a minhag to make a special celebration on the anniversary of the day of one’s bris. The Ben Ish Chai says we do not have this minhag.
The Chasam Sofer in Toras Moshe, Parshas Vayeira writes that Avraham Avinu made a seudah every year on the day of his bris.
The Munkatcher Rov writes that we don’t find any Rabbonim celebrating birthdays. The reason for this could be because the Gemara teaches us that it would have been better if one had not been born.
The Klausenberger Rov, in Divrei Yatziv in Likutim Vehashmatos 64 concurs with the Munkatcher and gives the same reason.
Some write that the reason for not celebrating birthdays is that since we don’t find any birthday celebration in the Torah except regarding king Pharoah, we therefore do not have a party on a birthday.
It is interesting to note that in Chabad and in Rizhin they did celebrate birthdays.
The Shailos Utshuvos Ginzei Yosef 4:2 says that some have the minhag to make a Shehecheyanu on a new fruit on their birthday.
In the Gemara in Megillah 13b it is mashma that there is good mazel on a person’s birthday. That was the reason that Haman thought he picked a good day to destroy the Jews. The day was the day that Moshe was niftar, but Haman did not know that it was also the birthday of Moshe!
There are certain birthdays that have specific significance. We find a Gemara in Moed Koton 28a that speak about Rav Yosef who made a Yom Tov on the day he turned sixty. He invited the other Rabbonim to celebrate with him that no longer was in the realm of receiving “kareis.” According to one shitta in Tosfos, fifty is when one is out of koreis and sixty out of misa bidei shomayim.
The Trumas Hadeshen made a special siyum on his sixtieth birthday.
The Shailos U’teshuvos Chavois Yair 70 writes that one should make a shehechiyonu with Hashem’s name when one turns seventy. The Chasam Sofer disagrees with this and says that one should not say Hashem’s name.
In conclusion, try to have as many birthdays as you can so you can celebrate again and again. Having a lot of birthdays is a segulah for long life!
I heard that the Chafetz Chaim made a big birthday party on his 70th birthday.
He taught that guarding one’s mouth leads to a long life. It would have been a Chillul Hashem if he died early. At 70 he could make a big birthday party to make a Kiddush Hadhem.