The bracha at the birth of a son

[א] (halacha 153)

Question: What bracha does one recite upon the birth of a son?

Answer: It is stated in Maseches Brochos¹: 'If his wife gave birth to a male, he says: Blessed is He who is good and does good.' And the Mechaber wrote in the Shulchan Aruch²: 'If his wife gave birth to a male, he recites the bracha: HaTov VeHaMeitiv, and she too must recite it likewise.' But the Rema wrote: 'And if his wife died in childbirth, he recites: Shehecheyanu, since there is no benefit to others; and likewise if the father died before she gave birth, she recites Shehecheyanu. And some have written that the custom became lenient regarding this bracha, that it is not an obligation but optional, and from this it spread that many are lenient regarding these brochos.'

And the commentators explained³ that the intent of the Rema in his words 'that it is not an obligation but optional' refers only to the bracha of Shehecheyanu, but from this it spread that many are lenient regarding all these brochos.

And the Magen Avraham wrote on this (ibid.): 'And therefore many are lenient regarding all brochos such as these, but it is not correct, for that which was stated was stated.' That is to say, the custom to be lenient and not recite the bracha is not correct; rather there is an obligation to recite this bracha.

Now, in practice, despite what the Magen Avraham wrote, there are communities that had the custom not to recite this bracha, based on the words of the Rema that they are lenient regarding all these brochos, including the bracha of HaTov VeHaMeitiv, and as the Ben Ish Chai wrote⁴ and the Aruch HaShulchan⁵ and the Responsa Divrei Yatziv⁶, that people did not have the custom to recite this bracha.

However, the Alter Rebbe ruled like the Magen Avraham that there is an obligation to recite this bracha, both the man and the woman, and these are his words⁷: 'If his wife gave birth to a male, he is obligated to recite HaTov VeHaMeitiv — HaTov to him and HaMeitiv to his wife, since it is also pleasing to her with a male; and likewise upon each and every son who is born to him. And she too is obligated to recite it likewise. And even if he is in another city and they came and told him, "Your wife gave birth to a male," he recites HaTov VeHaMeitiv.' And so the Rebbe mentioned at the farbrengen of Acharon Shel Pesach 5748⁸ this halacha and practice as a self-evident matter.

In practice, regarding the conduct in Chabad, there are among the Chabad rabbis who instruct not to recite the bracha⁹, but Rav Chaim Naeh wrote in Ketzos HaShulchan¹⁰ to recite it, and so too most Chabad rabbis instruct to recite it¹¹.

*Question: Until when may one recite the bracha?

Answer: The Pri Megadim wrote¹²: 'And it appears that here all agree that even after the span of an utterance he may recite it, for the benefit is still in the world.'

And in Mor U'Ketzia¹³: 'It appears to me that the brochos one recites upon hearing news, whether for good or for bad, if one was negligent and delayed in reciting, he is not thereby exempted from the bracha; rather he recites it when he remembers. And it is not comparable to one who hears the sound of thunder and lightning, for there, after they have passed, he no longer perceives anything; whereas here, since he recites upon a benefit, or upon its opposite, as long as he perceives them the obligation of the bracha is still upon him. Nevertheless, it appears to me that after three days from the hearing, he should no longer recite it with Sheim U'Malchus, similar to Birkas HaGomel.'

And in Ketzos HaShulchan¹⁴ he wrote: 'How long the time extends during which he may recite was not clarified, for it is not reasonable that there is no measure to this at all; and it is possible that as long as they are occupied with that matter and he has not yet diverted his attention from the news, he may recite it, but no longer — and this requires further examination.'

If so, in practice, even if he did not recite it immediately, he must recite it as long as he is rejoicing and occupied with the birth of his son.

¹ נט, ב ↩

² או"ח סי' רכג ס"א ↩

³ מג"א ס"ק ג, וראה באליה זוטא ס"ק א ↩

⁴ שנה א פרשת ראה אות ח ↩

⁵ סי' רכג ס"ב ↩

⁶ או"ח סי' פח ↩

⁷ בסדר ברכת הנהנין פי"ב סי"ב ↩

⁸ תו"מ ח"ג ע' 153 וראה גם הע' 25 ↩

⁹ כהוראת הרב גורליק, וממלא מקומו הרב אשכנזי (מד"א דכפ"ח) שלא מברכים (ספר הרב אשכנזי עמ' 288) ↩

¹⁰ סי' סד ס"ט ↩

¹¹ כן הורה הרב חנזין, והר"ש מרוזוב ועוד, וכן יבדלחט"א הרב ח"ש דייטש, והרב פרקש, ראה קובץ העו"ב (אוה"ת) תתמ ע' 159. ובספר שבח הברית פ"ד. ובמדריך מעגל החיים להרב גרליק (מהדו"ק הוצאה תשס"ט) פ"א סי' ב ↩

¹² סי' רכג ס"א בא"א ↩

¹³ סי' רכד ↩

¹⁴ סי' צב, בדה"ש אות יא ↩

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