By: Rabbi Shlomo Ezagui
“Never take lightly the blessing of a simpleton in your eyes.” You really never know the power in the soul of another individual. Besides, at that moment it may very well happen that an Angel is listening and will throw his support to the blessing by responding Amen.
In the times of the Holy Baal Shem Tov there was a very simple fellow who earned his money by digging wells. Throughout the day he would review the five books of Moses and the entire book of Psalms which is all he was familiar with, by heart. The Baal Shem Tov said regarding this man. “Up in heaven they take seriously the opinion of this simpleton.”
The patriarch Jacob just before he passed away blessed his children, “each one according to what was their fate” in the future. In other words he didn’t create anything new for them. Through his blessing he merely helped bring about what was already theirs and in store for them for whatever reason.
Instead of perhaps taking a much longer time for the good to reach them, by blessing his children Jacob accomplished the good would come faster and in a more revealed and noticeable manner.
This is the basic difference between a blessing and prayer.
In Hebrew the word blessing shares the same derivation as the word to “draw down” the branches. Specifically, it’s talking about branches of a vine tree that have already grown and are “pulled down” to the ground so they can form their own roots.
A person may have earned through his wise choices merit and positive deposits in his spiritual bank up in heaven. However for some other reason these positive energies have difficulty coming down to the person. Perhaps because of other not so smart choices the person has made. A blessing is a spiritual force and energy generated by the person giving the blessing to push this already existing good that it should reach the person so he/she can benefit and enjoy those dividends and rewards.
In prayer, we ask, “May it be your will G-d, to cure the sick and provide for the poor.” It is possible that these individuals do not have in store for them to be cured or to have abundance. Their fate may be, to be sick so it can strengthen their faith and the faith of family members or to allow the opportunity that others can do good by helping these individuals.
The power of prayer is such, especially when it comes from the heart and charity was given beforehand, that it can literally and actually change the fate of an individual even when it was not in store for them to be healthy or wealthy. Prayer is able to create a new will and desire on G-ds part to change His plan in favor of the one praying.
This is all as far as a person’s, blessings and prayers are concerned in the system G-d set up.
A human being as great as he may ever reach is always finite. There is only so much he can accomplish in any realm. When G-d blesses however, since G-d is infinite and the source of everything, G-ds blessing is “an increase much greater, than the root of a humans blessing.”
How does one earn the blessings from G-d.
The Bible says, “I (G-d) will bless all those who bless you. (Abraham)” When someone blesses Abraham and his extension, which includes his children, they are guaranteed a blessing from G-d Himself.
Someone once asked Rabbi M.M. Schneerson for a blessing. The Rabbi responded. “When you will bless another this is the surest way for you to receive G-ds blessings because the bible (the word of G-d) already tells us “I will bless all those who bless you.”
Bless another from your heart. Really feel it and mean it and this is the way to draw down into your life, in the most revealed way, goodness and blessings from the Almighty G-d.
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