Birchas Kohanim and Birchas HaBanim: Viyehi Noam and the Blessing of Hashra'as HaShechinah

Topics

• Birchas Kohanim and Birchas HaBanim: A Blessing of Hashra'as HaShechinah
• Two Blessings on the Eighth Day of the Miluim
• Maaseh Yadeichem: The Work of Our Hands—and Our Children
• Birchas HaBanim and the Question of Using One Hand
• Rema and Chasam Sofer: A Blessing Requires a Good Heart
• Why Is Nesias Kapayim Recited on Weekdays in Eretz Yisrael?
• Shabbos as a Mishkan in Time and in the Heart
• Viyehi Noam: The Heart of the Blessing
• Why Did Yaakov Bless Ephraim and Menashe While Ill?

Transcript

# Birchas Kohanim and Birchas HaBanim: A Blessing of Hashra'as HaShechinah

## Two Blessings on the Eighth Day of the Miluim

We are learning **Parashas Shemini**, the eighth day of the *Miluim*, when Aharon HaKohen completed the *avodah* of the Mishkan.

The Torah says in **Vayikra 9:22**:

**"וישא אהרן את ידו אל העם ויברכם וירד מעשת החטאת והעלה והשלמים."**

Aharon raised his hands toward Klal Yisrael and blessed them. **What blessing did he give?**

Rashi tells us: **"ברכת כהנים — יברכך, יאר, ישא."** Aharon gave the threefold **Birchas Kohanim** that we know from Bamidbar 6:24–26.

There are Midrashic discussions about Aharon's place in giving that blessing, and the holiness of its *nusach*. But now, *rabosai*, look at the very next pasuk:

**"ויבא משה ואהרן אל אהל מועד ויצאו ויברכו את העם וירא כבוד ה' אל כל העם."** (Vayikra 9:23)

Moshe and Aharon enter the Ohel Moed, come out, and **bless Klal Yisrael again**. Immediately afterward, the **kavod Hashem** appears to the people.

Why are there **two blessings**?

Rashi explains that they were waiting to see the **Shechinah** rest in the Mishkan. After the *Chet HaEgel*, Klal Yisrael was afraid that perhaps Hashem had not fully accepted the Mishkan, and Moshe and Aharon prayed and blessed them:

**"יהי רצון שתשרה שכינה במעשה ידיכם."**

May it be Hashem's will that the Shechinah rest upon the work of your hands.

And Rashi connects this with the words of **Tehillim 90:17**:

**"ויהי נעם ה' אלקינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו."**

May the pleasantness of Hashem rest upon us, and may He establish the work of our hands.

Now I have a *kashya*. Hashem already promised: **"ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם"** (Shemos 25:8). Make Me a sanctuary and I will dwell among them.

The Mishkan was built, the *avodah* completed. Why did they still need a separate blessing that the Shechinah should come? And what was missing from the first blessing, the beautiful **Birchas Kohanim**?

Let's learn what **"מעשה ידיכם"** really means. There is a *peshat* I heard from **my zeide** that opens the entire matter.

## Maaseh Yadeichem: The Work of Our Hands—and Our Children

What does **"מעשה ידיכם"** mean? The work of your hands.

One simple meaning is the money and labor that built the **Mishkan**. Klal Yisrael gave their possessions, their efforts, and their craftsmanship. After they had used gold for the *Egel*, they were now using their wealth and skills to build a holy dwelling for Hashem.

And so Moshe blessed them: **"יהי רצון שתשרה שכינה במעשה ידיכם."** May the Shechinah rest on what your hands have built.

But my **zeide zt”l** gave another beautiful interpretation. He connected *maaseh yadayim* with **a person's children**—the enduring work of one's life. He cited a Chazal in connection with *Kesubos*; the precise reference and wording must be checked, but the *yesod* is profound.

We built a Mishkan in the wilderness. Hashem promised that He would dwell among us. But what about **the children and the generations that would follow**? What about the time when there would no longer be a Mishkan standing before us?

Could the blessing be asking that the Shechinah rest not only on the boards and curtains of that first Mishkan, but upon **the future generations**—the children who are also *maaseh yadeinu*?

That is what I would like to understand from my zeide's *vort*: **the promise must continue from fathers to children**.

But let me ask another *kashya*. If **Birchas Kohanim** says:

**"יברכך ה' וישמרך, יאר ה' פניו אליך ויחנך, ישא ה' פניו אליך וישם לך שלום"**,

doesn't that include **everything**? Parnassah, health, protection, favor, peace, spiritual blessing—what could be missing?

You know how people approach a *gadol* and ask for a *brachah*. Sometimes he gives a short **"brachah vehatzlachah"**, and that covers all the good one could wish for. Why should a blessing need twenty different words if all the good is included?

Yet right after Aharon's Birchas Kohanim, Moshe and Aharon gave another *brachah*: **"ויהי נעם ... יהי רצון שתשרה שכינה במעשה ידיכם."**

Perhaps **hashra'as haShechinah** is not simply another item on the list of blessings. Perhaps it is the **environment and spiritual condition in which all those blessings are fulfilled**.

And that's why I want to look at the **minhag of blessing children on Friday night**. We take the words of **Birchas Kohanim** and use them for **Birchas HaBanim**.

Why those words? Why on Shabbos? And what does that tell us about the proper time and manner of giving a blessing?

## Birchas HaBanim and the Question of Using One Hand

There is a well-known *minhag* for parents to bless their children on **Friday night**. We say **"ישמך אלקים כאפרים וכמנשה"** for boys, based on Yaakov Avinu's blessing, and then we say **Birchas Kohanim**: **"יברכך ה' וישמרך..."**

Now, Yaakov's own blessing to Yosef's sons included **"המלאך הגואל אותי מכל רע יברך את הנערים"** (Bereishis 48:16). Why do we add the actual *nusach* of **Birchas Kohanim**?

The *minhag* is discussed in older *sefarim*, including the **Machzor Vitry** tradition and later *poskim*. I also want to examine the **Chasam Sofer, Orach Chaim 23**, who discusses this subject and the custom of blessing children.

There is also a question about **the hands**. Some traditions describe blessing one's children with **one hand** rather than **two**. Why?

Because **Nesias Kapayim** in its formal halachic sense is the *avodah* of **Kohanim**. A non-Kohen must not casually imitate every element of the priestly blessing ceremony. There are different opinions about whether and how the priestly text may be used as a personal blessing; the conditions matter.

A practice associated with the **Vilna Gaon** is reported in *Aliyos Eliyahu* concerning whether he gave such blessings, and another tradition concerns a blessing late in his life. I would not establish the Gra's complete practice from an uncertain anecdote without checking the printed source.

But the reason people discuss **one hand** is important: perhaps they want to distinguish a **parent blessing a child** from a **Kohen performing the mitzvah of Nesias Kapayim**.

There are reports involving the **Noda BiYehudah**, the **Shagas Aryeh**, and others about how many hands were used to bless, but the exact narratives and the *pesakim* require verification.

And now, let me bring the **Chasam Sofer**. He connects **Birchas Kohanim** to **avodah**. That's a remarkable explanation for why a blessing must be given in an atmosphere of proper *kavanah*.

In Chutz Laaretz, the widespread Ashkenazi practice is **Nesias Kapayim on Yom Tov**, while in Eretz Yisrael it is customary in many communities to do so daily.

Why the difference? The **Rema** and **Chasam Sofer** provide explanations emphasizing the state of mind needed for a blessing.

I want to read them together, because they will help us understand **why a parent's blessing on Shabbos is so precious**.

## Rema and Chasam Sofer: A Blessing Requires a Good Heart

The **Rema, Orach Chaim 128:44**, describes the custom in Ashkenazi lands to perform **Nesias Kapayim** primarily on Yom Tov. Why?

He explains that on Yom Tov people are settled in **simchah**, and he invokes the principle **"וטוב לב הוא יברך"**—one with a good heart blesses.

During the week, and sometimes even on Shabbos, people may be burdened with **worries about parnassah** and their affairs. A distracted, troubled heart is not the ideal state from which to bestow a blessing.

And why, in those communities, do the Kohanim often bless specifically during **Musaf** of Yom Tov? The Rema connects it with the atmosphere of celebration as people anticipate the Yom Tov meal.

Now listen to the **Chasam Sofer's approach**. He stresses the relationship between **Nesias Kapayim and avodah**. In Vayikra 9, Aharon blesses immediately after performing the offerings. Tefillah itself is called **avodah**, and Chazal connect our prayers with the service of the Mikdash.

The Chasam Sofer discusses the need for proper **kavanah** and the possibility that a distracted *tefillah* lacks the quality befitting a sacrificial service. In this way, a defective inner state affects the atmosphere of **Birchas Kohanim** as well.

Don't treat this as a literal claim that a distracted prayer becomes a legally invalid sacrifice called *pigul*. The comparison is explanatory: the *avodah* should be performed with the appropriate reverence and focus.

So we have two complementary *yesodos*. The **Rema** emphasizes the **joy of the heart**, and the **Chasam Sofer** emphasizes **the quality of the avodah and its kavannah**.

I want you to understand how powerful this is. A blessing isn't only a combination of sacred words. The **person giving the blessing** must be present in the proper state of mind and heart.

And this brings us back to Friday night. After the worries and labors of the week have been put aside, a father or mother stands with a child, in the **menuchah and simchah of Shabbos**, and gives a blessing.

Now you see why the custom of **Birchas HaBanim** is so appropriate at that time.

But the *sugya* is not finished. We need to explain the custom in **Eretz Yisrael**, where Nesias Kapayim is recited on weekdays too. If the reason is simply that people are free of worldly worries, surely people in Eretz Yisrael also have concerns about *parnassah*!

We must learn the further explanations in the **Acharonim** and then return to our main question: what is the special *brachah* of **"ויהי נעם"**?

## Why Is Nesias Kapayim Recited on Weekdays in Eretz Yisrael?

Now I want to ask: if **simchah and kavanah** are so important to Birchas Kohanim, why do they perform Nesias Kapayim daily in **Eretz Yisrael**? Surely people there also have burdens and concerns.

First let's remember that the customs of different communities are not identical, and the halachic basis of those customs requires careful study. We cannot infer from the Ashkenazi custom in Chutz Laaretz that it would be prohibited everywhere to bless on a weekday.

The **Shaarei Teshuvah** quotes discussions associated with **Beis Ephraim** on why the practice remained different in Eretz Yisrael and Chutz Laaretz.

One line of thought discussed in the *shiur* concerns **the established status of Kohanim**. The Kohanim of our day are generally identified through a **chazakah**, a longstanding presumption of priestly ancestry. Where the custom of regular Nesias Kapayim has endured, that continuity is relevant to explaining the practice. The original Beis Ephraim and its full context must be checked before presenting this as the definitive answer to every case.

Another line of thought concerns **the holiness of Eretz Yisrael itself**. That brings us to a very different sort of explanation: perhaps the land of Israel provides a special relationship with **hashra'as haShechinah**, and so the atmosphere of blessing is different.

I remember being taught a beautiful question by **Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky** when I was young. The Torah tells us to return to Hashem, **"ושבת עד ה' אלקיך"** (Devarim 30:2). The *shiur* mentions a teaching attributed to a **Sifri** or later source suggesting a possible thought that *teshuvah* might be especially associated with Eretz Yisrael.

Why would anyone entertain such a thought? Can a Yid not do *teshuvah* wherever he is? Of course he can. The Torah goes on to speak of even those dispersed to the farthest reaches returning to Hashem.

Perhaps the proposed *hava amina* reflects the idea that **closeness to the Shechinah** is especially felt in Eretz Yisrael. It is not a limitation on the actual mitzvah of *teshuvah*.

The particular Midrashic source of that *hava amina* needs verification, but the *mussar* helps us understand what we're trying to discuss.

The **Shechinah** is not an incidental extra ingredient in a blessing. **Hashra'as haShechinah** is the atmosphere in which a true blessing can take hold.

And I want to connect this to **Shabbos**. There is a beautiful teaching from **Rav Tzadok HaKohen** and from the **Zohar** that gives Shabbos the role of an inner **Mikdash**.

## Shabbos as a Mishkan in Time and in the Heart

Listen to the *yesod*. The **Beis HaMikdash** is a place where the Shechinah rests. But we live in a world where that place has been destroyed. How does a Yid build a home for the Shechinah now?

The *shiur* brings a teaching attributed to **Rav Tzadok HaKohen** in an early section of his writings, distinguishing **the Mikdash in place** from **Shabbos in time**.

One is the sanctuary of a holy **makom**, and the other is the sanctuary of a holy **zman**.

We also have a teaching in the **Tikkunei Zohar**, associated here with the words **"לעשות את השבת לדרתם"** (Shemos 31:16). The word **"לדרתם"** is interpreted homiletically as suggesting a **dirah**, a dwelling place for the Shechinah, within the chambers of a person's heart.

The precise Zohar passage needs verification in its original edition, but listen to the meaning as it was taught.

When we have no Beis HaMikdash, we cannot simply recreate the building and the *avodah*. But we can create **space within ourselves** for the Shechinah through **Shabbos**, through the cessation of weekday work, through *kavod* and *oneg*, and through the sweetness of a Shabbos home.

So the words **"ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם"** become very personal. Not only a sanctuary in which Klal Yisrael stands, but an inner place where a Yid welcomes the Ribbono Shel Olam.

And that returns us to **Birchas HaBanim**. Why are parents especially inclined to bless their children on **Friday night**?

Perhaps Shabbos provides that **state of menuchah and simchah** in which the parents can truly bless the child, and the child can receive the blessing. They are not standing amid the frustrations of a regular workday. They are entering an atmosphere of **hashra'as haShechinah**.

And now I want to look at a line from our **zemiros**.

We sing **"נוטרי ליום השביעי, זכור ושמור להקם, שמחם בבנין שלם"**, or a version of those words, in **Kol Mekadesh Shevi'i**.

What does **"בנין שלם"** mean? Some explain it as the complete rebuilding of **Yerushalayim** or the Beis HaMikdash. *Shalem* is also a name associated with Yerushalayim in the earlier *pesukim*.

In our *mahalach*, the word takes on additional meaning. Those who observe Shabbos and make a dwelling for the Shechinah in their hearts ask to be gladdened by **the complete future Mikdash**.

We have the *kedushah* of Shabbos today, and we long for the fullness of *hashra'as haShechinah* in the rebuilt Beis HaMikdash.

Now let's connect this to **simchas Shabbos** and the special blessing of **"ויהי נעם"**.

## Viyehi Noam: The Heart of the Blessing

The *zemiros* speak about **"שמחם בבנין שלם"**. We want Hashem to bring us to the full joy of the rebuilt Mikdash.

And our Shabbos *tefillos* say **"ישמחו במלכותך שומרי שבת וקוראי ענג"**—those who guard Shabbos and delight in it should rejoice in Hashem's kingship.

There are discussions among the *Rishonim* and *Acharonim* about the mitzvah of **simchah on Shabbos**, and how it relates to *oneg*. I want you to hear the central idea: **Shabbos is meant to bring a person to genuine spiritual joy and closeness to Hashem**.

Now let's go back to our beginning, to the two blessings in **Vayikra 9**.

Aharon gave **Birchas Kohanim**. It includes the most beautiful blessings a Yid can receive: protection, graciousness, favor, peace.

And then Moshe and Aharon said another *brachah*: **"יהי רצון שתשרה שכינה במעשה ידיכם"**.

Why? Because there is something beyond the list of blessings: **the Shechinah resting on our lives**.

We say **"ויהי נעם ה' אלקינו עלינו"**. May the **noam**, the pleasantness and sweetness of Hashem, rest upon us.

That's the special *nekudah*. A person can have success, possessions and even many blessings, but without **the sweetness of being close to Hashem**, he may not experience the fullness of the good that was given to him.

And my zeide's *peshat* takes this into the future. **"מעשה ידיכם"** can point not only to the Mishkan they made at that moment, but also to **the children and later generations**. May the Shechinah continue to rest on them when the original Mishkan is no longer standing.

What is the *mahalach*? **Shabbos** becomes a dwelling for the Shechinah; the parents enter Shabbos with *simchah*, and from that place they bestow **Birchas HaBanim**.

This is why I want us to remember the Rema's words: **"וטוב לב הוא יברך"**. The one giving a blessing needs a **good heart**.

And I would add: the one **receiving** the blessing also benefits from being in a *matzav* of receptivity, *menuchah*, and closeness to Hashem.

This is not a technical law that blessings given on ordinary weekdays are ineffective. It is a *mussar* explanation of the quality of blessing. We are discussing the ideal atmosphere in which a person stands before Hashem.

Now, before we finish, I want to return to **Yaakov's blessing of Ephraim and Menashe** and ask why it was given specifically as Yaakov was ill.

## Why Did Yaakov Bless Ephraim and Menashe While Ill?

The Torah tells us that Yosef heard **"הנה אביך חלה"**—your father is ill—and brought **Ephraim and Menashe** to Yaakov for a blessing (Bereishis 48:1).

There is an obvious explanation: Yaakov was nearing the end of his life, and Yosef wanted his sons to receive their grandfather's blessing while there was still time.

Of course. But perhaps there is another element.

Chazal teach that **the Shechinah rests above the head of a sick person**, *shechinah lema'alah merashosav shel choleh*. I want to suggest that Yaakov's illness also created an atmosphere of **special closeness to the Shechinah**.

We have been speaking all along about the Shechinah and the ability to give a blessing.

Aharon gives Birchas Kohanim. Moshe and Aharon add the blessing of **"ויהי נעם ... יהי רצון שתשרה שכינה במעשה ידיכם."**

On Shabbos, parents bless their children when the home becomes a special place of menuchah and *kedushah*.

And perhaps Yosef brought his sons to **Yaakov Avinu** precisely at a time when the Shechinah was especially near him.

This is a *derush* to deepen our appreciation of the story, not a claim that a sick person's blessing is automatically more valid as a matter of law.

The *yesod* is the same throughout: we want **Birchas Kohanim and Birchas HaBanim** not to be mere words, but to be blessings given in a life filled with **simchah, noam Hashem, and hashra'as haShechinah**.

May we be *zocheh* that our homes, our children and all the generations after us should be places where the Shechinah is welcome.

**"ויהי נעם ה' אלקינו עלינו, ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו, ומעשה ידינו כוננהו."**