Parshas Eikev – One Hundred and the Pandemic

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In this week’s Parsha Chazal derive the Halacha that one is obligated to say one hundred Brachos every day. This is not just a nice concept, but the Gemarra says that is a Chiyuv. This is then brought in the Rambam and the Shulchan Aruch. In general, we fulfill this obligation with the Brachos in Tefila and our general daily eating and other activities.
The idea of one hundred is the complete structure of the world. Chazal teach us that HaShem created the world with Ten Maamaros. These Ten Maamros are the structure of creation. These are also parallel to the Sefiros, the ten connections between us and HaShem. As we count during Seefira, each one of these is interconnected with the others. So there are ten sub-Sefiros within each Sefira. That is ten multiplied by ten, one hundred connections between HaShem and us. These are the one hundred Brachos, which recognize that everything we have come from Hashem.
Mori VRabi Rav Moshe Shapiro ZT”L told us that by the Brisker Rav this Chiyuv was taken very seriously. There was a doctor who came to care for the Rav, and he would jokingly ask the Rav how many Brachos he was up to at any given moment. The Brisker Rav would unerringly answer him where he was holding at that moment of the day.
There seem to be three sources in Chazal for this obligation each one teaching us a different aspect of this Chiyuv.
In this week’s Parsha the Torah writes , “And now, Israel, what does the HaShem your God demand of you? Only this: to revere the HaShem your God, to walk only in His paths, to love Him, and to serve the HaShem your God with all your heart and soul.”
The word ‘what’ in Hebrew is two letters Mem and Heh. When you add an Aleph between them it becomes the word for one hundred. From there the Gemarra derives that what HaShem desires is one hundred Brachos. The Gemarra continues and says that on Shabbos Rav Chiya would exert himself to reach one hundred by eating various treats.
The son of the Brisker Rav, Rav Yosha Ber, explains this Gemarra . He asks why does the Gemarra emphasize that Rav Chiya would eat treats on Shabbos to reach the goal of one hundred Brachos? If this is an obligation then of course you should try to fulfill it in any way possible. He explains that the obligation is not to say random Brachos. The concept of one hundred Barachos is that this is the framework of a Jewish day. The Mishnah Berurah counts these Brachos . It begins with Davening which contains ninety Brachos. Then the meals contain more Brachos and on a regular day, the schedule of the day completes the sum of one hundred.
Therefore, it is not a contest to reach one hundred. It is the structure of our day. On Shabbos when Shemoneh Esreh is seven Brachos instead of nineteen, there is a large gap. But since Chazal instituted a shorter Tefila, just making random Berachos doesn’t fulfill my obligation. But Rav Chiya says since on Shabbos there is a Mitzvah of Oneg Shabbos, the extra Berachos I make are part of the structure of the day, and with that, I fulfill my obligation.
This is what HaShem wants from us. Our entire should be structured around realizing that Hashem wants us to recognize that everything comes from Him. That is the explanation of the Pasuk, “What does HaShem want”. He wants us to answer that by inserting an Aleph, the letter of unity, and make sure that every aspect of our day is preceded by a Bracha. That connects us back to HaShem, which is what He wants.
In a different place, Chazal connect this to the plague in the time of Dovid . When Dovid went against the Halacha that you cannot directly count the nation, the result was an epidemic. Each day one hundred people died. Therefore, Dovid instituted the Halacha of saying one hundred Brachos, and the plague ended. What is the direct connection?
The Maharal in many places explains that counting something limits it. The Gemara says that when something is uncounted there can be Bracha. But once you give something a limit, there is no place for Bracha. That is why counting the nation caused the plague. The idea of one hundred Brachos is to connect everything back to the Aleph from which it was learned in the Torah. That Aleph is the place of unity. That undoes the boundary that Dovid placed on the nation by counting them.
A Bracha is recognizing that everything comes from the Infinite HaShem. The word Bracha is connected to the word Breicha – a spring . A spring is a source of water that constantly and continuously wells up. When we recognize that this world comes from HaShem it becomes a place of ongoing Bracha. That is the opposite of a plague where there is constant death.
The Leshem brings the Chazal that the Satan and the Malach HaMeves are one. One of the names of the Malach HaMeves is made up of the letters Samech and Mem, and the name of HaShem El. The letters Samech and Mem are the sum of one hundred. Saying the Brachos removes the power of Satan and leaves only the name of HaShem. That is why the Brachos of Dovid ended the plague. Death at the hands of Satan is a disconnect from Hashem. When a person makes Brachos they recognize everything comes from HaShem. Then there is no disconnection and the Satan has no power.
There is one more idea found in many Rishonim . In the Mishkon there were silver sockets which were its foundation. There were one hundred of them and they were called Adonim. The one hundred Adonim are parallel to the Brachos. In addition, the word Adonim is connected to the name of HaShem that we use in every Bracha. The Mishkon is a place of connection to Hashem where we recognize everything comes from Him. That is the foundation of the Mishkan. When we say one hundred Brachos each one with the name of HaShem, we are utilizing the power of the Mishkan to connect us to HaShem.
When we keep these ideas in mind, our entire day is connected to HaShem. Satan cannot disconnect us, and we live in a Mishkan of our making. That is what Dovid did with the institution of the one hundred Brachos. Maybe we can also live in that place in our world now?