A blessing upon consuming animal flesh, by Rabbi Gila Caine • the Open Siddur Project

Tags: 21st century C.E., 58th century A.M., animals, eating animals, predation, predatory nature, ברכות brakhot, עולם הזה Olam ha-Zeh

Excerpt: This blessing for the consumption of meat (or poultry, or fish) is based on a verse from Vayikra / Leviticus, ch. 17: כִּי נֶפֶשׁ הַבָּשָׂר בַּדָּם הִוא וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְכַפֵּר עַל־נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם כִּי־הַדָּם הוּא בַּנֶּפֶשׁ יְכַפֵּר׃ (“For the life of the flesh is in the blood. And as for me, I have given it to you on the alter to ransom your lives, for it is the blood that ransoms in exchange for life.”) This verse helps us remember (and how can we ever forget?!) that any bloodshed, is a loss of life - human or animal. And, it helps us understand that even when we kill for our own sustanance (or even in a ritual offering), we cause a loss of life. The burden is on us. We are commanded to release the blood-life so we can use the meat. (I wrote more in detail about this blessing here.) . . .

Content:

This blessing for the consumption of meat (or poultry, or fish) is based on a verse from Vayiqra (Leviticus 17:11) — כִּי נֶפֶשׁ הַבָּשָׂר בַּדָּם הִוא וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְכַפֵּר עַל־נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם כִּי־הַדָּם הוּא בַּנֶּפֶשׁ יְכַפֵּר׃ (“For the life of the flesh is in the blood. And as for me, I have given it to you on the altar to ransom your lives, for it is the blood that ransoms in exchange for life.”) This verse helps us remember (and how can we ever forget?!) that any bloodshed, is a loss of life – human or animal. And, it helps us understand that even when we kill for our own sustenance (or even in a ritual offering), we cause a loss of life. The burden is on us. We are commanded to release the blood-life so we can use the meat. (I wrote more in detail about this blessing here.)

Source (Hebrew)	Transliteration (romanized Hebrew)	Translation (English)
		Before eating meat (any animal meat), I recite:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה׳ אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵא נֶפֶשׁ הַבָּשָׂר׃	Barukh Atah Adonai Eloheinu Melekh ha-Olam, Borei nefesh ha-basar	Blessed are You, Adonai our God, Ruler of the universe, who created life in the flesh.
		And after eating meat (any animal meat), I recite:
כִּי־הַדָּם הוּא בַּנֶּפֶשׁ יְכַפֵּר, לְכַפֵּר עַל־נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם, וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּחַ׃ (אחר ויקרא יז:יא)	Ki ha-dam hu banefesh yekhaper, le-khaper al nafshoteikhem, va-ani netativ lakhem al hamizbéaḥ	For it is the blood that ransoms in exchange for life to ransom your lives, and I have given it to you on the altar. (Cf. Leviticus 17:11)

This blessing for consuming the flesh of animals was composed by Rabbi Gila Caine in advance of Alef b’Elul (Rosh ha-Shanah la-Behemah) 5785.