Talmud - Berakhot 42a ברכות מ״ב א׳

as it causes a blessing itself. It is so significant, that one recites a blessing over it together with other blessings like kiddush and havdala, even though he does not particularly want to drink it. During a meal too, a blessing is recited over the wine and it is not exempted by the blessing over the bread.

As the Gemara mentioned bread that comes as dessert, it now relates that Rav Huna ate thirteen substantially sized, sweetened loaves, three loaves per kav of flour, and he did not recite Grace after Meals because they were not genuine bread. Rav Naḥman said to him: That is hunger. One does not typically eat that much merely as dessert. Rather, over anything which is substantial enough to satiate and others base a meal upon it, one must recite Grace after Meals.

The Gemara also relates: Rav Yehuda was engaged in preparations for his son’s wedding at the house of Rav Yehuda bar Ḥaviva when they brought bread that comes as dessert before them. When it arrived, he heard them reciting: Who brings forth bread from the earth. He said to them: What is this tzitzi sound that I hear? Perhaps you are reciting: Who brings forth bread from the earth? They said to him: Yes, indeed, as it was taught in a baraita: Rabbi Mona said in the name of Rabbi Yehuda: Over bread that comes as dessert, one recites: Who brings forth bread from the earth. And Shmuel said: The halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Mona.

Rav Yehuda said to them: You are mistaken. Actually, it was stated that Shmuel said: The halakha is not in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Mona. They said to him: But aren’t you, Master, the one who said in the name of Shmuel with regard to wafers: One may establish an eiruv, the joining of courtyards, to permit carrying in a shared courtyard and the joining of cooked foods, to permit cooking on a festival for Shabbat, with them and recite over them: Who brings forth bread from the earth. Why is that the blessing over those wafers? They too are sweetened bread that comes as dessert. He answered them: It is different there as he based his meal upon them, but here, where one did not base his meal upon them, no, he does not recite: Who brings forth bread from the earth.

The Gemara relates: Rav Pappa happened to come to the house of Rav Huna, son of Rav Natan. After they finished their meal, they brought before them something to eat. Rav Pappa took this food item and ate it without reciting a blessing. They said to him: Do you, Master, not hold that once one finished his meal he is forbidden to eat again without reciting a blessing? He said to them that in the correct version of that halakha, it is stated: Removed. One need recite a second blessing only when eating after the table was removed from before him.

Similarly, the Gemara relates: Rava and Rabbi Zeira happened to come to the house of the Exilarch. After the meal, when they removed the table from before them, a portion [ristena] of food was sent to them from the house of the Exilarch. Rava ate it and Rabbi Zeira did not eat it. Rabbi Zeira said to Rava: Do you, Master, not hold that once the table was removed, he is forbidden to eat? Rava said to him: We are dependent upon the table of the Exilarch, and so long as he has not completed his meal, his guests have not completed their meals either.

Rav said: One who is accustomed to applying fragrant oil to his hands after meals, failure to apply that oil delays the end of his meal and he is not considered to have finished his meal and is not required to recite a blessing before continuing to eat. Similarly, Rav Ashi said: When we were in the house of Rav Kahana, he said to us: We, for example, who are accustomed to oil, failure to apply that oil delays the end of the meal for us. Nevertheless, the Gemara concludes: And the halakha is not in accordance with all of these statements and the end of the meal is not determined by those factors. Rather, it is determined by that which Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Ashi said that Rav said: There are three pairs that immediately follow each other: Immediately following placing hands on the head of a sacrifice, is its slaughter; immediately following the blessing of redemption recited after Shema, is the Amida prayer; and immediately following the ritual washing of the hands after a meal, is the blessing of Grace after Meals.

Abaye said that on a similar note, we too will say: Immediately following the entrance of Torah scholars into a house, a blessing rests upon that house, as it is stated with regard to Laban and Jacob: “The Lord has blessed me because of you” (Genesis 30:27). If you wish, say instead, that the proof is from here, as it is stated: “And it was from when he placed him in charge of his house and over all that he owned, the Lord blessed the house of the Egyptian on account of Joseph” (Genesis 39:5).

MISHNA: This mishna explains those cases and those circumstances in which blessings recited over particular foods exempt other foods at the meal from the requirement to recite a blessing over them. One who recited a blessing over the wine that one drank before the meal, with that blessing he exempted the wine that he drinks after the meal. Similarly, one who recited a blessing over the appetizers that one ate before the meal, with that blessing he exempted the appetizers that he eats after the meal. One who recited a blessing over the bread exempted the appetizers, as they are considered secondary to the bread. However, one who recited a blessing over the appetizers did not exempt the bread. Beit Shammai say: The blessing recited over the appetizers did not exempt even a cooked dish that he eats during the meal.

An additional halakha is cited: If several people were sitting to eat not in the framework of a joint meal, each recites a blessing for himself. If they were reclined on divans to eat, which renders it a joint meal, one recites a blessing on behalf of them all.

Traduction : The William Davidson digital edition of the Koren Noé Talmud, with commentary by Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz.

Berachot 42a explores blessings over wine during meals and debates the proper blessing for sweetened dessert bread versus ordinary bread.