Tehillim 150 and Blessings for Fragrances
Tehillim 150:6 “Kol haneshamah tehallel Yah, hallelujah” – (Let every soul praise G-d). The Talmud teaches in tractate Berachot (43) regarding this pasuk: “What is something that the soul (neshamah), rather than the body, enjoys [and for which it praises G-d]? – Fragrance.” It is interesting that at the time of the sin of the first man, 4 of the 5 senses took part in the sin: hearing – Chavah heard the serpent’s words, sight – she saw the fruit, touch – she touched it, taste – she tasted it. The only sense that did not take part in the sin of the first man was the sense of smell (fragrance). Therefore, smell is the holiest sense – it will be Mashiach’s instrument, and he will judge everyone through smell. The soul (neshamah) derives pleasure from fragrance in this world because fragrance will be its nourishment in the lower Gan Eden. After ascending to an even higher level – the higher Gan Eden – the soul (neshamah) receives “nourishment” through sight, contemplating the radiance of the Shechinah. How do we know that we must recite a blessing over fragrances? From Tehillim 150:6: “Let every soul (neshamah) praise G-d.” The Sages teach that although the body derives pleasure from fragrance, the soul enjoys it much more. Physical pleasure vanishes immediately when the fragrance disappears, whereas the pleasure received by the soul is constant, and its power does not diminish – therefore, no concluding blessing is recited over fragrance. Nor is Shehecheyanu recited (“Who has granted us life…”). It is forbidden to enjoy a fragrance without first reciting a blessing. The incense or fragrance should be held in the right hand; recite the berachah, and then inhale the fragrance.Segulot
If a healthy person cannot smell, this is not a good sign – it indicates a problem with the soul; the soul is closed. How can this be rectified? When we inhale a fragrance, “hamtakat ha-dinim” (the sweetening of the judgments) takes place, because according to Kabbalah, all judgments are located in Da'at, and when judgment is decreed, the din (judgment) descends into the nose. The Sages derive this from the Torah: when Hashem is (so to speak) angry, the Torah uses the expression “charon af” (literally, “shortness of nose”) – because all the dinim are located in the nose. The Torah does not use the word “anger.” When a person inhales fragrances, he elevates all the judgments (gevurot) from the nose to their root and source (Da'at) in the brain – and there “hamtakat ha-dinim be-shorsham” takes place: the judgments are eased at their very root.- The Arizal teaches that if a person wishes to transform judgments into goodness, he should recite a blessing over the fragrance and inhale it deeply three times – corresponding to the three levels of the soul: nefesh, ruach, and neshamah. The judgments are eased on all three levels.
- Moreover, the Arizal teaches that when there are serious problems, one should recite the phrase while inhaling the fragrance: “Reiach nichoach isheh le-Ado-nai” – (a pleasing fragrance, an offering to G-d) (Exodus 29:18). This can ease the judgments on the level of the four worlds:
- For fragrances from trees – when the stem is hard and the plant grows from year to year, while the leaves grow not from the roots but from the trunk or branches, such as a rose bush, citrus buds, or hadas – one should recite:
