DailyHalacha.com for Mobile Devices Now Available

Click Here to Sponsor Daily Halacha
"Delivered to Over 6000 Registered Recipients Each Day"

      
(File size: 628 KB)
Birkat Ha’re’ah - Honeysuckles, Cinnamon, Shampoo, Deodorant, Soap and Air Freshener

Somebody who smells honeysuckles recites the Beracha of "Baruch Ata Hashem…Boreh Aseh Besamim." Since they grow on a bush, the proper Beracha is "Aseh Besamim" ("fragrant trees").

If one smells cinnamon – as many people do for the Besamim at Habdala – the Beracha depends on which cinnamon is used. Although cinnamon grows on trees, and should thus require the Beracha of "Aseh Besamim," most cinnamon that people have in their homes was ground for seasoning, and not for smelling. Therefore, before smelling such cinnamon one recites "Boreh Mineh Besamim." One recites "Aseh Besamim" over cinnamon only if it was bought specifically for its fragrance.

One does not recite any Beracha at all before smelling a substance that was made for the purpose of cleaning or eliminating odor. This would include shampoo, soap, deodorant and air fresheners. All these products are made for either cleaning or deodorizing, and thus one does not recite any Beracha before smelling them.

 


Recent Daily Halachot...
Is it Permissible to Draw Hot Water From an Urn With Ladle on Shabbat?
The Woman’s Obligation in Kiddush
Using a Moistened Cloth or Napkin on Shabbat
Halachot Pertaining to Lel Shabbat: Covering the Table, Reciting Shalom Alechem, and Covering the Bread
The Recitation of “Bo’i Kalla” in Kabbalat Shabbat
Repeating Kiddush for Those Who Have Yet to Hear Kiddush
Cutting a Branch of Hadasim or a Cluster of Grapes on Shabbat
Fasting on Shabbat
When Should One Recite Kiddush and Begin the Shabbat Meal When Accepting Shabbat Early?
Situations Where One May Derive Benefit from a Light Turned on by a Gentile During Shabbat
The Status of Food Cooked by a Gentile on Shabbat; Asking a Gentile to Restore Power in Order to Heat Food on Shabbat
Does Dignity Supersede The Laws of Muktze, Such As In The Case of Tearing Toilet Tissue
Preparing Instant Coffee, Hot Chocolate and Tea on Shabbat
The Custom of Eating Sambusak on Shabbat
Food That Was Purchased Specifically for Shabbat
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found