✦ ❖ ✦
DAAT · LEVEL 1 — INTRODUCTION

Siman קע״ב · Food or drink put in the mouth without a blessing

מי שהכניס אוכלין ומשקין בלא ברכה — one forgot to bless and it is already in his mouth: a drink, he swallows it (בולען) and per the Mechaber does not bless (the Rama: he blesses) ; food, he spits it out and blesses if not repulsive, or moves it to the side and blesses
סימן קע״ב · ב׳ סעיפים
מי שהכניס אוכלין ומשקין בלא ברכה
🌱 Introductory level · מתחילים
✦ ❖ ✦

This siman deals with a common case: one has forgotten to bless and the food or drink is already in his mouth. What to do? For a drink (מַשְׁקִין): the Mechaber says he swallows it (בּוֹלְעָן) without blessing, and the Rama rules that he blesses. For food (אוֹכְלִין): if it is not repulsive to spit out he spits it out and blesses (יִפְלְטֶנּוּ וִיבָרֵךְ), otherwise he moves it to the side and blesses (מְסַלְּקוֹ לְצַד אַחֵר). Hebrew text, fluent English translation and explanation of the ב׳ seifim, with a section of practical cases.

Topic: Food or drink put in the mouth without a blessing — משקין, אוכלין, בולען, יפלטנו
Source: שולחן ערוך אורח חיים סימן קע״ב · ב׳ סעיפים

Compiled by: רב יוסף חיים סממה
DAAT · daattorah.com

After the laws of the blessings over bread and over other foods (the preceding simanim), the Choulhan Aroukh here addresses a common mishap: one has forgotten the blessing and has already put it in his mouth. The general rule is to bless before deriving benefit (עובר לעשייתן) ; but once the food is already in the mouth, how is one to do so? The siman distinguishes a drink (which cannot be spat out cleanly) from solid food (which can be spat out or moved aside). We study here at the level of principle ; for personal conduct, one refers to the ruling of the Rav.

📑 Study outline

A. משקין — a drink (seif 1) — בולען ואינו מברך per the Mechaber, and the Rama's dispute
B. אוכלין — food (seif 2) — יפלטנו ויברך or מסלקו לצד אחר ומברך
1-3. Practical cases and comprehension questions

A. משקין — a drink put in the mouth without a blessing

עוֹבֵר לַעֲשִׂיָּתָן — the general rule is that one blesses before eating or drinking, for the blessing precedes the pleasure one takes from this world. This siman deals with the case where that was not observed: one forgot and the food or drink is already in his mouth. The whole question is whether one may still bless, and how — depending on whether it is a drink or solid food.

Seif 1 — משקין: he swallows it (and the dispute on the blessing)

שכח והכניס משקין לתוך פיו בלא ברכה — בולען, ואינו מברך עליהם ברכה ראשונה. הגה : וי״א דמברך עליהם וכן נראה עיקר.
Seif 1: one who forgot and put a drink in his mouth without a blessing — he swallows it (בולען) and does not recite over it a first blessing. Gloss of the Rama: and there are those who say he blesses over it, and so it seems is the essential practice (וכן נראה עיקר).
The drink: he swallows it. According to the Mechaber, a drink already in the mouth is at an impasse: it cannot be spat out (that is repulsive and wasteful), nor clearly held to the side to bless over it. He therefore writes that one swallows it (בולען) without a first blessing. The Rama, however, rules otherwise: one does bless nonetheless (וי״א דמברך עליהם וכן נראה עיקר) — that, for him, is the essential ruling. In practice, one follows the custom of one's community and the ruling of one's Rav.

B. אוכלין — food put in the mouth without a blessing

Seif 2 — אוכלין: spit it out or move it to the side

שכח והכניס אוכלין לתוך פיו בלא ברכה — אם הוא דבר שאינו נמאס אם יפלטנו, יפלטנו ויברך עליו ; ואם הוא דבר שנמאס, מסלקו לצד אחר ומברך.
Seif 2: one who forgot and put food in his mouth without a blessing — if it is something not repulsive when he spits it out, he spits it out and recites the blessing over it (יפלטנו ויברך עליו) ; and if it is something that becomes repulsive, he moves it to one side (of his mouth) and blesses (מסלקו לצד אחר ומברך).
Food: two paths. Unlike a drink, solid food can escape the impasse. First case: if it is not repulsive to spit out (דבר שאינו נמאס), one spits it out (יפלטנו), blesses, then eats it again — one has thus blessed before deriving benefit. Second case: if spitting it out is repulsive (דבר שנמאס), one does not spit it out ; one moves it to the side of the mouth (מסלקו לצד אחר), blesses, then swallows. In both cases a blessing is possible — which is why the ruling differs from that of a drink.
The siman in one sentence: one has forgotten to bless and it is already in his mouth. For a drink — בולען ואינו מברך per the Mechaber, but the Rama rules וי״א דמברך עליהם וכן נראה עיקר. For food — if not repulsive, יפלטנו ויברך עליו ; if repulsive, מסלקו לצד אחר ומברך.

Practical cases

Case 1 — A sip of water swallowed without a blessing

Situation: I raised a glass of water to my lips and drank, forgetting entirely to say she-hakol. What do I do?
Conduct: per the Mechaber (seif 1), one swallows without blessing (בולען ואינו מברך עליהם ברכה ראשונה): a drink is not spat out. The Rama rules that one does bless (וכן נראה עיקר). In practice, one follows one's custom and the ruling of one's Rav.

Case 2 — A piece of bread already in the mouth

Situation: I put a piece of bread (or fruit) in my mouth without saying the blessing, and spitting it out would not be repulsive. What do I do?
Conduct: since it is not repulsive to spit out (דבר שאינו נמאס), one spits it out, blesses, then eats it again — יפלטנו ויברך עליו (seif 2). One has thus blessed before deriving benefit.

Case 3 — Food repulsive to spit out

Situation: the food in my mouth is of the sort that would be repulsive to spit out (already chewed). What do I do?
Conduct: one does not spit it out ; one moves it to one side of the mouth and blesses — מסלקו לצד אחר ומברך (seif 2) — then swallows. For a delicate case, one follows one's Rav.

Comprehension questions

Check your understanding:
  1. What does one do, per the Mechaber, with a drink put in the mouth without a blessing, and what does the Rama rule (seif 1)?
  2. What are the two paths for food, depending on whether it is repulsive or not to spit out (seif 2)?
  3. Why does the ruling for a drink differ from that of solid food?

Going further

If you wish to delve deeper into this siman:
Continue to the next simanSiman 173 →
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
DAAT · רב יוסף חיים סממה

סימן קע״ב · ב׳ סעיפים · Level 1 — Introduction
♥ Support DAAT
📖Join the chavrusa