Q. What is the reason that two of the berachot of the sheva berachot are basically the same beracha - yotzair ha'adam? Why the repetition?
A. The Talmud (Kesubos 8a) offers dissenting opinions if these two brochos are one or actually two. The dispute depends on whether there was only one single creation of man and woman or actually two. Rashi explains that Adam and Eve were created as a double united figure in a single act of creation, resulting in only a single brocho. Or the first blessing refers to man's creation and the second to the separation of the woman part of him. Alternatively, the dispute revolves on whether we follow Hashem's plan, which was to create a separate male and female entity, or we follow his action, which ended in a single act of creation of an entity both male and female.
Horav Shlomo Miller Shlit"a pointed out that there may be a Halachic difference in the two interpretations, when the second brocho was mistakenly recited first.
There are some other homiletic explanations for the two brochos. Such as; every human being undergoes two separate creations. The first is the biological creation at birth. The second one pertains to the creation that an individual does himself and to himself during his lifetime, by choosing correctly or not the path to follow. Fittingly Ba'aley Musar elucidate the posuk (Bereshis 1: 26) And Hashem said, "Let us make man" meaning that the Creator was addressing man himself. Namely, you and Me together, will create you. (Minchas Aviv 2 )
Rabbi A. Bartfeld as advised by Horav Shlomo Miller Shlit'a
Important Numbers
