Siman 5

That which we say in all the blessings "Blessed are You" – it is not that He, may He be blessed, needs our blessings, Heaven forbid. Rather, it is like a reflected light that will bestow His blessing upon us, as David said: "And from Your blessing may the house of Your servant be blessed forever" (Samuel II 7:29). And the matter that we must awaken for this is as it is written: "Ascribe strength to God." That is to say: since all matters are dependent upon our actions, therefore it is upon us to add strength to the heavenly entourage, and then the blessing will descend to us. And this is as it is written: "Who rides the heavens for your help."

And in all the blessings and prayers we speak to Him, may He be blessed, in the second person: "Blessed are You." And in the psalms and thanksgivings there are several that say "You are He" – second person and third person. And the matter is understood: for His essence, may He be blessed, is hidden from all that is hidden, and even the Seraphim and the Ofanim do not know, and only through His actions is He recognized by us and by them. And this is why they say: "Blessed be the glory of Hashem from His place," meaning: that His glory, may He be blessed, they perceive, which are His actions in every place they may be, and not His essence. And this is why they say "You are He," meaning: "You" – from the perspective of Your actions, "He" – from His essence. And therefore in the prayers where we request of Him, may He be blessed, that He do such and such, we are indeed speaking from the perspective of His actions, and therefore we say "You." And so too in all types of blessings, such as the blessings of enjoyment where we bless for His having created this fruit or this bread – we are indeed speaking of His actions. And so too in the blessing of the mitzvot we speak of His actions, that He commanded us such and such. And so too all types of blessings such as the blessing of seeing the seas and rivers, or thunder and lightning, and the like – we bless Him, may He be blessed, for His actions. And therefore we say "You" in the second person.

The essence of His Name, may He be blessed, is the Name Havayah. It is the "Explicit Name," and it is forbidden for us in this time to read it as it is written, but rather with the Name "Adonai," for the world is not worthy now to express it (end of the third chapter of Pesachim). This is the wording of the Tur and the Shulchan Aruch: One should intend in his blessings the meaning of the words he utters from his mouth. And when mentioning the Name—he should intend the meaning of its pronunciation with Aleph Dalet, an expression of "Lordship," for He is the Lord of all. And he should further intend the meaning of its writing with Yud Heh, an expression of Havayah, that He was, is, and will be. And when mentioning "Elohim," he should intend that He is powerful and strong, who possesses the capability in the upper and lower realms. For "El" is an expression of power and strength, as in "and the mighty of the land..." (Tur).

And according to this, at the time of saying "Blessed are You, Hashem" – one should intend Lordship, and He was, He is, and He will be. And in a place where the name "Adonai" is written, such as "Adonai, open my lips" – one should intend only that He is the Lord of all. And some say that even regarding the name Havayah, one should intend only "Lord of all," because in every place we follow the pronunciation (the Gra). And regarding the vocalization of the Name: when it is written as "Adonai," its pronunciation is with a chataf patach. And when Havayah is written, some read the Aleph with a sheva, like the vocalization of the Yod of Havayah, and some read with a chataf patach, like the vocalization of the Aleph in the name "Adonai" (the Grashz). And so is the simple custom among us, to read the Aleph with a chataf patach. (These are the simple intentions, and those who enter the secret of Hashem intend awesome intentions. And from the great Kabbalists they mention that if one intends in the Name the combination of the name Havayah with "Adonai" – it is a great matter. And one should not elaborate on this.)