If a person obtains his livelihood through other individuals, he transfers his trust to them and comes to rely on them.  But when his intellect matures, and he sees their deficiencies and their need for the Creator, May He be exalted; he transfers his trust to Him and relies on Him in matters beyond his control and in which he has no alternative but to surrender to the Divine decree, e.g., rainfall on sown fields, sailing the seas crossing parched deserts, sudden floods, the outbreak of pestilence among living creatures and similar matters in which man is totally without devices. pg 467/469 If one is unsure if he needs to say the ha-gomel blessing, there is no minyan; a father for a minor; a woman who is embarrassed to recite the blessing in public has two options: 1. Recite the blessing without H'shem's name. Baruch atah ha-gomel  2. He can have the intent to fulfill this mitzvah when reciting the morning blessing of ha-gomel chasadim tovim l'amo Yisrale.  He shoul...

" You gave him his heart's desire    (Tehillim  21:3) תַּֽאֲוַ֣ת לִ֖בּוֹ נָתַ֣תָּה לּ֑וֹ You gave man free will so he can choose to do his heart's desires that You H'shem do not prevent man's lips from speaking any way he wishes.  All this You did for man's good "for good blessings shall come to him"  since man has free will and the evil inclination tempts him to sin, yet he overcomes his desires, H'shem sends him blessings and great reward through His divine Name, which is equal to the numbe3r 17 which is also the gematria of Tov.   This is true even in the bitter exile where H'shem Name is in a state of katnus constriction. In the future, when H'shem's Name will be in a state of exalted expansion, surely there will be boundless rewards.  And thus "Hodu L'Hashem ki tov -Praise His Name (Havaya) which equals tov" even in exile when His Name is constricted and equals 17 it is still tov , good "because His kindness e...

 The story is told of one of the pious whose neighbor, a skilled scribe, supported himself from what he earned in the practice of his art.  One day, the pious man asked his neighbor, " How are you faring/"  "Fine," he said, "so long as my arm is sound."  That very evening, he shattered his arm, and he could not write with it for the rest of his life. It was Divine retribution for having placed his trust in his arm. pg 467     Daily Halacha: Ha-gomel is said when someone has a sea voyage that lasts for several days or shorter trips where harsh weather conditions threaten the safety of the passengers.   The three opinions of whether one says ha-gomel after a plane ride are: a. A potentially dangerous situation developed during the flight.   2. If the plane crossed over an ocean or a desert, 3.  After every airplane trip, The custom today follows the opinion of reciting ha-gomel only when an ocean or desert is crossed. Ha-gomel is...

 At the beginning of his life, a child trusts his mother's milk. When his perception grows stronger, he transfers his trust to his mother because of the attention she lavishes on him.  When his intellect matures further, and he recognizes that his mother's conduct is dependent on his father, he transfers his trust to him because of the deep security he affords him. When his body matures, and he becomes adept at supporting himself through labor or trade and the like, he transfers his trust to his own strength and skills because of his ignorance of all that preceded of GD's benevolent governance.  pg 467 Daily Halacha 15 Tevet  Serious Illness:  Hagomel is said 1. Recovery from any illness or medical situation that is or could be life-threatening or any surgery that required general anesthesia.  Some poskim say if one was bedridden for three consecutive days, even if his life was not in danger.  2. Diagnosed with a mental illness that required restrainin...

 Another (harmful thing) is becoming enamored with the immediate causes, which one can see without realizing that the closer a cause is to the effect, the less it has the power to help or harm the one affected by it, while the more remote it is, the greater and more manifest is its power to help or harm him. Causes are weaker or stronger in helping one affected by them in proportion to their closeness to him or remoteness from him since the Creator May He be exalted is the final cause infinitely remote from those affected by Him, it is proper to trust in Him and rely on Him because of His great power to help or harm as we have explained.  The more one knows GD and has faith in His protective care and abounding providence, the more trust one has in Him. pg 465/467 Daily Halacha 14 Teves Birkas Hagomel is said when: 1. One lost his way in a desert and survived  2. Poskim debates if imprisonment, jail imprisonment, where one's life is not necessarily in danger, is like...

 Ignorance of the Creator's Torah, in which He charged us to rely on Him and to trust in Him, is as well detrimental to trust in H'shem. pg 465 A woman can say birkas ha-gomel from the women's section loud enough for ten men to hear it or at her home in front of ten men  She can also answer Baruch H'shem ha mevorach le'olam va'ed and Amen to her husband's Aliyah to the Torah with the intent of fulfilling her obligation to Thank H'shem for his grace to her; usually, this practice was done after she gave birth  Harav M. Feinstein ruled she may say ha- gomel  in the presence of a man or woman, preferably her husband if she is married.  Harav Auerbach suggested that while saying the morning blessing of ha-gomel chasadim tovim l'amo Yisrael a woman should have in mind to fulfill this mitzvah  The custom is that minors do not recite ha-gomel, nor does their father on their behalf.  pg 103

 What are the things that are detrimental to trust in GD?  Ignorance of the Creator and His good attributes.  For whoever fails to appreciate the Creator's compassion for His creatures, His protection of them, His providence, dominion, and control over them, will not be confident in HIm and will not rely on Him.      pg 465 Daily Halacha 12 of Tevet Do women recite the ha-gomel blessing?  Traditionally, Ashkenazi women do not recite ha-gomel even though it is in place of the Korban Todah.  Ha-Gomel is recited in the presence of at least ten men, and it was considered immodest for a woman to make a public recitation.  Some poskim question and criticize this tradition. Others maintain it should be upheld.  pgg100/101

 He who takes a pledge from his fellow does so only if he is able to supply the latter with the goods for which he takes the pledge as security.  But one who demands a pledge from the Creator may He be exalted in the form of advance favors is unable to render the service that is due for them.  He is not even certain that he will be able to pay this old debt, much less the new ones. For the righteous man can meet his obligation to GD for His goodness to him only by means of the help that GD extends to him. 

 One who takes a pledge from his fellow if he had been certain that his fellow would pay him back earlier than agreed upon and would, out of sheer kindness, reward him for waiting for his money with twice the sum that was owed him then he would never have taken a pledge from him.  And as for the Creator, may He be exalted Whose benevolence and great favor present and past are known to us Who is known to requite acts of charity and obedience with a reward that cannot be imagined, let alone described.  It is much more of a disgrace to demand a pledge from Him. 

 One who takes a pledge from his fellow will feel secure with it since he expects to collect from it and benefit either directly from it or from its exchange value.  But as to he who thinks that he will be secure from all worldly concerns if the Creator provides him in advance with all his needs, his argument is a false one, for he cannot be sure of holding on to his money as disaster may strike him and separate it from him.  Furthermore, his argument that he will attain peace of mind by achieving what he desires of material wealth is a lie and betrays ignorance of what he wishes to attain, for (on the contrary), it could be a major cause of worry and anxiety. pg 463

 He who takes a pledge from his fellow does so for one of three reasons a. lest the fellow becomes impoverished and unable to repay him, b. lest he is tightfisted with what he has, making it impossible to collect from him, or c. out of fear that his fellow may die or disappear. The pledge is the cure for these ills in human relationships, but if people were safe from these three risks in their relationships with others, it would undoubtedly be shameful for them to demand a pledge. Now these three concerns are totally inapplicable to the Creator. May He be exalted.  Hence it is much more shameful and absurd to demand a pledge from Him.