The HaRachaman We Add at the Seder

By Rav Daniel Glatstein

On Shabbos, yom tov, and Rosh Chodesh, it is customary to insert an additional HaRachaman to Bircas HaMazon . This format is followed on Pesach as well, and we add the following to our bentching at the Seder:

The compassionate One! May He cause us to inherit that day which is entirely good, that everlasting day, the day when the just will sit with crowns on their heads, enjoying the reflection of G-d’s majesty — and may our portion be with them.

However, aside from the first sentence, the nature of this HaRachaman is very different from most of the other HaRachamans that we add. The HaRachaman for Rosh Chodesh is a request for a good month. On Rosh Hashanah and Sukkos, the text of the given HaRachaman is relevant to the day. It is a tefillah that follows the theme of the given yom tov.

In contrast, this tefillah appears to have no connection to the Seder. Why do we mention the reward that tzaddikim will receive in Olam Haba? What connection is there between their reward and the night of Yetzias Mitzrayim? It would seem more appropriate to recite a tefillah asking for cheirus , freedom, and redemption from our current galus, or to mention Yetzias Mitzrayim , since that is the primary theme of the Seder.

The Yetzer Hara is Like Pharaoh

The Bas Ayin writes that one of the fundamental tenets of Judaism is that Olam Hazeh , this world, is likened to the antechamber of a palace, which refers

Our preparation consists of performing mitzvos and learning Torah. Then, upon entry into the palace that is Olam Haba, we will receive our just reward. We are taught that one moment of pleasure in Olam Haba surpasses all the earthly pleasures of this world.

Anyone who recognizes this truth will be careful to utilize his time in the performance of mitzvos, rather than chasing after material, transient sources of joy. He will work to gain eternity through the means of limud haTorah and the performance of mitzvos, for which he will be rewarded with the ultimate, eternal pleasure — in Olam Haba to the World to Come. This world is the entrance hall that leads to the Next World. It is where we prepare ourselves to enter the palace of Olam Haba.

The journey of life in this world is filled with struggle. The yetzer hara, which can be described as “Pharaoh,” seizes upon every opportunity to derail one from this objective. It repeatedly proclaims the mantra of Pharaoh: “Every son that will be born — into the River shall you throw him! And every daughter shall you keep alive” (Shemos 1:22).

Olam Haba, the World to Come, is referred to as the son, the ben, while Olam Hazeh, this world, is considered the daughter, the bas.

The yetzer hara is the Pharaoh who tries to convince us to discard the ben, in effect, to abandon our efforts to achieve life in Olam Haba. He tells us: Cast the ambition for the son, for the World to Come, into the sea. The yetzer hara declares: Don’t involve yourself in pursuing Torah and mitzvos. Instead, “every daughter shall you keep,” live it up, partake of all the pleasures that this world has to offer.

Remembering Yetzias Mitzrayim Daily

In light of the understanding of the Bas Ayin, we can appreciate why we are required to recollect the Exodus from Mitzrayim on a daily basis.

We need to remember that we are constantly fighting a battle between the attractive, desirable, and empty material pleasures of this world and the meaningful and eternal pleasures to be enjoyed in Olam Haba

Our goal must be to garner zechuyos, merits, that will ultimately enable us to gain entry into Olam Haba and abandon our quest for earthly pleasures. Our focus must be to overcome the threat of Pharaoh, who wanted us to cast away what is primary and grab the peripheral, as he proclaimed, “Every son that will be born — into the River shall you throw him! And every daughter shall you keep alive” We must arrange our priorities correctly, remembering the crucial distinction: Olam Haba is the ikkar, the primary, and Olam Hazeh is the tafel, the subordinate.

This fundamental principle must be remembered every single day.

Understanding the HaRachaman

Seder night is the time when we fulfill the mitzvah of Sippur Yetzias Mitzrayim, relating and reliving the events of our exodus from Egypt. Each of us must envision ourselves as if we are personally casting off the shackles of slavery — right now. At this very moment, we are all escaping from the evil clutches of Pharaoh; we are all going from servitude to freedom. Reliving Yetzias Mitzrayim and perceiving ourselves as newly redeemed highlights the fact that we reject Pharaoh’s adage, “Every son that will be born — into the River shall you throw him! And every daughter shall you keep alive” We abandon his philosophy about the importance of this world and instead embrace the belief that Olam Haba is most important.

Therefore, as we leave the pleasures of the material world behind, and we affirm our focus to be working toward enjoying the pleasures of Olam Haba , we proclaim, “ The compassionate One! May He cause us to inherit that day which is entirely good, that everlasting day, the day when the just will sit with crowns on their heads, enjoying the reflection of G-d’s majesty — and may our portion be with them.”

Our departure from Mitzrayim is more than merely departing a country. It is a fundamental and categorial rejection of their way of life. This exit is an act of spurning the pleasures of Olam Hazeh and focusing on Torah and mitzvos, which will enable us to partake in the ultimate pleasures of Olam Haba. Thus, we recite this unique HaRachaman to articulate the objective of Yetzias Mitrayim, to extricate ourselves from immersion in this world, in order to prepare ourselves to bask in the light of the Divine Presence in the Next World.

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