Si uno se equivoca en su oración, es una mala señal para él. Y si él es un líder de oración, es una mala señal para aquellos que lo delegaron, porque el diputado de un hombre es como el hombre mismo. Dijeron sobre R. Chanina b. Dossa que rezaría por los enfermos y diría: "Este vivirá y este morirá". Cuando se le preguntó cómo sabía esto, respondió: "Si mi oración es shagur en mi boca [ordenada y fluida, y no tropiezo en ella], sé que ha sido aceptada, y si no, sé shehu meturaf" [que el enfermo es meturaf ("arrancado"), como en (Génesis 44:28): "Ciertamente, él (Joseph) ha sido desgarrado ('tarof toraf')". Otra interpretación: puede entenderse en el sentido de (Berachoth 5b): "Torfim lo tefilato befanav" ("Su oración está" destrozada "en su rostro"); es decir, la oración que oró por el enfermo se le arranca y le quita y no se acepta.]
Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
אם שגורה תפלתי – ordered/arranged well in my mouth, that is acceptable and I would not stumble in it.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
Introduction
This mishnah continues to deal with making mistakes while reciting the Tefillah.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
שהוא מטורף – that the infirm individual would be rejected (bound to die), such as (Genesis 44: 28), “alas, he was torn by a beast. ” Another explanation: it is the language (Tractate Berakhot 5b) of: “his prayer is thrown in his face” (i.e. rejected); that is to say, the prayer that they prayed for him is rejected and troubled and not accepted.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
One who is praying and makes a mistake, it is a bad sign for him. And if he is the messenger of the congregation (the prayer it is a bad sign for those who have sent him, because one’s messenger is equivalent to one’s self. Making a mistake while reciting the Tefillah is considered to be a bad omen, both for the person himself and if he is acting as prayer leader (the “one who goes before the ark”) then for the congregation as well. Again, we must keep in mind that they did not have siddurim back then. Reciting the Tefillah required one to know the Tefillah by heart. It seems that they conceived of the Tefillah as flowing through the person reciting it as if it was coming from God, as if it was prophecy. If the prayer flows well, then it is a sign of God’s presence and favor. If the prayer does not flow well, it is a sign of disfavor.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
They said about Rabbi Hanina ben Dosa that he used to pray for the sick and say, “This one will die, this one will live.” They said to him: “How do you know?” He replied: “If my prayer comes out fluently, I know that he is accepted, but if not, then I know that he is rejected.” The story in this section shows the magical/prophetic powers that they attributed to prayer and how well one recites it. Rabbi Hanina believed that the flow of his prayer through him was an omen, for good or for bad, for the sick person over whom he was praying.
