Commento su Berakhot 9:3
בָּנָה בַיִת חָדָשׁ, וְקָנָה כֵלִים חֲדָשִׁים, אוֹמֵר בָּרוּךְ שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ. מְבָרֵךְ עַל הָרָעָה מֵעֵין הַטּוֹבָה, וְעַל הַטּוֹבָה מֵעֵין הָרָעָה. הַצּוֹעֵק לְשֶׁעָבַר, הֲרֵי זוֹ תְּפִלַּת שָׁוְא. כֵּיצַד. הָיְתָה אִשְׁתּוֹ מְעֻבֶּרֶת, וְאָמַר, יְהִי רָצוֹן שֶׁתֵּלֵד אִשְׁתִּי זָכָר, הֲרֵי זוֹ תְּפִלַּת שָׁוְא. הָיָה בָא בַדֶּרֶךְ וְשָׁמַע קוֹל צְוָחָה בָּעִיר, וְאָמַר יְהִי רָצוֹן שֶׁלֹּא יִהְיוּ אֵלּוּ בְּנֵי בֵיתִי, הֲרֵי זוֹ תְּפִלַּת שָׁוְא:
Se ha costruito una nuova casa o acquistato nuove navi, dice "shehecheyanu" ("che ci ha tenuti in vita, ecc.") [Sia che abbia o meno altre navi dello stesso tipo, dice "shehecheyanu".] Si benedice su un male in cui il bene eredita [La gemara spiega: come quando i propri campi sono allagati e perde il raccolto di quest'anno. Sebbene il suolo sia saturo e il campo reso più fertile per gli anni a venire, ora, tuttavia, è malvagio e benedice "dayan ha'emeth"] e su un bene in cui un male eredita [come quando si trova un oggetto perduto. Anche se per lui è un male, perché se il re lo ascolta, sarà picchiato e torturato e l'oggetto preso da lui, ora, tuttavia, è buono e benedice "hatov vehametiv"]. Gridare su ciò che è passato costituisce una vana preghiera. [Se uno prega per ciò che è già avvenuto, questa è una preghiera vana, per "ciò che è stato stato"], come nella preghiera di uno: "Possa essere tua volontà che mia moglie porti un figlio", quando è già incinta; o, come nel ritorno da un viaggio e nell'udire i lamenti all'interno della città, pregando: "Possa essere la tua volontà che non provenga da casa mia".
Bartenura on Mishnah Berakhot
English Explanation of Mishnah Berakhot
One who blesses over the evil as he blesses over the good or over the good as he blesses over evil; one who cries over the past, behold this is a vain prayer.
How so? If his wife was pregnant and he says, “May it be his will that my wife bear a male child,” this is a vain prayer.
If he is coming home from a journey and he hears a cry of distress in the town and says, “May it be his will that this is not be those of my house,” this is a vain prayer.
Section one: This is the familiar blessing “shehecheyanu” which we recite upon eating new foods, receiving new things, at the beginning of holidays and at certain other events.
Section two: This is a difficult clause to explain. Albeck explains that this refers to one who tries to bless over something bad the blessing that he should say for the good, “Blessed be He that is good and grants good.” What he is trying to do is be hopeful that from something bad will come something good. Alternatively, he blesses the blessing for the bad, “Blessed be the true judge” because he fears that something bad will come from the good. These are both vain prayers because after the event has already happened it cannot be changed. Thus these are both specific cases of one who is crying over the past. Prayers are legitimate only if they are recited in anticipation of an event that has not yet occurred. The Rambam explains that this mishnah mandates reciting the blessing over the good for something that is now good even if it might eventually be bad. Similarly, one must recite the blessing over bad for something that is now bad even though it might eventually be good. As in Albeck’s explanation, the focus is on the present and not something that might change in the future.
Sections three and four: These are both examples of “crying over the past.” Once the child’s sex has been determined it cannot change. There is no use in crying out to God in hope that the house that is under distress is not one’s house because whatever house it is has already been determined. Once something has already happened one must be reconciled with one’s fate.