And Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: From the day the Holy One, Blessed be He, created the world, no one thanked the Holy One, Blessed be He, until Leah came and thanked Him, as it is stated: “And she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and she said, ‘This time I will give thanks to God,’ and thus he was called Judah” (Genesis 29:35).

(1)“Praise GOD, who is good—whose steadfast love is eternal!”(2) Thus let GOD’s redeemed say, those redeemed from adversity...(4) Some lost their way in the wilderness, in the wasteland; they found no settled place. (5) Hungry and thirsty, their spirit failed. (6) In their adversity they cried to GOD, and they were rescued from their troubles. (7) They were shown a direct wayto reach a settled place. (8)Let them give praise for GOD’s steadfast love and wondrous deeds for humankind— (9) for satisfying the thirsty, and filling the hungry with all good things. (10) Some lived in deepest darkness, bound in cruel irons...(17 )There were fools who suffered for their sinful way, and for their iniquities. (18) All food was loath some to them; they reached the gates of death...(23) Others go down to the sea in ships...(32) Let them exalt in the congregation of the people, acclaim in the assembly of the elders.

Rav Yehuda said that Rav said: Four must offer thanks to God with a thanks-offering and a special blessing. They are: Seafarers, those who walk in the desert, and one who was ill and recovered, and one who was incarcerated in prison and went out. All of these appear in the verses of a psalm (Psalms 107). The Gemara elaborates: From where do we derive that seafarers are required to thank God? As it is written: “They who go down to the sea in ships...From where do we derive that those who walk in the desert are required to thank God? The Gemara answers: As it is written in the same psalm: “They wandered in the wilderness...That one who was ill and recovered must offer thanks is derived, as it is written: “Fools, because of their transgression and because of their iniquities, are afflicted...“He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions” (Psalms 107:20)...From where do we derive that one who was incarcerated in prison must offer thanks? As it is written: “Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,...and it says: “Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them from their distresses” (Psalms 107:13), and it says: “He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their shackles” (Psalms 107:14). And after God takes them out from that darkness and shadow of death, it says: “They are grateful to God for His goodness.”

(22) Let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,and tell those deeds in joyful song.

Rav Yehuda said: Blessed is…Who bestows acts of loving-kindness.

...How does one give thanks and what blessing should he recite?...Blessed are You, God, our Lord, King of the universe, who bestows benefits upon the culpable, who has bestowed all goodness upon me. Those who hear should respond: May He who granted you beneficence continue to bestow good upon you forever.

…Even though the text of the Talmud in our printed books is, “Blessed is He who grants good kindnesses,” the version of these rabbis is the correct one. And the meaning of the beracha, “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the world, who grants good to the indebted (chayyavim), [who has granted me every good], etc.,” is to say that even for those who are indebted, which is to say that they are wicked, for the Targum of wicked (Bereishit 18:23) is chayyava, despite this He has granted them good, and I am also as one of them, for even though I am not fitting, He has granted me all good.

This text is not a necessary condition, as long as one spoke of the topic of the beracha.

Abaye said: And he must offer thanks before ten people, as it is written in the same chapter: “Let them exalt Him also in the congregation of the people and praise Him in the assembly of the elders” (Psalms 107:32), and congregation indicates a group of at least ten. Mar Zutra said: Two of them must be Sages, as it is stated there: “And praise Him in the assembly of elders.” These elders are the Sages, and the use of the plural indicates a minimum of two. Rav Ashi strongly objects to this: Say that all of them must be Sages. The Gemara rejects this: Is it written: In the congregation of elders? In the congregation of the people is written; and the Sages are among them. Yet there is still room to object: Say that ten are from the rest of the people, and in addition there must be two Sages. No satisfactory answer was found, and the question remains difficult, although the halakha was not rejected.

These thanks must be rendered in the presence of ten people, of whom two are sages, as [implied by Psalms 107:32]: "They will exalt Him in the congregation of the people and they will praise Him in the seat of the elders."

(3) One must recite this blessing before ten people, two of whom should be Torah scholars, as it is written "let them exalt Him in the congregation of the people and praise Him in the assembly of elders." If Torah scholars are not available he should not refrain from blessing. The custom is to bless after the Torah reading since ten are present. If he blessed before fewer than ten, some say he has fulfilled his obligation and some say he has not — it is best to bless again before ten without mentioning God's name and kingship.

There are those who say that he has discharged his obligation – For the essence of the ten is only ideal for the mitzva [not required] and according to this, if he knows that ten will not become available to him, he should recite the beracha without ten, even from the outset. And see the laws of Re’ah who wrote that one should wait until thirty days, lest he come across ten so that he would be able to fulfill the mitzva as legislated, and beyond that one should not wait.

…For it is written “in a congregation of people” [bi-khal am], and women are not called a kahal.

Still it requires explanation, for we have found that “a kahal of converts is not called a kahal,” but not that a kahal of women is not called a kahal, and it is written in parashat Ki Tetzei, “A mamzer may not enter [in marriage] into the kahal of God,” and so is the law that a female mamzeret may not enter into the kahal of God, for the language of kahal of God includes both males and females…And in my humble opinion, the source to require men for the recitation of birkat ha-gomel is simply from Shofetim 20, which is the other place in Tanach where the language “kahal am” is found. And this is its language: “and they stood etc….in kehal am Ha-Elokim, four hundred thousand sword-bearing infantry men.” Behold that “kehal am” means the men, for only they bore swords. Therefore, one should not question needing specifically ten men, and so is implied from the lack of discussion of the early authorities and as in the language of “ten” [as it is understood] in all places. And there is a proof from Midrash Tehillim…

There are those who wrote that in any case it is correct for her [a woman] to recite the beracha before ten, at any rate before women and one man.

(8) Four individuals are required to render thanks: a person who had been sick and recuperated, a person who had been imprisoned and was released, people who alight [at their destination] after a journey at sea, and travelers who reach a settlement.

For it seems to me that these were specified only because, although danger did not befall them, they need to give thanks since becoming endangered is common in this circumstance. But anyone who experienced danger such as threat to life, and was saved from it in any way, needs to give thanks. And there are those who disagree with this being obligatory, but as an optional matter one can certainly recite the beracha.

These four are not exclusive — the same applies to anyone for whom a miracle occurred, such as a wall that fell on him, one who was saved from being trampled by an ox or gored, one upon whom a lion stood ready to tear him apart in the city, or if robbers or nighttime bandits came upon him and he was saved — all such cases require the HaGomel blessing.

Some say HaGomel is only recited for these four specific cases — and it is best in such other cases to bless without mentioning God's name and kingship.

Without God’s name or kingship—and the later authorities wrote that the custom is like the first position [to recite the full beracha], and that makes sense.

There are those who say that these matters were only said regarding travelers in the wilderness who went astray, and seafarers who faced a large wave at sea, and a person whose life was at risk from illness, that with these there is a miracle, and they are similar to one who got out of prison, but if this did not happen to them, one does not need to recite the beracha, and similarly travelers who were not in wildernesses do not need to recite the beracha. And even though the simple meaning of the verses prove thus, I do not concede this but rather whoever went into bed and came out [i.e., was bedridden and recovered] recites the beracha. It has already been stated that going into bed [from illness] is like someone who goes to the gallows. And so, too, all travelers are implied; they stated in the Talmud Yerushalmi in Berachot ch. 4: “Every road is presumed dangerous…and every illness is presumed dangerous.” And so is the case for every sea voyage…

In Ashkenaz and France they do not bless when traveling from city to city, since the obligation was only imposed for those who travel through deserts where wild animals and bandits are common. In Spain the custom is to bless since all roads are presumed to be dangerous — however for less than a parasang one does not bless, unless it is a place known to be especially dangerous, in which case even less than a parasang requires a blessing. For any illness one must bless, even if it is not a life-threatening illness or an internal wound — rather any time one took to bed and recovered, since it is like one who was brought up to the tribunal to be judged...Rema: Some say one only blesses for a life-threatening illness such as an internal wound. (Tur in the name of Ra'avad and R. Yosef, and this is the custom in Ashkenaz)

Women are obliged to bless the Birkat haGomel; and they bless with among Minian with Name and Kingdom. If it is difficult for her to bless with 10 persons because she is timid, she should bless without Name nor Kingdom.

It is possible that their [women’s] practice is because they thought that these berachot are optional [reshut].

Women have been accustomed not to recite the beracha, and there is no rationale to that at all, and only because the custom is to recite the beracha at the time of reading the Torah, so that they imagine that women are not obligated in this beracha, and therefore it is correct that they should recite it. And perhaps it is because it is written “bi-khal am” and women are not considered a kahal and reciting a beracha before men is not appropriate, and therefore they abstained from this.

A woman who gives birth must not fast at all within three days (of giving birth). From three until seven (days), if she says, “I have to eat,” feed her. From now on (after seven days), behold she is like every other person.

According to this a woman who has given birth does not recite birkat ha-gomel until after seven days, because then she is fully healed and she is like other people…

…For a few men have the practice that when their wives give birth, they stand and recite birkat ha-gomel…But I found according to Rashba (54a s.v., Ha-ro’eh)…it seems that his view is to say that Rav China Baghdadi and our sages only recited a beracha over the healing of Rav Yehuda because he was their rav…

For his wife, who is like himself, that it is permissible to recite the beracha, and based on this a few men have the practice that when their wives give birth and then return to health, they stand and recite birkat ha-gomel, and when she responds “amen” to his beracha, she discharges her obligation with this. And the text of the beracha that he should say is “who grants good to the indebted, who has granted you every good.” And if he recited the beracha without her being present, he should say “who has granted my wife every good.”…And see Bei’ur Halacha, that there are those who disagree over the fundamentals of this law from the Rema’s gloss and therefore it is correct to be careful le-chat’chila not to recite birkat ha-gomel even for his relatives and loved ones, but solely for his father and rabbi.

...In my humble opinion, women who wish to recite ha-gomel after an airplane flight or recovery from illness or from surgery etc., permission is theirs, and they can recite the beracha even before only women, and two [women] are [halachically] like one hundred. But it is fitting for a woman after childbirth to fulfill the custom to recite the beracha in synagogue.

If it is difficult for her to bless with 10 persons because she is timid, she should bless without Name nor Kingdom.