Brachos 5:1-2

Brachos 5:1

One should only recite Shemoneh Esrei with a sense of submission to G-d. In earlier times, the pious would spend an hour preparing themselves to pray with the proper intentions. While saying Shemoneh Esrei, one may not interrupt for any reason – not to respond to a (Jewish) king’s greeting, not even if a (non-venomous) snake is curling around his feet. (If one’s life is in jeopardy because a non-Jewish ruler will feel slighted or a venomous snake will bite him, then he should indeed interrupt Shemoneh Esrei.)

Brachos 5:2

The power of rain (referring to the phrase “mashiv haruach u’morid hageshem,” that G-d causes the wind to blow and the rain to fall) is recited in the bracha of techiyas hameisim, that G-d revives the dead. The request for rain (“v’sain tal u’matar livracha”) is recited in birkas hashanim, the blessing for the year. Havdalah after Shabbos and yom tov is recited in the bracha of chonein hadaas, that G-d graces man with knowledge. Rabbi Akiva says that havdalah should be recited as its own bracha, and Rabbi Eliezer says it should be recited in Modim. (We follow the first opinion.)