If someone davens maariv motzei Shabbos forgetting “atah chonantanu” then going home and eating before making havdallah the halacha is they have to daven again (See M”B OC Siman 294). What if when this person davens a 2nd time they *again* forget to say “atah chonantanu” then instead of making havdallah again sat down to eat first, would they need to daven another time?
(I realize this sounds far out, but on the tzad that it did happen, what’s the halacha and why.)
Thank you.
Answer:
Although I haven’t seen an explicit source for this (and am unlike to walk into one), I don’t see why the person will not have to daven again.
If a person eats before havdalah, this is considered a flaw, and he no longer has the right to rely on havdalah on the cup alone, but must daven again with atah chonantanu.
In fact, if the person mentioned in the question davened and forgot atah chonantanu, then ate, and then davened again without mentoining atah chonantanu, he would apparently be obligated to daven again even if he did not eat again before his havdalah on wine.
Because he has “flawed” in eating before havdalah, he has to daven again and again until he remembers to say atah chonantanu. Only then can he proceed to make havdallah on wine.
