"When you gotta go, you gotta go." Having to go to the bathroom is an essential function of the human condition. Such a seemingly mundane function makes me think of a scene in the musical Fiddler on the Roof. In the musical, there is a scene someone asks the rabbi if there's a blessing for the tzar. The rabbi said, "Of course. May G-d bless and keep the tzar far away from us." There is a blessing for everything, and going to the bathroom is no exception. Judaism has that one covered in the form of the Asher Yatzar blessing. You can read the Hebrew here, but the English is below:
Blessed are You, Hashem, our G-d, King of the Universe, who formed man with wisdom and created within him many openings and many hollow spaces. It is obvious and known before Your Seat of Honor that if even one of them would be opened, or if even one of them would be sealed, it would be impossible to survive and to stand before You even for one hour. Blessed are You who heals all flesh and acts wondrously.
This blessing has its origins in the Talmud (Berachot, 60b) and it is one for the books. This is not a blessing that Jews are supposed to say once a day or in a blue moon. It is said after every time one goes to the bathroom, even if it is a single drop of urine (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim, 8:4).
On the one hand, we are to show respect for our bodies and be thankful for when our body is working. It is a vessel capable of fighting off viruses and bacteria, removing dead cells, and working around the clock to do its utmost to keep alive. I knew that before I was religious, I would only notice my body functioning well after I recovered from an illness. I think part of why this is said on a regular basis is to make sure we do not take our bodies for granted.
On the other hand, the blessing recognizes what happens if the body does not work (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim, 6): it would not be possible to survive. At the beginning of the blessing, it mentions G-d's wisdom in this human creation. Why would he create a being that is prone to malfunctioning or dying if something goes awry? Where is the wisdom in that?
Maybe it precisely because we are not angels, robots, or machines. Maybe because this balance between gratitude for our bodies when they do work and recognizing our body's limitations is what we need if we are to understand what it means to be mortal. Asher Yatzar is a chance to reflect on what works in our lives, the fragility of life, and the role that G-d plays in the universe. It is an opportunity to be mindful of our bodies, as well as show empathy for those whose bodies are not working so well. As the Velveteen Rabbi points out, Asher Yatzar "becomes an opportunity to think about the interior and exterior on personal, spiritual, and communal levels." It reminds us that our physical wellbeing is a spiritual act and that no act is too small for elevating it with a spiritual purpose, even going to the bathroom.
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