TU BISHVAT The New Year of the Trees

A Seder Journey Through the of the Mystics “Every year, you shall set aside a tenth part of the yield, so that you may learn to revere your God forever.” Deuteronomy 14:22-23

Mishnah Rosh Hashanah 1:1 The four new years are: On the first of Nisan, the new year for the kings and for the festivals; On the first of Elul, the new year for the tithing of animals; Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Shimon say, on the first of Tishrei. On the first of Tishrei, the new year for years, for the Sabbatical years and for the Jubilee years and for the planting and for the vegetables. On the first of Shevat, the new year for the trees according to the words of the House of Shammai; The House of Hillel says, on the fifteenth thereof.

Talmud Bavli Rosh Hashanah 14a The mishna taught: On the first of Shevat is the new year for trees, according to the statement of Beit Shammai. The Gemara asks: What is the reason that the new year for trees was set on this date? Rabbi Elazar said that Rabbi Oshaya said: The reason is since by that time most of the year’s rains have already fallen, and most of the season, i.e., winter, is yet to come, as it continues until the spring equinox, which usually occurs in Nisan. The Gemara asks: What is he saying? The Gemara explains: This is what he said: Even though most of the winter season is yet to come, since most of the year’s rains have already fallen, it is considered the end of the previous year of rain, and anything that grows from then on is considered produce of the next year. It was the 16th century Kabbalists of Israel, in Safed, who developed the rituals for the Tu Bishvat seder. They modeled it after the Passover seder with a proscribed order of eating and four cups of wine. They also embraced the concept of Tikkun Olam—Repair of the World. They believed that the ritual consumption of the fruits and nuts, if done with the proper kavanah/intention, would cause the sparks of holy light hidden in the fruit to be liberated and returned to their devine source, contributing to the renewal of life for the coming year.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel wrote: "It is when nature is sensed as mystery and grandeur that it calls upon us to look beyond it." On Tu Bishvat we express our joy and thankfulness for the mystery and grandeur of nature, renew our commitment to be responsible custodians of God's world, and release some sparks of holy light. m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ d¤Gd© on©§G©l Ep¨ri¦Bd¦e§ ,Epn¨§Iw¦e§ ,Ep¨ig¡d¤W¤

Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu, melech ha-olam, shehecheyanu, v'ki'manu, v'higi-anu laz'man hazeh.

Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe, who gives us life, sustains us, and brings us to this season. STRUCTURE OF THE SEDER

The Tu B'Shvat seder, like the Passover seder, follows a specific order. The seder is divided into four parts, representing the four worlds defined by the mystics.

World Level Season Fruit Wine Assiyah Action Winter Hard Outer/Soft Inner White Yetzirah Formation Spring Soft Outer/Hard Inner White with Red B’reyah Creation Summer Soft Throughout Red with White Atzilut Emanation Autumn Essence Red

We will travel through each world, focusing on the different levels of creation. Each world represents a season, with each cup of wine changing color to correspond with the particular season. And we will consume different types of fruits and nuts, fifteen in all, with special significance to the worlds we will inhabit. Appropriate verses and teachings from the Tanakh, Talmud, and Midrash will accompany us on our journey. Another Tu B’Shevat tradition is to read from the Songs of Ascent, Psalms 120 - 134, which were recited as the Levites ascended the fifteen steps to the Temple. As we begin our seder, let us sing these verses from Psalm 133.

mi¦r¨PÎdn©E aFHÎdn© d¥Pd¦ cg©¨iÎm©B mig¦`© za¤W¤

Hinei ma tov uma nayim shevet achim gam yachad

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when we dwell together in unity Olam HaAssiyah – The World of Action – diyrd mler

"And establish for us, the work of our hands." Through the special power of this tikkun, performed on this very day, through the power of the blessings and contemplation of the mystery of the fruit's divine roots, an effect will be produced in their structure and character above. More over the person performing the tikkun can also be affected." Eitz Hadar, Fruit of the Tree the original 17th century Tu b’Shevat seder

Assiyah is the world of action. This is the world of the earth. It is the world in which we assemble and shape artifacts without changing the form of the raw material.

Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria, a 1st century CE Talmudic sage said: Anytime our wisdom exceeds our good deeds, to what are we likened? — to a tree whose branches are numerous but whose roots are few; then the wind comes and uproots it and turns it upside down.... But when our good deeds exceed our wisdom, to what are we likened? — to a tree whose branches are few but whose roots are numerous; even if all the winds of the world were to come and blow against it, they could not budge it from its place..." Our first cup of wine is white, symbolizing winter. As we drink it, we recall that nature has been dormant for many months, awaiting the warmth of spring and the renewal of life. ot¤«¨Bd© ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri hagafen Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe who creates the fruit of the vine

In winter we layer ourselves in clothing, blanketing ourselves from the cold just as the earth covered in snow is insulated. In the world of Assiyah we eat fruit and nuts with a tough skin to remind us of the protection the earth gives. We remove the protective shells to expose the fleshy, vulnerable inside. In the world of Assiyah we are reminded that in all aspects of our life—physical, emotional, and spiritual—we need to balance the need to protect ourselves and others from that which is harmful while not losing the ability to reveal ourselves in order to grow. u¥rd¨ ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri ha-eitz Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree .d¤BU§ ¦i oFpa¨N§ A© fx¤«`¤M§ ,gx¨t§¦i xn¨Y¨M© wiC¦v© .Egix«¦t§©i Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ zFxv§ g©A§ ,¨i§i zia¥A§ mi¦lEzW§ .Eid§¦i mi¦P©p£rx©e§ mi¦pW¥ C§ ,da¨iU¥ A§ oEaEp§i cFr .FA dz¨«¨le§©r `Ÿle§ ix¦Ev ,¨i§i xW¨¨i iM¦ ci¦Bd©l§

Tzadik katamar yifrach, k'erez bal'vanon yisgeh. Sh'tulim b'veit Adonai, b'chatzrot Eloheinu yafrichu. Od y'nuvun b'seivah, d'sheinim v'ra-ananim yihyu. L'hagid ki yashar Adonai, tzuri v'lo avlatah bo.

The righteous will blossom like the palm tree, grow tall like a cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the house of Adonai, they flourish in the courtyards of our God. Even in old age they will bear fruit, full of vigor and freshness, declaring that Adonai is upright, my rock in whom there is no injustice.

Psalm 92:13-16 Olam HaYetzirah – The World of Formation – dxivid mler

". . . speech has the power to arouse the and to cause them to shine more wondrously with a very great light that sheds abundance, favor, blessing, and benefit throughout the worlds.” Pri Eitz Hadar, Fruit of the Tree

Yetzirah is the world of formation and feeling. This is the world of water. It is the world in which we cause a transformation of raw materials, such as making bricks from clay. We acknowledge creation not only of the physical world but also of our ability to be creative, our capacity to feel, speak, and sing.

Come with me, my love, come away For the long wet months are past, and rains have fed the earth and left it bright with blossoms Birds wing in the low sky, dove and songbird singing in the open air above Earth nourishing tree and vine, green fig and tender grape, green and tender fragrance Come with me, my love, come away The Song of Songs translation by Marcia Falk Our second cup of wine is white tinged with red representing Spring. This mixture symbolizes the gradual deepening in color which parallels the reawakening of the earth as the sun’s rays begin to thaw the frozen earth and the first flowers appear. ot¤«¨Bd© ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri hagafen Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe who creates the fruit of the vine

In the full warmth of spring we go outdoors to be with nature. No longer needing the tough protection, we expose our soft flesh to the sun. In the world of Yetzirah we eat fruits with a soft, edible outside and a tough inner core. Here we acknowledge that while our soft skin is enough to protect us we still need to fortify our hearts. As we strengthen our hearts, our lives grow richer and deeper. We are more able to care for one another.

The tree is a sign of hope that life can be restored. When the great flood began to subside, Noah sent out a dove. “The dove came back to him toward evening, and there in its bill was a leaf it had picked from an olive tree.” Genesis 8:11 u¥rd¨ ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri ha-eitz Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree

dn¨W¨ §Pd© lŸM D¨iEll§ d© D¨i l¥Nd©Y§

Kol han'shamah t'haleil yah hal'luyah Let every thing that breathes...... praise Halleluyah

Psalm 150:6 Olam HaB’riyah – The World of Creation – dixad mler

"Please, God, who makes, forms, creates, and emanates supernal worlds and created their likeness on the earth below, according to their supernal form and character. ‘All of them You made with wisdom” . . . You caused trees and grass to grow from the earth, according to the structure and character of the forms above, so that human beings might gain wisdom and understanding through them . . .” Pri Eitz Hadar, Fruit of the Tree

B’riyah is the world of creation, the world of knowledge. This is the world of air. Our entrance to this world comes not from our own creativity, but from our taking leave of active creation to contemplate the creator. It is through this world that we celebrate Shabbat, a day during which we let the world be at peace without disrupting the natural cycle. We are free to contemplate the majestry and grandeur of the universe independent of ourselves.

It is said that one day, as Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, the reknown scholar and first Chief Rabbi of Eretz Yisrael, was walking in a field, lost deep in thought, a young student with him plucked a leaf off a branch. Rav Kook was visibly shaken by this act, and turning to his student, he said, gently, “Believe me when I tell you, I never simply pluck a leaf or a blade of grass or any living thing, unless I have to. . . .Every part of the vegetable world is singing a song and breathing forth a secret of the divine mystery of the Creation” For the first time the young student understood what it means to show compassion to all creatures. Our third cup of wine is red tinged with white, representing Summer. This mixture reminds us that as the land becomes warmer, the colors of the fruits deepen with their ripening. ot¤«¨Bd© ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri hagafen Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe who creates the fruit of the vine

The kabbalists implied that in the world of B’riyah the God-energy is so evident that there is no need to protect or conceal the divine spirit. Because of that, the fruits eaten at this stage are one that are entirely edible. As we eat the entire fruit, we absorb complete holiness into our bodies, without any physical covering or veil.

In our most precious relationships we are most like this fruit eaten whole. We are available to each other in a way which does not cut any part of us off from ourselves or from each other. At this I-Thou moment there is no protective covering nor inner shell—we are able to strive for harmony in our lives and in the world. Rabbi Hiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yochanan said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “He who guards the fig tree shall eat its fruit” (Proverbs 27:18)? Why were matters of Torah compared to a fig tree? Just as this fig tree, whenever a person searches it for figs to eat, he finds figs in it, as the figs on a tree do not ripen all at once, so that one can always find a recently ripened fig, so too, with matters of Torah. Whenever a person meditates upon them, he finds in them new meaning. Talmud Bavli, Eruin 54, a,b u¥rd¨ ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri ha-eitz Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree

mix¦a¨c§ dW¨ lW§ l©r ,xn¥Ÿe` l`¥i¦ln§ ©B oA¤ oŸern§ W¦ oA¨x© mŸelX¨ d© l©re§ zn¤¡`d¨ l©re§ oiC¦d© l©r ,cn¥Ÿer m¨lŸerd¨

Raban Shimon ben Gamliel omeir: Al sh'losha d'varim ha-olam omeid: Al haDin, v'al haEmet, v'al haShalom Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: The world stands on three things: on Justice, on Truth, and on Peace Pirkei Avot 1:18 Olam HaAtzilut – The World of Emanation – zeliv`d mler

". . . by means of the blessing, one draws down shefa (divine flow). The angel who is assigned to that fruit (which was eaten) is is filled by the shefa so that a second fruit can replace the first.” Pri Eitz Hadar, Fruit of the Tree

Atzilut is the world of emanation, the world of spirit. This is the world of fire, as we are a spark of the that transcendent spirit. We eat no fruit, for this purely spiritual world cannot be represented by any physical symbol.

As we have pass through each of these worlds, we change with each season. We begin by protecting our soft inner self and slowly peel off our hard outer layer. Within that soft layer another hardness is found, protected by the softness which surrounds it. We then come to a place where there is no distinction between the protected and the protective.

We become aware of love, mercy, wisdom and other realities perceived with our hearts, not our senses. Our hearts are full and we praise the source of renews for all creation.

The pure red wine represents the full bloom of nature in autumn. As nature expends its last bit of energy, a full cycle is completed. As we drink this fourth cup of wine, may we become strong, like healthy trees, with solid roots in the ground and with our arms open to receive the love that is all around us. Honi the Wise One was also known as Honi the Circle Maker. By drawing a circle and stepping inside of it, he would recite special prayers for rain, sometimes even argue with God during a drought, and the rains would come. He was, indeed, a miracle maker. As wise as he was, Honi sometimes saw something that puzzled him. Then he would ask questions so he could unravel the mystery.

One day, he was walking along the road when he saw a certain man planting a carob tree. Honi said to him: “This tree, after how many years will it bear fruit?” The man said to him: “It will not produce fruit until seventy years have passed.” Honi said to him: “Is it obvious to you that you will live seventy years, that you expect to benefit from this tree?” The man said to him: I found a world full of carob trees. Just as my ancestors planted for me, I too am planting for my descendants. Talmud Bavli Ta'anit 23a

ot¤«¨Bd© ix¦R§ `x¥FA m¨lFrd¨ Kl¤n«¤ ,Epid«¥Ÿl`¡ ¨i§i dY¨`© KExA¨ Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melach ha-olam borei peri hagafen Blessed are you Adonai our God, sovereign spirit of the universe who creates the fruit of the vine Prayer of Reb Nachman of Bratslav

Master of the Universe, grant me the ability to be alone; May it be my custom to go outdoors each day among the trees and grass — among all growing things and there may I be alone, and enter into prayer, to talk with the One to whom I belong.

May I express there everything in my heart, and may all the foliage of the field — all grasses, trees, and plants — awake at my coming, to send the powers of their life into the words of my prayer so that my prayer and speech are made whole through the life and spirit of all growing things, which are made as one by their transcendent source.

May I then pour out the words of my heart before your presence like water, Adonai, and lift up my hands to you in worship, on my behalf, and that of my children! xX¨ `ªn§ d¨i«k¤n§Ÿze§ ,DA¨ miw¦i¦fg£O©©l `id¦ mi¦Ig© u¥r mFlW¨ d¨iz«¤Faiz¦§p lk¨e§ ,m©rŸp« ik¥x§c© d¨i«k¤x¨C§ da¨EW« ¨pe§ Li«¤l`¥ ,¨i§i Ep«a¥iW¦ d£ mc¤w«¤M§ Epin«¥¨i WC¥g©

Eitz chayim hi lamachazikim bah, v'tom'cheha m'ushar D'racheha darchei noam, v'chol n'tivoteha shalom Hashiveinu Adonai eilecha v'nashuvah chadeish yameinu k'kedem

It is a to those who grasp it, all who hold it are blessed Its ways are pleasant; all it’s paths are peace Help us to return to you, Adonai Renew our days as of old

Proverbs 3:18,17 Lamentations 5:21