- Tu B’Shvat (ט”ו בשבט) is the Hebrew term for the date ‘the 15th of Shevat’ which the Mishna (Rosh Hashanah 1:1) lists as being the ראש השנה לאלנות – the New Year for trees. The reason why we need a new year for trees is because there are a number of laws such as those concerning the tithing of produce from trees (known as ‘ma’aser’), or the prohibition of eating fruit from a tree less than three years of age (known as ‘orlah’), which require a fixed date to determine the age of the tree. Consequently, Tu B’Shvat is the date is like the birthday for trees because, after that point, all trees are considered to be a year older.
- It should be noted that Tu B’Shvat is not an arbitrary date in the Jewish calendar. Instead, Tu B’Shvat is the date when most of the annual rain in Israel has fallen and a time when leaf buds begin to develop on trees. This means that Tu B’Shvat not only provides a date to celebrate the birthday or trees, but it also offers a way of connecting Jews to the seasonal cycle in Israel.
Because Tu B’Shvat is a festival specifically relating to the land of Israel, it is customary on Tu B’Shvat to eat fruit which is strongly associated with the land of Israel such as the seven species (חטה – Wheat, שעורה – Barley, גפן – Grapes, תאנה – Figs, רימון – Pomegranates, זית שמן – Olive oil & דבש (Date) Honey) mentioned in Devarim 8:8. In addition to this, many people endeavour to eat special or unusual fruit which they may not have eaten that season and thereby recite the additional blessing of Shehecheyanu. In all cases, care should be taken to ensure that there are no bugs on/in the fruit.- In the 16th century, the holy Rabbis of the city of Tzfat compiled a seder for Tu B’Shvat which is somewhat similar to the Passover seder, and since then, many families have the custom of holding a special meal made of fruit and wine on the night of Tu B’Shvat during which they talk about nature and sing songs which have nature themes such as the Israeli song ‘Hashkediya Porachat’ (The Almond Tree Is Blooming).
- In addition to eating fruit, it has also become customary on Tu B’Shvat to invest time exploring issues relating to environmental ecology such as planting trees. By doing so, we don’t just show our love of nature, but we also express our hopes for the future. Below are two lovely rabbinic teachings concerning care for the environment which can be shared on Tu B’Shvat:
- GOD & ADAM: When God created Adam, He led him around the Garden of Eden and said to him: “Behold my works! See how beautiful they are, how excellent! All that I have created, for your sake did I create it. See to it that you do not spoil and destroy my world; for if you do, there will be no one to repair it after you. (Midrash Kohelet Rabba 7:13)
- HONI: There once was a man named Honi. He was walking along one day and saw a man planting a carob tree. Honi asked the man, “How long will it take for that tree to grow?” The man replied, “Seventy years.” Honi looked shocked as he asked, “How do you know that you will live another seventy years?” “I don’t, but just as my grandparents and parents planted for me, I am planting this tree for the generations to come,” replied the man. “Well fine,” said Honi, as he left. After walking for about an hour, Honi realized he was exhausted. He lay down on the dusty ground right next to a large rock. When he awoke, he was so shocked he had to pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming. The dusty ground had become a large grassy field, and the rock was gone. In its place was a huge carob tree, towering over a glittering pool of blue water. Honi walked back the way he had come, but he did not realize this was the way he had come. All of a sudden, he recognized his surroundings as the very place he had come from 70 years before. In the place where he had watched a man planting a carob sapling stood a towering carob tree. Honi realized then that he had been asleep for 70 years. When Honi returned to town, nobody recognized him. He told everyone who he was and they didn’t believe him, but they were kind to the wise, old stranger. Honi lived a full life, in which he choose to travel the Land of Israel planting carob trees for future generations. (Babylonian Talmud, Ta’anit 23a)
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