RABBI’S DESK…

PLEASURE

The upcoming holiday of Tu B’Shvat is not mentioned in Torah. It’s first reference is found in the Talmud, where it is referred to as the, “new year of the trees.” In that, it’s reason for being mentioned is to make it legal to take a tithe of 10% from the first fruits of those trees.

The Kabbalah makes a powerful case for legitimizing the significance of the Tu B’Shvat. The Kabbalah tells us that on Tu B’Shvat, we can atone for the sin of Adam and Eve in eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Imagine that; we can repair our world (tikkun) by eating fruit on Tu B’Shvat!

Adam and Eve were instructed by God that they could partake of any tree or fruit in Gan Eden, except for the aforementioned Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. And yet, that is the only tree they ate from. Their obligation was to follow God’s instructions, and partake of an eternity of pleasurable eating. The fruits were a conduit to having a pleasurable connection with God. God wanted them to have the fruit; they could have understood then that they were allowing God to be happy, because he could celebrate his service to them in the eating of the fruit.

Adam and Eve sought pleasure in Gan Eden, only it was the wrong kind of pleasure. They instead sought pleasure for its own sake, devoid of any meaning, other than the sensation of pleasure. They sought pleasure for themselves. They wanted to have pleasure.

Had they sought the pleasure of the fruit, not only because the taste and texture of it was physically pleasing; but because by taking the fruit, they were giving God a purpose in this world, that He was happy, they were recognizing spiritual pleasure as well. They were receiving pleasure. Their desires, and ours in this world as well, were all about them, and can often be all about us. Or, their desires, and our, could have been, and can be for us as well, all about others, and their happiness.

For Adam and Eve’s actions, the world becomes cursed. Adam and Eve will now have to see the world first as a source of physical pleasure for us, and then they will have to work very hard to see the world as a place of spiritual pleasure in the service of God. And so do we to this day.

Tu B’Shvat then becomes a way to reverse the process. By paying attention to the first appearance of tree sap, and the promise of all the coming fruit borne from trees, vines and plants; we hopefully learn that fruits are not just fruits; they are blessings. The mystery of the taste, fragrance, beauty and nutrition that comes from one little piece of fruit is a gift from God. And if we are conscious of that gift, then we can make the leap of imagination, and experience literally the presence of God on Earth.

So to acknowledge all this, we say a blessing, for the gift of, Boray Pree Ha-Gafen (fruit of the vine), or Ha-Adamah (of the ground), or Ha-Aytz (of the tree).

So the next time someone gives you a simple piece of fruit, say the appropriate B’rakhah. You will be acknowledging your own purpose in life by praising the fruit, and by acknowledging your role in tending to God’s garden. But you will also be acknowledging God’s purpose in this world. For after all; if we are not around to eat the fruit, God would have nothing to do for all eternity.

Hodesh Tov, a Good Month;
Hag S’mayakh, Happy Holiday.

Rabbi Craig