Tu Bee'shvat

Tu Bee'shvat is the Hebrew form of the "15th day of Shvat." This day in the year marks the new year for trees.

In Sefer Yetzirah, we are taught that G-d created the month of Shevat through the Divine channel of the letter tzadik. The word Tzadik means "the righteous one," of whom it is said: "The righteous one is the foundation of the world." In every generation there is one such righteous person who is "the one of the generation." The month of Shevat is the most conducive time for each one of us to manifest his own inner spark of tzadik, by strengthening his conscious connection to the tzadik of the generation.

The "letter" of the previous month, Tevet, is the ayin. When connected to the letter of this month (the tzadik), the two letters form the word etz ("tree"). This reinforces the idea taught in Chassidut that the months of Tevet and Shevat relate, respectively, to the tree of knowledge and the tree of life. The spiritual power of Tevet -- Bitul, or selflessness -- is intended to help us rectify the state of self-consciousness that resulted from Adam and Eve eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge, thereby precipitating the primordial fall of all mankind. The spiritual power of Shevat -- ta'anug, or pleasure -- is intended to reawaken our desire for the fruit of the tree of life, which has the power to transform the bitter darkness of mortality that befell man after eating from the tree of knowledge into the sweet light of eternal life initially intended for man at the time of creation.

The tree of life, as expressive of the potential for restoring perfection to all reality, appears in Jewish sources as symbolic of both the tzadik--foundation of the world" and the Torah, in particular its inner dimension--the esoteric tradition. Thus the month of Shevat, when we concentrate on grafting ourselves to the tree of life, is an especially important time for attaching oneself to the tzadik by way of the "sweet" Torah issuing from his mouth. For this reason we find that it was during the month of Shevat that the children of Israel heard Moses recapitulate the Torah, as recorded in the book of Deuteronomy (Mishnah Torah).

The righteous one in each generation is considered to be the Moses of that generation. He enlivens our souls by connecting us in deeper and deeper ways to "the Torah of life," continuously inspiring us to spread G- d's light in the world through good deeds and by sharing the Divine wisdom with which we have been blessed.

Tu B'Shevat--the fifteenth day of Shevat--is commemorated in Jewish tradition as a special holiday--the "New Year for the tree." It is this day which determines what tithe is to be taken from the newly-formed fruit of the tree, for it is presumed that by this date a majority of the annual rains have already fallen. On Tu B'Shevat, we celebrate the tree's awakening to life, as sap rises from its roots and delivers the earth's blessings and energy to the branches where new fruit is formed.

There are actually two opinions among the sages as to which day of Shevat is the "new year for the tree". The "House of Shamai" maintains that it is the first day of Shevat, the day of the new moon; the "House of Hillel" maintains that it is the fifteenth, the day of the full moon. These two dates correspond to the two states of the Tzadik: The first of the month represents the Tzadik as he exists yet in a "concealed" state, while the fifteenth of the month represents the Tzadik as he stands fully revealed. This distinction suits the general perception that the "House of Shamai" decides in accordance with a thing's "potential" whereas the "House of Hillel" decides in accordance with its state of "actuality."

By referring to Tu B'Shevat as "the New Year for the tree" (as opposed to "the New Year for trees," a more common phraseology), the Mishnah is alluding to the special connection between Tu B'Shevat and "the (quintessential) Tree" of Creation - "the Tree of Life."

The tree - as composed of roots, a trunk, branches, and fruit - is seen in Kabbalah as a metaphor for the process whereby Divine light and energy is channeled into Creation. Let us elaborate upon the various components of this metaphor:

The roots of the tree represent the power of the Tzadik's soul, which absorbs and draws forth the invisible Divine lifeforce underlying Creation, making it available to all mankind in order that each individual can ultimately produce his own unique fruit.

The paradox of the tzadik is that while he exists in a "revealed state" (known to his generation), ministering to Creation and serving as a model of Divine service, his essence (or soul root) remains utterly hidden, like the roots of a tree.

The Tzadik himself is conscious of both these modes of existence. He is thus able to consciously exist "in the world and outside it" at one and the same time.

It is said of the Ba'al Shem Tov (the founder of Chassidut) that he, more than any other Tzadik before him, perfected this paradoxical state of consciousness. He was able to consciously cling to G-d's infinite and transcendent light while at the same time conduct a seemingly mundane conversation with a fellow Jew. This enabled him to draw down into Creation an unlimited measure of Divine influx from a realm totally "beyond" Creation itself.

The trunk of the tree represents the wisdom of Torah as revealed to each generation by its unique Tzadik. Torah is the essential medium by which Divine lifeforce gets carried to the various branches of Creation. The concentric rings of the trunk represent the multiple levels of interpretation associated with the Torah, ranging from the inner core of mystical tradition to the outer layer of law and custom.

The branches of the tree represent those humble and loving servants of G-d imbued with the expansive spirit of Chassidut (ideally everyone), who always seek to reach out and embrace the rest of Creation. Although their conscious connection is to the wisdom of the Torah revealed to them by the tzadik, the force which enables them to "produce fruit" actually derives from his hidden soul root, embedded in the Divine substratum of reality.

The fruit of the tree represents the good deeds performed by these individuals in their desire to benefit Creation - acts of lovingkindness suffused with the innate Divine flavor of each one's soul.

On Tu B'Shevat we connect with this metaphor of the tree, as we experience a renewed surge of creative energy coursing up from the roots of our being, inspiring us to dedicate ourselves in the active service of G-d, to fulfill His purpose in Creation.

As in every metaphor containing four intrinsic components, this one as well clearly reflects the "meditative-creative flow" associated with the four letters of G-d's Name:

The roots of the tree - correspond to the yud in G-d's Name, denoting the point of essence at the heart of all emerging reality.

The trunk of the tree - corresponds to the first hei of G-d's Name, denoting the initial expansion of one's inner potential.

The branches of the tree - correspond to the vav in G-d's Name, denoting the power of extension as one passes from the "concealed realm" of pure potential to the "revealed realm" of actualization.

The fruit of the tree - corresponds to the final hei of G-d's Name, denoting the ultimate expansion of self, achieved through the manifestation of one's inner potential within the revealed context of Creation.

The preceding correlation appears especially apt in light of the classical distinction made between the first two letters and last two letters of God's Name. The yud and first hei, corresponding to the roots and trunk, represent G-d's concealed powers of intelligence - chochmah (wisdom) and binah (understanding) - which are organically joined together in an inseverable bond. The vav and final hei, corresponding to the branches and fruit, represent the range of G-d's revealed attributes - expressed through affect and action. Although these two realms are also meant to achieve union, they are not intrinsically linked in the same way as the complementary functions of chochmah and binah; hence, the tenuous attachment between branch and fruit.

One can also view the interrelationship between the parts of a tree and the letters of G-d's Name according to a different internal division, whereby the first of the four components stands apart from the remaining three. In the case of the tree, this division reflects the obvious difference between the roots, which are unseen, and the rest of the tree which is exposed to view. In the case of G-d's Name, this division can best be understood in terms of the correspondence between the four letters of His Name and the four primary "worlds" of creation described in Kabbalah:

The first world to emerge out of G-d's infinite light, the "world of emanation," corresponds to the insubstantial yud of G-d's Name. Virtually "touching" the transcendent source of all reality, this world - like the roots of a tree - exists hidden from view in an absolute state of self- nullification, merged as it were with the Divine energy (likened to the "power of growth" in the earth) that generates all ensuing realms of Creation.

The three worlds which follow in the evolution of reality - the "world of creation," the "world of formation," and the "world of action" - all differ from the "world of emanation" insofar as they exhibit various degrees of self-manifestation - just like the trunk, branches and fruit of the tree. In this sense, they correspond as well to the last three letters of G-d's Name which are symbolically referred to in Kabbalistic idiom as the "head," the "body," and the "feet" of created consciousness.

The initial hei of G-d's Name, corresponding to the "world of creation" and the trunk of the tree, is described as the "head" insofar as its proximity to the "world of emanation" impels it to consciously connect with the hidden root of reality. The wisdom of Torah, which as we saw above corresponds to the trunk of the tree, provides the medium for achieving this end.

The vav of G-d's Name, corresponding to the "world of formation" and the branches of the tree, is described as the "body" of created consciousness insofar as it represents the various "limbs," or channels, of Divine influence through which G-d's creative energy seeks to assert itself in Creation.

The final hei of G-d's Name, corresponding to the "world of action" and the fruit of the tree, is described as the "feet" insofar as it represents the medium through which "supernal man" realizes a tangible connection and involvement with the physical world.

Although the above division in created consciousness outwardly implies a split between the initial yud and the remaining letters of G-d's Name, inwardly it still implies the earlier split between the first two and last two letters: For in reconsidering the above model, it becomes apparent that the "head" of G-d's Name (the initial hei), although representing a degree of manifest consciousness, is still oriented toward the self- nullifying "higher unification" alluded to in the hidden yud; whereas the vav and final hei both seek self-actualization within the scheme of Creation, whereby they produce a "lower unification" but with a higher purpose.

And so we see why the key image of Tu B'Shevat - the Tree - serves as a central metaphor in Kabbalah for the evolution of all reality. Tu B'Shevat represents the linkage of heaven and earth, expressed through the consolidation of the four stage creative process corresponding to the four letters of G-d's Name - particularly by way of the union between the first two letters, yud and hei, and the last two letters, vav and hei.

This is beautifully alluded to in the connection between the day and month that coincide on this special day - for Tu B'Shevat is the 15th day of the 11th month in the Jewish year. The number 15 constitutes the sum of the first two letters in G-d's Name (yud=10, hei=5) while the number 11 constitutes the sum of its last two letters (vav=6, hei=5).

With this thought in mind, let us prepare for Tu B'Shevat by praying that G-d remove whatever barriers may threaten the free passage of His blessing from heaven to earth so that we may utilize that blessing in cultivating the "delicious" fruit of our own creative existence, fruit that is permeated with Divine vitality (the tree of life) and knowledge (the rectified tree of knowledge) - as intended by G-d in creating this "Garden" of His on earth.