Tu B’Shevat Hagaddah

1 Tu B'Shevat Hagaddah Introduction Tu B'Shevat is the Jewish New Year for trees. Leviticus 19:23-25 Each section contains outlines the importance of Tu B'Shevat, stating: t Introduction When you enter the land and plant any kind of fruit tree, t Cup of Wine & Traditional Fruit regard its fruit as forbidden. For three years you are to consider it forbidden; it must not be eaten. In the fourth year all its fruit will t Judaic text be holy, an offering of praise to the LORD. But in the fifth year t Scientific fact you may eat its fruit. In this way your harvest will be increased. t Action items Tu B'Shevat became an important marker of time so Jews t Discussion questions could respect the laws of tithing.

2 It was a way to honor the trees, and by extension, the Earth that God gave us. Tu B'Shevat was Seders can include all of these sections, or you can select the ones a way to revere the partnership between humans and nature. By of interest to you. Take turns reading aloud. Each of the four medieval times, the mystical Kabbalists viewed this holiday as a sections begins with a question and answer, similar to the four way of spiritual improvement. In line with their general concern questions of the Passover Seder. These are meant for reflection for Tikkun Olam spiritually repairing the world Kabbalists during the ceremony.

3 Further spiritual content, discussion regarded eating a variety of fruits on Tu B'Shevat as a way of questions, poetry, and recipes for the festive meal can be found improving themselves. in the appendix. You will need Now, the environment is changing, and the idea of Tikkun Olam is changing with it. As it says in Deuteronomy 20:19, A. 1. Red and white wine or grape juice human is like a tree of the field. One human, like one tree, 2. For each level: (choose any or all of these). cannot make up a community. It takes all of us working together Assiyah walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, pomegranate, grapefruit, to repair the spiritual and physical damage humans have pineapple, coconut, pistachios, banana, kiwi impressed upon the Earth.

4 As we celebrate this holiday and eat Yetzirah dates, olives, avocados, peaches, plums, cherries, the traditional foods, we must also think about our responsibility apricots to the Earth and how to begin these repairs. Briyah figs, seedless grapes, blueberries, raisins, raspberries, strawberries How to use this book Atzilut - candle Seder means order. The Kabbalists of Tsfat, Israel, of the 3. For the meal: 16th century created a Tu B'Shevat Seder Plan your meal around the seven species from loosely modeled after the Passover Seder. Like Deuteronomy 8:7-10: a Passover Seder, they drank four cups For the Lord your G-d is bringing you into a of wine, ate foods that are symbolic of good land, a land with streams and the holiday, and used a haggadah to springs and fountains issuing from guide them.

5 This Tu B'Shevat plain and hill; a land of wheat and haggadah emulates that seder barley, of vines, figs, and model. pomegranates, a land of olive trees The Kabbalists taught that we and date syrup; a land where you may live on four spiritual levels eat food without stint, where you will simultaneously: Assiyah (doing), Yetzirah lack nothing; a land whose rocks are (formation), Briyah (creation), and Atzilut iron and from whose hills you can mine copper. (nobility). Every section of the haggadah represents some aspect of these four levels. At our When you have eaten your fill, seder, we will reflect on each spiritual level, while tasting the give thanks to THE LORD your G-d for the good land special foods and enjoying the different activities.

6 Which has been given you. Tu B'Shevat Hagaddah 1. Level 1: Assiyah Doing Why does this holiday specifically honor trees, rather than people or events? The Jewish people have had a traditional appreciation for trees since the time of the Beit Hamikdash, the Temple. There are laws regarding the fruits of the trees, which entail giving the fruit as a tithe to the Leviim and Kohanim (priests) in the fourth year and not eating of the fruits until the fifth year of their growth. There is also a prohibition against cutting down the fruit trees of a city upon besieging it (Deuteronomy, 20:19). There used to be a custom to plant a cedar tree for a baby boy and cypress tree for a girl.

7 The children would care for the trees as they grew up and on their wedding days would use the wood as poles for their chuppahs. This carried the tradition of loving trees from one generation to the next. Tu B'Shevat focuses on trees rather than people in order to celebrate and uphold these traditions. Introduction: Assiyah means action. Think about nature and the physical world about actions we can take to repair the world and keep it whole. The earth (eretz) is a symbol of Assiyah because it is permanent and solid. As a symbol of Assiyah, we eat fruits and nuts with a tough outer shell and a soft inside.

8 These foods symbolize the winter season because of their protective outside. Removing the hard shell exposes a fleshy vulnerable inside. Before you eat, recite this blessing: Baruch atah adonai, eloheinu melech ha-olam, Borei pri ha-etz. Blessed are You, our G-d, Sovereign of the universe, who creates the fruit of the tree. Our first cup of wine is white, reminding us of winter when nature is asleep. The white wine symbolizes purity and represents the beginning of creation. In winter the earth is sometimes barren, covered with snow. We layer ourselves in clothing, blanketing ourselves from the cold just as the earth covered in snow is insulated.

9 We turn up our heaters and start our cars earlier so that we can be warm when we leave our houses. Pour white wine, lift the cup and say: Baruch atta adonai, eloheinu melech ha-olam, Borei pri ha-gafen. Blessed are You, our G-d, Sovereign of the universe, who creates the fruit of the vine. Drink the first cup. Tu B'Shevat Hagaddah 2. Jewish Text: Every blade of grass sings poetry to G-d without ulterior motives or alien thoughts . without consideration of reward. how good and lovely it is, then, when one is able to hear this song of the grasses. it is therefore a precious thing to conduct oneself with piety when strolling among them.

10 Rebbe Nahman of Bratslav Podolia, Ukraine 1772-181i We see the actions that we can take, both physically and spiritually, to move toward a greater understanding and harmony between humanity and the earth. Scientific Fact: According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), driving a car is the single most polluting thing that most of us do. Motor vehicles emit millions of tons of pollutants into the air each year. In many urban areas, motor vehicles are the single largest contributor to ground-level ozone, a major component of smog. Ground-level ozone is the most serious air pollution problem in the northeast and mid-Atlantic states.