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| Blossom in Bat Ayin |
A The Flowering Fruit Tree – A Sign of Redemption
This Shabbat is Shabbat Mevarchim
Chodesh, as we celebrate Rosh Chodesh Nissan Monday night, March 31
and Tuesday, April 1. The name Nissan is related to the Hebrew word Nitzan
(bud), since this is the month in which everything buds. The month of Nissan
carries the promise that redemption is on its way. Rosh Chodesh Nissan
marks the beginning of the season for Birkat ha-Ilanot – the blessing we
recite upon seeing fruit trees in bloom. We have the opportunity to recite this
blessing, which praises Hashem’s ongoing renewal of creation, only once a year,
during the month of Nissan.[1] Women too have the special Mitzvah to say a
bracha (blessing) on a flowering fruit tree, since it is not considered a
“time-related mitzvah” from which women are exempt.[2]
We need to recite the blessing when seeing the actual flowering of the tree.
The growth of leaves alone is not sufficient to recite the blessing.[3] We praise G‑d for the flowers that herald the
promise of the fruits sanctified as bikurim (the first fruit sacrifice)
on Shavuot. Just as the redemption from Egypt leads to the giving of the Torah,
the flowering tree testifies that the fruits are yet to come.
The Words of the Blessing for the Flowering Fruit Tree
The different blessings
that we say when we witness various phenomena of creation help us to draw
closer to Hashem by deepening our appreciation for the wonders of His creation.
Upon seeing the blossoms of fruit trees in the month of Nissan – the first
month of spring – we recite the following annual blessing of thanksgiving to
Hashem:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה
הָשֵׁם אֱלקֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם שֶׁלֹּא חִסַּר בְּעוֹלָמוֹ כּלוּם (דָבָר),
וּבָרָא בוֹ בְּרִיוֹת טוֹבוֹת וְאִילָנוֹת טוֹבִים לְהַנּוֹת בָּהֶם בְּנֵי
אָדָם: (סדור תפלה - נוסח ספרד - סדר תפילת הדרך)
Baruch ata Hashem
Elokeinu melech haolam shelo chisar baolamo klum, uvara vo beriyot tovot
v’ilanot tovim lehanot bahem benei adam.
Blessed are You, Hashem,
our God, Sovereign of the universe, Whose world lacks nothing, and Who created
within it good creatures and good trees to bring pleasure to human beings.
According to kabbalah, the
blessing on the flowering fruit trees has special significance. It is important to be very careful to have a
strong kavanah (intention) when reciting the blessing as it is a
tikun (rectification) for the souls that are reincarnated in the trees and
herbs at this time. We need to bear in mind to request mercy for them. The
following verse applies to each of us when we are careful to recite this
blessing, “See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field which Hashem
has blessed: Therefore may Hashem give you of the dew of heaven and the fatness
of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine.”[4] Before
reciting the blessing it is good to recite Vayehi Noam – Tehillim
90, followed by Tehillim 148. It is good to say this blessing in a
group, and afterwards collect tzedakka (donations to a worthy cause)
from everyone. A minimum of three perutot (the smallest amount
of currency – such as a penny or a 5 agurot coin) is recommended corresponding to
the three levels of the soul, (nefesh, ruach, neshama). If ten
men are present they may recite kaddish at the end of the blossoming
tree-blessing ceremony, as this is a great tikun for the souls who are
reincarnated in the rocks, plants, trees, birds and other living beings.[5]
The preferred time to
recite the blessing on the flowering fruit tree is immediately when we first
see a fruit tree blossom during the month of Nissan. It is recommended to make
a special effort to look for flowering fruit trees to recite the blessing on Rosh
Chodesh Nissan, unless it falls on Shabbat or it is raining. It is the minhag
(custom) especially among Sephardim to visit the country on Rosh Chodesh
Nissan in order to recite this blessing. Although the fruit trees in our garden
began to flower more than a month ago, Rav Daniel of Bat Ayin holds that we
still need to wait until the month of Nissan – the month of our redemption – to
recite this special blessing. During the month of Adar we watch the blooming
trees and look forward to Nissan when we finally can praise Hashem for these
flowers that reflect our own yearning for redemption, which flowers during this
same month of Nissan.
If you don’t live in an
area with fruit trees, and only saw the flowers on the tree after the month of
Nissan had passed, you may still recite the blessing the first time you see the
flowering tree, as long as the fruit of the tree has not yet ripened. Once the
fruit has ripened, it is too late to recite this blessing.[6]
If you saw the trees in bloom during Nissan, but forgot to recite the blessing,
you may still say the blessing later, but only until the time that the fruit of
the tree has begun to grow.[7]
It is important, however, to be careful with reciting the blessing at our first
opportunity, since several poskim (halachic authorities) maintain that
the blessing may not be recited if we failed to say it at our first
opportunity. For this reason it is important to know the text of the blessing
by heart so that we can say the blessing as soon as we see the blossoms. There
is a difference of opinion whether we can say the blessing on Shabbat and
holidays. According to Kabbalah, this blessing may not be said on Shabbat and
Yom Tov. In addition, the blessing may lead to shaking or breaking a branch off
the tree.[8]
We
do not recite the blessing on trees that are orlah. (A tree is considered orlah for the first
three years after it is planted). The poskim debate whether one is
allowed to say the blessing on a tree which has been grafted from two
species, since the halacha does not permit such grafting. It is therefore
preferable not to make the blessing on such a tree.[9]
According to some Rabbis, we are required to
say the blessing near more than one flowering fruit tree.[10] It
is a hidur mitzvah (beatification of the mitzvah) to recite the blessing
on as many trees as possible. The more trees the better.[11]
Indeed, it is preferred to recite the blessing on trees in an orchard that is
planted outside the city limits.[12]
In the city you will sometimes find a single fruit tree, but never an orchard.
In this way the mitzvah of reciting the blessing on the flowering fruit tree
insures that people from the city come out to the country during the month of
Nissan, in order to experience the processes of renewal of nature that is
reflected in our own souls during the month of our redemption. Being in touch
with nature especially during the month of our redemption thus helps prepare us
for our ultimate renewal and freedom during Pesach.
Rabbi Levi Yitzchak
Horowitz - known as the ‘Bostoner Rebbe’ tells a story from his childhood
regarding the annual blessing for blossoming fruit trees. His father was a
Chassidic Rebbe living in Boston; however, there were no fruit trees in his
neighborhood. Each year, his father sent out messengers to search for the ideal
place where he, his family, and his Chassidim could make the annual blessing
upon seeing the blossoms of the fruit trees.
One year, we went to
Allston, which was then quite new and green. We drove up in front of a house
that had a large plot of land, with what seemed to be fruit trees inside a tall
surrounding fence. One of the drivers, Mr. Israel Sachs, of blessed memory,
went in to ask permission for us to enter and say our blessing over the trees.
The man of the house wasn't in, but his wife, a good Italian Catholic, was
quite gracious, and she said, “Of course, by all means!” Father got out of the
car, and followed by a procession of his Chassidim, entered the gate. We said
our bracha (blessing), and prepared to leave, happy to have done our mitzvah.
When Mr. Sachs went over to thank our hostess, she asked him: “Could you please
ask the Grand Rabbi for a special favor?” “What is it?” “Well, do you see that
tree in the corner of the yard over there? It used to have very good apples,
but for the last few years, it hasn't produced any at all. Since the Rabbi gave
a blessing to all the other trees, perhaps he could give that tree a blessing
too.” Mr. Sachs translated her request to Father in Yiddish, and Father agreed.
He turned around and said in Hebrew, “May this tree bring forth good fruits.”
That fall, Father's new gabbai (sexton), came upstairs to tell him that
a woman had come by and left him a large basket full of bright red apples. With
the apples, she left this message: “Please tell the Grand Rabbi that all these
apples are from that barren apple tree he blessed!” (And the Angels Laughed,
pages 29-32, Mesorah Publications).
[1] Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 226:1.
[2] Har
Tzvi Orech Chaim 118.
[3] Mishnah
Berurah 226:2.
[4] Bereishit
27:27.
[5] Kaf HaChaim, Orach Chaim 226:6-7.
[6] Mishnah
Berurah 226:4.
[7]
Ibid.5.
[8] Kaf HaChaim 226:4.
[9]
Like for example a nectarine tree which was grafted from a peach and plum tree.
[10] Chida
Moreh b'Etzba 198, Chazon Ovadiyah,
p. 9-10.
[11] Teshuvot
Halachot Ketanot 2:28.
[12] Teshuvot Lev Chaim 45 quoted in Kaf HaChaim 226:3 and in Chazon Ovadiyah,
p. 8.
This gave me such new appreciation for the blessing on flowering trees! And Ariel's insights into the value of our words are very valuable too!
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