Rabbi Daniel Grama
I never really understood why we eat Carob, until recently. I give a weekly class to secular couples, and one week I found myself particularly stuck. Nothing was coming to mind. A friend suggested that I discuss the forthcoming Tu B’Shvat. While I know that the mishna lists it as one of the four Roshei HaShana, and the Ba’alei Machshava and Kabalah make a big deal out of it, to me it had no meaning beyond choosing between my favourite annual fruit and the unpopular Carob. So…..
Both Tanach and Chazal reveal a unique connection between the greatest of Hashem’s creations, Man, and His more basic creation of trees. Devorim (20,19) the Torah tells us that we may not destroy fruit trees, “For man is [like] the tree of the field.” Dovid HaMelech writes in Sefer Tehillim (92,13) that “the wicked grow like the grass and the righteous grow like a date tree.” Mesechet Gittin (57a), writes that when a child is born one should plant a tree.
Parsha Bereishis reveals a fascinating distinction between the creation of trees in contrast to the creation of the rest of the world. “B’Eser Ma’Amarim Nivrah Ha’Olamâ€, with ten utterances the world was created. Throughout the awesome event, a straightforward system was employed; Hashem said “and let there be… and then there was…..” Animals, stars, moon, night or day the process was the same, Hashem said it, Baruch Sh’omair, and that item came into existence, V’oseh. And once created, there was no need for follow-up. The creations would continue to exist or grow on their own. There was one exception. In perek 2 pasukim 8 & 9, the pasuk says, “And Hashem planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and He put there man that He created.” The next pasuk reads, “Hashem nurtured (Tzimach) from the ground all trees that were pleasant to see and good to eat. The Tree of Life was in the garden and the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil.”
Hashem went from Creator to gardener. As the Creator, He doesn’t need to actually work to bring into existence, yet, when it came to the tree the system was altered. Why was the tree treated differently? Why did Hashem need to plant and nurture His orchards? The only other exception was Man. There too pasuk 7 implies that there was an active participation and involvement in creating man. “And Hashem Elokim created Man from the dust of the earth and blew the breath of life into his nostrils. And Man had a living being.â€
An oft quoted saying from Chazal, “Everything is in the hands of Heaven except for the fear of Heaven.”(Brachos 33b). While this is the more popular teaching of Chazal, there is another version of this statement that reads “Everything is in the hands of Heaven except for [being affected by] cold and heat.”(Kesuvos 30a)
“Everything is in the hands of Hashem.†He will take care of all our personal and natural needs; food, marriage, children, bills, health, jobs etc., all we need to do is fear Him. This is a concept with which we are familiar. We have all learned that Yiras Shamayim is our essence. What is difficult to comprehend is the second version of Chazal. It implies, in contradistinction to the first, that our duties are not focused on our spiritual preservation rather on our physical welfare. How do we reconcile this contradiction?
Typically, we envision the environment of Adam Harishon in Gan Eden as being utopian. Adam had the seemingly perfect life, no Yetzer Hara, no distraction from Avodas Hashem; but R’ Yerucham Levovitz dispels this image. What true benefit in life is there to man if not to overcome the challenges set before him? The purpose of creation is to overcome that which challenges our commitment to adhere to the will of Hashem. After all said and done, without a Yetzer Hara life would lose its appeal. In addition, we can ask, if there was no Yetzer Hara how did Adam sin in the first place? What force was compelling Adam to deviate from what he was commanded? R’ Yerucham explains that although from the onset there clearly was a Yetzer Hara, it was presented as an external force. Only after the chait did the aftermath of man’s primary sin give birth to an internal Yetzer Hara. Because the Yetzer Hara was external, it allowed Adam an innate sense of clarity and understanding of Hashem that was eventually removed from the world. Adam’s objective was to use his clarity to abide by the Ratzon Hashem, to disregard anyone or thing that attempted to influences him otherwise. From this insightful teaching of R’ Yerucham we conclude that although Adam was living in a state of spiritual bliss, he still had a mission; a mission to serve his Creator with total commitment. His was to fend off any possible distractions; his was to earn the life of spiritual utopia.
Although today we possess the internal Yetzer Hara, the original system established by Hashem for Adam offers us the insight we need to deflect even the internal negative influence that we face. Imagine the wealthy father who knows that the day will come when he will be leaving all of his wealth to his only child. The father is as wise as he is wealthy and understands the pitfalls of a child growing-up in the lap of luxury; never to be lacking, never learning the value of money that he so readily enjoys and never learning the art of self-care. Well aware of his mortality, the father worries how his son will learn to care for the munificent estate that he will one day inherit and hopefully not squander. The father devices a simple plan. In order to receive his allowance, the son must clean his room and care for the estate grounds. Only after he does these daily chores, can he receive his stipend. Money is earned and not just received. Simply because his father can afford to give it to him doesn’t mean that he deserves to have it, one must take ownership of his life. The father’s lesson; treat your life responsibly and you have earned the right live it.
The nimshal: If the angels are at the beck and call to fill the every need of Adam, if Hashem does everything for him, how will Adam learn to fend for himself against the external influence of the Nachash? Hence, Hashem created a plan. He created a garden that required physical nurturing and care. It needed supervision and regulation. Care for the trees and they will bear you fruit, otherwise they will cease to be productive. Since Adam Harishon was required to care for and protect the garden of Hashem, he learnt that not everything “simply exists.†Now Adam would reason, surely He could have made the the trees equally independent, not requiring any care at all. If trees in a garden demand my tending, how much more vital it is for us, created in the image of Hashem, to nurture ourselves.
Of course there is no difference to Him between creating a tree or creating the celestial beings, rather the alteration of the creation system was for Adam to learn this lesson. Simply receiving is the antitheses of caring, existing is the opposite of living. And so too with Adam himself; Adam was “created†and not just “uttered†into the world. Man’s very essence is one of nurturing and not just existing.
By caring for all our needs except for one, the Ribono Shel Olam provides for us as well a daily reminder of this lesson of life. Bundle up, eat well, get lots of sleep and stay away from elements that can make you sick. Mankind is constantly taught the lesson of self-preservation. If our only concern would be to care solely for our spiritual needs, we, as physical beings wouldn’t know what that means. Care? Protect? Nurture? Those words would never enter our vocabulary. We would be like the spoiled son suddenly forced to fend for himself. We would be lost. Only after we learn it on a physical level can we then apply it to our spiritual life as well.
Humans are unique. We are the wisest of all creations, yet we are the most dependent. We need to be watched-over and protected. We need to be taught and guided before we can stand on our own. In other words, we are like trees. The sun is the sun and the ocean is the ocean, they simply exist. Animals are far better off without us. Only trees and gardens need to be tended and nurtured. Hashem planted and nurtured His garden and then put Adam in charge to teach him; just as you care for the physical garden you must care for the spiritual one as well.
If you have a child, start a garden our Sages teach. Just as you care for your garden you must care for your child. “Don’t cut down the fruit tree, because man is like the tree,†says the Torah. We too can bring fruits into the world. A tree begins as a young sapling, a single trunk that eventually branches out to offer shade and fruits. Those fruit then become the future for more trees. So too a righteous person. Weak and dependent at first, but upon maturation he is capable of extending himself to others so that they can benefit from the fruits that he has to offer. The wicked, on the other hand, are like the grass. They grow by themselves, don’t branch out to others or offer any fruits. Grass dies, but fruit bearing trees can reproduce and continue forever.
Shlomo Hamelech said, “Torah is the tree of life to all those who grasp it.” When Hashem planted His garden He first put in it the Tree of Life – the Torah. As long as that tree is nurtured and cared for our gardens will blossom with eternal fruits of Kedusha that benefit the entire world.
Enjoy the Carob.
