Tu B’Shvat is a Jewish holiday best known as the new year of the trees or “Jewish Earth Day.” But the holiday holds much more depth and its history holds many more evolutions than the name suggests.
In ancient times, Tu B’Shvat, which literally means the 15th of the Jewish month Shvat, was simply a date marked on the calendar for farmers to plant their fruit trees. Since then, the holiday has evolved many times, each time reflecting an opportunity to practice the Jewish value of tikkun olam, or repairing the world.
In its second evolution, Tu B’Shvat became an opportunity for people to donate food to those in need. After counting the garden’s harvest (profits), the following year's garden was planted with a reserved portion to be donated to those in need. This reminds me of the yama, or yogic ethical guideline, called Aparigraha, or nongreed. There is a human tendency to hoard more than we need - more food, more clothes, more money - as a means for self-protection. But, when we expand ourselves beyond survival mode, and beyond our small selves, we may realize that this hoarding is unnecessary.
To repair the world through the practice of aparigraha, we can ask ourselves:
Where am I hoarding more than I need?
What can I let go of to create more space in my life?
How can I “share the harvest” with those who have less?
In the mystical kabbalist tradition of Judaism, Tu B’Shvat evolved to become a ritual in repairing our personal connection with our Divine Selves - to “try to get as close as possible to the Garden of Eden, to taste of its fruit, and to heal its damaged trees.” It was often celebrated with a Feast of Fruit to symbolize this connection with the divine fruit of the higher self. This practice reminds me of the niyama, or ethical guideline of svadhyaya, or self-study. Yoga Sutra 11.4 states "Study thy self, discover the divine.” This practice invites us to explore and understand our habitual and unconscious patterns of thoughts, feelings, and actions, so that we may untangle our small ego self from our higher self. It is this untangling that allows us to understand who we truly are, and (re)connect with our divine essence.
To repair the world through the practice of svadyhaya, we can ask ourselves:
What habits or patterns create more harm in my life or in the lives of others?
How can I untangle harmful patterns to make space for my true Self to shine through?
When do I feel most connected to my true Self or to something much bigger than me?
In it’s next evolution, Tu B’Shvat became a tree planting festival - an opportunity to repair the harm that we have caused to the environment. Most of us live in places very far away from where our ancestors lived, in cities where we have lost a deep personal connection with the land. Planting trees became a way to resolve this separation, to create a positive impact on the land with our very own two hands. This practice reminds of me of the yama called ahimsa, or non harming. It can be as literal as planting a tree, but it can also be much more subtle. It can be noticing when harmful thoughts move through our minds, and then working to understand them, so that they eventually fade away.
To repair the world through the practice of ahimsa, we can ask ourselves:
In what ways do I create harm for myself, for others, or for the environment? In thoughts? In words? In actions?
What habits can I change to create less harm in the world?
Most recently, Tu B’Shvat has been dubbed “the Jewish Earth Day,” adopting a global perspective of tikkun olam. It has become an invitation for us to repair our relationship with the Earth in this age of climate change. Although it is a great source of turmoil for many of us, this momentous crisis creates the opportunity to unite. It is time for each and every one of us to practice tikkun olam, to repair the world for all life, in all directions on our planet Earth. We’ve only got one.
Each step of the way, Tu B’Shvat has become a reflection of the will of the people to dismantle concepts or structures that were creating harm - to ourselves, each other, or the earth. Each evolution represents an act of revolutionary change - moving actions from harming to healing. In the Hebrew language, the word ‘man’ or “adam” has the same root as the word ‘earth’ or “adama.” In the same vein, yoga teaches us that we are earth. We are not separate from it.
So, we can ask ourselves:
In what ways can I lessen my impact on the planet Earth?
How am I uniquely positioned - with my personality, skillset, interests, and opportunities - to practice tikkun olam?
How can I let my life become a practice in repairing the world?
Source: https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/four-types-of-tu-bishvat/