Tonight, on the fifteenth of Shvat, or Tu B’shvat ( ט״ו בשבט ) we celebrate a holiday that focuses on trees. This day is often called the New Year for the Trees and was used in ancient times for calculating the age of the trees for the purpose of tithing. Tu B'Shevat is not mentioned in the Torah and it is only referenced once in the Mishnah but it has evolved as an amazing spiritually uplifting tradtion.

In the sixteenth centuryKabbalists in the community of mystics in Safed began to observe what is refered to as a Tu B'Shevat seder. The Kabbalists taught that it is on the New Year of trees that The Tree of Life/ Sefirot renews the flow of the life and divine energy to the world. They felt that it was the responsibility of those who grasped the mystical knowledge to help this process, which they could do by eating different kinds of fruit and saying blessings and relevant verses over the fruit in order to free the divine sparks hidden within them. May this day be elevating for us all!