The Mishnah is the first major work of rabbinic literature, consisting of teachings transmitted over hundreds of years and compiled around 200 CE. Tractate Rosh Hashanah is part of the Mishnah and discusses the laws concerning the holiday of Rosh Hashanah and its religious significance.
(א) ארבעה ראשי שנים הם. באחד בניסן ראש השנה למלכים ולרגלים. באחד באלול ראש השנה למעשר בהמה. רבי אלעזר ורבי שמעון אומרים, באחד בתשרי. באחד בתשרי ראש השנה לשנים ולשמטין וליובלות, לנטיעה ולירקות. באחד בשבט , ראש השנה לאילן, כדברי בית שמאי.בית הלל אומרים, בחמשה עשר בו.
(1) The four new years are: On the first of Nisan, the new year for the kings and for the festivals; On the first of Elul, the new year for the tithing of animals; Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Shimon say, in the first of Tishrei. On the first of Tishrei, the new year for years, for the Sabbatical years and for the Jubilee years and for the planting and for the vegetables. On the first of Shevat, the new year for the trees, these are the words of the House of Shammai; The House of Hillel says, on the fifteenth of the month.
The Mishneh Torah (“Repetition of the Torah”) is a monumental legal code written by Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon (Rambam, also know as Maimonides) in Egypt in the late 12th century.
What is implied? One should not bring produce that budded before the 15th of Shvat as first fruits for produce that budded after the 15th of Shvat. [This applies] both to produce that is planted and produce that grows on its own, as [implied by Numbers 18: 13]: 'The first fruits of everything in their land.'
Mishnat Eretz Yisrael is a 21st-century commentary on the Mishnah that combines traditional and academic methods of interpretation, with an emphasis on the Land of Israel as the backdrop of the Mishnah’s development, and enriched by the authors’ knowledge of history, geography, archaeology, and more.
(מח) באחד בשבט ראש השנה לאילן כדברי בית שמיי בית הלל בחמשה עשר בו – יום חמישה עשר בשבט לא היה מוכר כיום מועד משמעותי, והופעתו ברשימת ראשי השנים שבמשנה אינה מעידה על מעמדו החגיגי או המיוחד בלוח השנה היהודי. הוא מופיע במשנה רק כיום טכני לקביעת מעשרות. פרי שחנט לפני חמישה עשר בשבט נחשב לשנה הקודמת, ומפרישים ממנו את המעשרות הנהוגים באותה שנה (מעשר עני או שני), ובשנת שמיטה פרות שחנטו לפני ט"ו בשבט נחשבים לפרות חולין ואילו על פרות שחנטו אחרי ט"ו בשבט חלים דיני שביעית.
On the first of Shevat is the New Year for the tree in accordance with the statement of Beit Shammai; [according to] Beit Hillel, on the fifteenth of it: The fifteenth day of Shevat was not known as a day of any festive significance; and its appearance on the list of new years in the mishnah does not indicate its festive or special status on the Jewish calendar. It only appears in the mishnah as a technical date for the demarcation of tithes: A fruit that has formed before the fifteenth of Shevat is considered [to belong] to the previous year, and we separate the tithes that pertain to that year (the poor tithe or the second tithe). And in the sabbatical year, fruit that have formed before the fifteenth of Shevat are considered mundane fruit, whereas the laws of the sabbatical year apply to the fruit that have formed after the fifteenth of Shevat.
Leviticus (“Vayikra”) is the third book of the Torah, Judaism’s foundational text. It primarily delineates the details of sacrificial worship, impurity and purification, Yom Kippur, the festivals, forbidden relationships, dietary laws, and various ethical and agricultural laws. Though its topics are diverse, the book is unified by the theme of holiness in people, time, and space.
(כג) וְכִי־תָבֹ֣אוּ אֶל־הָאָ֗רֶץ וּנְטַעְתֶּם֙ כָּל־עֵ֣ץ מַאֲכָ֔ל וַעֲרַלְתֶּ֥ם עָרְלָת֖וֹ אֶת־פִּרְי֑וֹ שָׁלֹ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֗ים יִהְיֶ֥ה לָכֶ֛ם עֲרֵלִ֖ים לֹ֥א יֵאָכֵֽל׃ (כד) וּבַשָּׁנָה֙ הָרְבִיעִ֔ת יִהְיֶ֖ה כָּל־פִּרְי֑וֹ קֹ֥דֶשׁ הִלּוּלִ֖ים לַה׳׃ (כה) וּבַשָּׁנָ֣ה הַחֲמִישִׁ֗ת תֹּֽאכְלוּ֙ אֶת־פִּרְי֔וֹ לְהוֹסִ֥יף לָכֶ֖ם תְּבוּאָת֑וֹ אֲנִ֖י ה׳ אֱ-לֹהֵיכֶֽם׃
(23) And when you come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then you shall count the fruit thereof as forbidden; three years shall it be as forbidden unto you; it shall not be eaten. (24) And in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy, for giving praise unto the LORD. (25) But in the fifth year you may eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you more richly the increase thereof: I am the LORD your God.
The Talmud is the textual record of generations of rabbinic debate about law, philosophy, and biblical interpretation, compiled between the 3rd and 8th centuries and structured as commentary on the Mishnah. Tractate Rosh Hashanah is part of the Talmud and discusses the laws concerning the holiday of Rosh Hashanah.
On the first of Shevat is the new year for trees, according to the statement of Beit Shammai. The Gemara asks: What is the reason that the new year for trees was set on this date? Rabbi Elazar said that Rabbi Oshaya said: The reason is since by that time most of the year’s rains have already fallen, and most of the season, i.e., winter, is yet to come, as it continues until the spring equinox, which usually occurs in Nisan.
Pri Etz Hadar ("Fruit of the Majestic Tree") is the oldest known Seder for Tu b'Shevat. It was written by an unknown author from the school of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria (Arizal) and first published as a pamphlet in Venice in 1728.
יום ט״ו בשבט אף כי הוא מימי השובבים אין בו תענית כי הוא ראש השנה לפירו׳ האילן.
Explanation for the Tikkun of Fruit
Although the 15th of Shevat occurs during the “days of the Shovavim,” it is not a fast day, since it is the New Year’s Day for the fruit of the tree.
וטעם הדבר שכשם שהנהנה מן העה״ז בלא ברכה נקרא גזלן.
The reason is that whoever enjoys produce in this world without pronouncing a blessing is called a robber.
Genesis (“Bereshit”) is the first book of the Torah, Judaism’s foundational text, and the only one consisting almost entirely of stories, with just three explicit laws. Rather, it tells of the origins of mankind and of the Israelites.
Leshon Chakhamim is an early 20th-century work by Yosef Hayyim, the rabbinic leader of the Jewish community of Baghdad. It contains prayers for various occasions, such as before performing a mitzvah or while at a graveside.