Tu Bishvat: The New Year of the Tree
My youngest daughter’s friends were impressed that Judaism celebrates a New Year of Trees, marked by planting and honoring trees. Here’s a round-up of how to observe this special day.
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The Tree of Life in Kabbalah
In Jewish mystical thought, the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life were intended to flourish together in the Garden, but human beings forsook the vital Tree of Life to pursue knowledge alone, introducing duality to the world and preventing the ideal Edenic state that will be restored only in the Messianic age.
Guided Meditation on Tree of Life in Our Bodies
This is a guided meditation on the Sephirotic energy in our bodies, based on the teachings of Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi.
Hugging the Tree of Life
By the end of my first retreat at Elat Chayyim, I had internalized the paradigm of living fully in the mystic’s “Four Worlds” of body, emotions, mind, and spirit and I wanted to commune physically with a tree. I approached a great Pine (I think a White Pine) that grew outside the dining hall, embraced the trunk–yes, I hugged a tree–and gazed upward. I will do my best to embody in words the living vision that I experienced:
Tikkun Olam: Trees and the Environment
“Planting a tree” for a happy occasion has become almost a Jewish stereotype, but it really is a huge mitzvah.
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Soundtrack: Summer Meadow
Gardeners Reflect
Gardener friends share their thoughts on the spiritual meaning of gardening…
Gallery: Growing Up in the Garden
We call my friend’s enormous Northern California garden, “The Kibbutz.” What a paradise for children! Getting hands dirty in the garden is healthy fun for young and old Click on the picture to activate the gallery.
Return to the Gateway of Gardens.
Eden: The Once and Future Garden
Eden represents the idealized human past…and future. (more…)
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