By Diane Otto
A Jewish Garden...
Agrarian practice and a profound connection to the rhythms of the biotic world are fundamental to Jewish wisdom and life. The B’nai Israel Jewish Garden and Science Program not only re-harmonizes our children to the natural systems to which much of modern society has lost touch, but also significantly improves lives, improves education, secures a better future, and provides fundamental services in a region where no similar program exists. Our mission is to fill identified gaps in Jewish community life and education that arise from a long-standing disconnect with our natural world and the agricultural traditions inherent in Jewish wisdom and law.
We grow many herbs and fruits to use for specific Jewish holidays such as apples to dip in honey for Rosh Hashanah, parsley to use as a bitter herb on Pesach, and citrus to use on Sukkot. Children furthermore explore the spiritual concepts of a Jewish garden such as: gratitude for the harvest; the idea that our fathers who came before us planted trees for us to enjoy and we shall do the same for the children who come after us; that strength and strong roots are important; that mitvot is important and thus we donate a portion of our crops; that peace is important; that knowledge is important; that learning is important; that planning and nurturing are important; that teamwork and community are important; and that the prosperity of a fruitful harvest is a gift from G-d. We explore the seasons and the Jewish holidays. Our garden is of earth and soil (not hydroponic, potted, etc.) in order to incorporate the Jewish significance of preparing the soil and the land as a foundation for fruitfulness and knowledge. We also connect science with spiritual understanding, for example: we can feel wind, we can see when things are touched by wind, but we cannot see the actual wind—in this way, wind is like G-d.
Each tree in our fruit tree orchard was carefully chosen for its significance to Judaism and the profound concepts and symbols that each tree communicates. We have pomegranates (Punica granatum), figs (Ficus carica), apples (Malus domestica), persimmons (Diospyros virginiana), and olives (Olea europaea). Scroll down to the bottom of this page for more information on our orchard trees and their corresponding meanings.
We grow many herbs and fruits to use for specific Jewish holidays such as apples to dip in honey for Rosh Hashanah, parsley to use as a bitter herb on Pesach, and citrus to use on Sukkot. Children furthermore explore the spiritual concepts of a Jewish garden such as: gratitude for the harvest; the idea that our fathers who came before us planted trees for us to enjoy and we shall do the same for the children who come after us; that strength and strong roots are important; that mitvot is important and thus we donate a portion of our crops; that peace is important; that knowledge is important; that learning is important; that planning and nurturing are important; that teamwork and community are important; and that the prosperity of a fruitful harvest is a gift from G-d. We explore the seasons and the Jewish holidays. Our garden is of earth and soil (not hydroponic, potted, etc.) in order to incorporate the Jewish significance of preparing the soil and the land as a foundation for fruitfulness and knowledge. We also connect science with spiritual understanding, for example: we can feel wind, we can see when things are touched by wind, but we cannot see the actual wind—in this way, wind is like G-d.
Each tree in our fruit tree orchard was carefully chosen for its significance to Judaism and the profound concepts and symbols that each tree communicates. We have pomegranates (Punica granatum), figs (Ficus carica), apples (Malus domestica), persimmons (Diospyros virginiana), and olives (Olea europaea). Scroll down to the bottom of this page for more information on our orchard trees and their corresponding meanings.
Gardening and the Natural World in Judaism: Passages and Excerpts
[The following passages were largely taken from the Jewish Environmental Quotes document found at www.tevacenter.org.]
Breached (Genesis) 2:15
And the Lord took Adam and placed him in the Garden of Eden, to work it and guard it. Devarim (Deuteronomy) 20:19-20 When in your war against a city you have to besiege it for a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its fruit trees, wielding an ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down. Are the trees of the city human that it should enter the siege before you? Only trees that you know do not yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siege works against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been captured. Babylonian Talmud Taanit 23a Once Honi was walking along the road when he saw a man planting a carob tree. Honi asked, ‘How long before it will bear fruit?’ The man answered, ‘seventy years.’ Honi asked, ‘Are you sure you will be here in seventy years to eat from its fruit? The man replied, ‘I found this world filled with carob trees. Just as my ancestors planted for me, so I will plant for my children.’ Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav (18-19th c.) Master of the universe grant me the ability to be alone; May it be my custom to go outdoors each day Among the trees and the grass, Among all growing things; And, there may I be alone to enter into prayer There I may express all that is in my heart Talking to you, the one to whom I belong. A Teva story – from an unkown (Hasidic) tale The child of a certain rabbi used to wander in the woods. At first his father let him wander, but over time he became concerned. The woods were dangerous. The father did not know what lurked there. He decided to discuss the matter with his child. One day he took him aside and said, “You know, I have noticed that each day you walk into the woods. I wonder, why you go there?” The boy said to is father, “ I go there to find God.” “That is a very good thing,” the father replied gently. “I am glad you are searching for God. But, my child, don’t you know that God is the same everywhere?” “Yes,” the boy answered, “but I’m not.” *Diary of Anne Frank The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely, or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quite alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature. As long as this exists, and it certainly always will, I know that then there will always be comfort for every sorrow... And I firmly believe that nature brings solace in all troubles. Ernest Thompson Seton It is not enough to take people out of doors. We must also teach them to enjoy it. Ellen Bernstein, Let the Earth Teach You Torah Our lives today are inextricably woven to life in the past, both biologically and historically. We drink the water that our ancestors waded through when they crossed the Red Sea; we look at the same sky that Abraham gazed upon. Those who grasp these links learn awe, humility, and pride. Kua-Tsu 3rd Century B.C. If you think ahead one year, plant a seed. If you think ahead 10 years, plant a tree If you think ahead 100 years, educate the people. |
William Shakespeare
One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. Midrash Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) Rabbah 7:20 Upon creating the first human beings, God guided them around the Garden of Eden, saying; ‘Look at my creations! See how beautiful and perfect they are! I created everything for you. Make sure you don’t ruin or destroy My world. If you do, there will be no one after you to fix it.’ Bereshit (Genesis) 2:7-9 And the Lord God formed man (Adam) from the dust of the earth (adamah). The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and placed the man whom He had formed in the garden. And from the ground the Lord God caused trees to grow that were pleasing to the sight and good for food, with the tree of life in the middle of the garden. Vayikra 25:3-4 (Leviticus) Six years you may sow your field and six years you may prune your vineyard and gather in the field. But in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of complete rest for the land, a sabbath of the Lord: you shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) 5:8 The advantage of land is supreme; even the king is subject to the soil. Jerusalem Talmud, Kedoshim 4:12 It is forbidden to live in a town, which has no garden or greenery. Avot d’ Rabbi Nathan Chapter 30 He who buys grain in the market, to what may he be compared? To a baby whose mother has died, and although the child is taken to homes of wet nurses, the child is never satisfied. And he who buys bread in the market, to what is he compared? To a man who digs his own grave. But he who eats of his own produce is like a child reared at his mother’s breast. Rabbi Lawerence Kushner, Honey From The Rock The wilderness is not just a desert through which we wandered for forty years. It is a way of being. A place that demands being honest with yourself without regard to the cost in personal anxiety. A place that demands being present with all of yourself. In the wilderness your possessions cannot surround you. Your preconceptions cannot protect you.... You see the world as if for the first time. Baal Shem Tov Trees and plants have a language of their own. Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav Every blade of grass sings poetry to God without ulterior motives or alien thoughts—without consideration of reward. How good and lovely it is, then, when one is able to hear this song of the grasses. It is therefore a precious thing to conduct oneself with piety when strolling among them. Babylonian Talmud, Berachot 59b The rabbis taught: He who sees the sun starting on its new cycle, the moon in its power, the planets in their orbits, and the signs of the zodiac in their orderly progress should say, ‘Blessed be God who wrought the work of creation.’ Midrash Tanhuma: Niztavim A ‘God shall be for you an eternal light’ (Isaiah 60:19). When will this be? When you become one community. |