"And establish for us, the work of our hands." That's a powerful line from Psalm 90:17, isn't it? It speaks to the idea that we can, through our actions, influence not only our own lives but also the world around us. And today, we're going to explore a particularly fascinating example of this: a tikkun – a repair or rectification – connected to the holiday of Tu B’Shvat, the "New Year for Trees."
This particular tikkun, found in the text Peri Etz Hadar (which literally means "Fruit of the Goodly Tree"), focuses on the mystical power of blessings and contemplation directed towards the fruit's divine roots. The idea is that by performing this tikkun on Tu B'Shvat, we can actually affect the very structure and character of the fruit itself, on a spiritual level.
But here's where it gets really interesting. The text suggests that the person performing the tikkun can also be profoundly affected. How? Through the beauty of this act, he can correct something that was "distorted," something that was "crooked [and] cannot be made straight," me’uvat lo yukhal litkon, to borrow a phrase from Ecclesiastes 1:15 – a clever pun, isn't it?
The Peri Etz Hadar subtly hints that this tikkun can address a very specific and sensitive issue: damage to the "covenant," potentially caused by "inchastity." Now, while the text doesn't explicitly name the issue, some scholars, like Yehuda Liebes, suggest it might be referring to shikvat zera le-vatalah, the "wasting of seed," which is a rabbinic term for male sexual incontinence, and possibly even masturbation. The Zohar, that foundational text of Jewish mysticism, views ejaculation outside of "normal" intercourse as a particularly serious sin. If this is what Peri Etz Hadar alludes to, it would be considered an earlier form of tikkun for this issue than the more widely known Tikkun ha-Kelali of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov.
So, how does performing a tikkun for a fruit tree possibly relate to something so personal? The text goes on to explain that by doing this tikkun for the fruit tree, the individual can heal "his wound" – literally, his flawing of the Tzaddik who makes fruit.
Now, Tzaddik here isn't just a righteous person. In Kabbalah, it refers to the ninth sefirah, Yesod, which represents the divine phallus and is associated with potency and generation. Sexual irregularities, what's called the "flaw of the covenant," are believed to negatively impact this sefirah. Since the Tu B'Shvat tikkun directly affects this sefirah and deals with supernal potency, it can, therefore, correct damage caused by aberrant sexuality.
What's fascinating here is the implied magical connection between human sexuality and the fecundity of nature. The text suggests that male irregularities in this area can actually damage the divine quality responsible for the quality of the year's fruit! There's also the added benefit of the penitential period, mentioned elsewhere in the text in connection to shovavim. So, in essence, a tikkun for the flaw of the covenant is being performed.
This reminds us that everything is interconnected. Our actions, even the most personal ones, have repercussions that extend far beyond ourselves. This Tu B'Shvat tikkun, as described in Peri Etz Hadar, offers a powerful and profound way to understand and address these connections, reminding us that we can all participate in the ongoing work of repair, both within ourselves and within the world. And isn't that a beautiful and hopeful thought?