The Pleasure Principle

The Fifteenth of Shevat celebrates the New Year for Trees and the marks the beginning of a new fruit-bearing cycle in the Holy Land.

The day is observed in Jewish communities around the world through various customs, the foremost of which is the practice of eating produce mentioned in the verse in Deuteronomy, “A land of wheat, barley , grape-vines, figs and pomegranates; a land of olives and date honey.” These are the seven varieties with which the Land of Israel was blessed.

Yet the custom on the Fifteenth of Shevat is to eat only the last five. Apart from growing on trees, they are all considered delights and serve as a reminder that one must take pleasure in the service of G-d.