By: Aviva Shinnar

 

The fall has come, calling forth changes in nature's colorful blanket, culminating in the shedding of leaves from the branches. For Jews, the trees of fall bring forth the days of repentance, redemption and joy. The tree, a central feature of the autumn months, is an apt symbol for this time of year.

      
In Volume III of Rav Hirsch's collective writings, Hirsch analyzes the symbolism behind materials used in the Mishkan. The shittim of wood allows Hirsch to parallel tree attributes to mankind. The tree is one of few species that can develop before our eyes, but its survival is entirely dependent on external factors including its proximity and ability to absorb sufficient water. Hashem and the Torah are referred to as the waters of life and man is the tree that draws its strength from Hashem, without whom man would whither and die.

       
Tehillim 92:13 states, "The righteous one flourishes like the palm; as a cedar in Lebanon he grows." Rashi comments that cedar is specifically noted because of its ability to renew itself. Similarly, the Jewish people possess the ability to be continually renewed by reinvigorating their devotion to Hashem. While this opportunity exists year round, it is especially forceful during the High Holiday season.

      
Furthermore, in Devarim 20:19 Bnei Yisroel is commanded "do not destroy its trees by swinging an axe against them, for from it you will eat, and you shall not cut it down; is the tree of the field a man that it should enter the siege before you." The commentators have taken various views regarding the meaning behind this exhortation. Ibn Ezra and Nachmanides find a causal relationship between man and tress: Man is dependent on trees' contributions which include the fruit they bear that provides the physical sustenance needed to live and grow both physically and spiritually.

       
On the other hand, Rashi and Sforno see this sentence as a question "is man a tree of the field?" The Maharal responds to this question by highlighting a fundamental difference between trees and man. While tree roots are grounded in the physical earth, the roots of man are grounded in the spiritual heavens. Trees symbolize continual growth, long life, and the potential harbored by the physical world while man's roots transcend the physical world to reach the spiritual heights of the world to come.

      
As this time of year calls us to repent, return, and continually renew our relationship with Hashem, it is beneficial for us to be reminded of the simile of the tree. While the world around us beckons throughout the coming months we need to stick close to the water that will sustain us, give us branches and leaves so as to let us bear fruit and ignite the inner spark necessary for us to succeed in the journey of this world and the world to come.