Today's Halachos are dedicated as a zechus refuah Shelaima for the Posek HaDor, Maran HaRav
Yosef Shalom ben Chaya Musha
B'Soch Sha'ar Cholei Yisroel. Please learn and daven that he merit a complete and speedy recovery.
A few timely halachos for Tu B'shvat:
1) It is customary [for Ashkenazic Jews] to eat different varieties of fruits on Tu B'Shvat, as this day is the 'Rosh Hashanah" for fruit trees (meaning that the "year" regarding Ma'aser and Arlah is counted from this day) (Mogen Avraham Orach Chaim Siman 131:16)
Some people have the custom to eat an Esrog (or Esrog Jelly) on Tu B'Shvat (Likutei MaHarich)
It is also customary to daven on Tu B'Shvat for a beautiful, kosher Esrog on the following Sukkos (Bnei Yissochor Shvat 2:2)
The Ben Ish Chai even wrote special Tefilah for this (CLICK HERE for the text of the Tefilah).
2) It is a Mitzvah for a person to seek out and eat new fruits in order to be able to offer praise and thanks to Hashem and to show that we appreciate all the wonderful things that Hashem creates for us to enjoy in this world. See Mishna Berura Siman 225:19 where he references a Talmud Yerushalmi very end of Maseches Kidushin where it says:
"[When a person will stand in judgment before Hashem after he/she leaves this world] they will have to give a Din V'Cheshbon (reckoning) for anything (i.e. food that Hashem created) that they had the opportunity to taste, yet didn't taste!"
The Korban H'Eida in his commentary to this Gemara explains that it is referring to not reciting SheHechiyanu on every possible fruit.
Many Poskim maintain that the custom of eating various varieties of fruits on Tu B'Shvat, and seeking out fruits on which to recite the bracha of SheHechiyanu, developed as a way to fulfill this requirement of the Talmud Yerushalmi, and what better day to do this than on the Rosh Hashana for trees!
QUESTION & ANSWER CORNER
Reader Submitted Questions of interest on topics related to Halachos we covered, as well as other interesting topic and Answers.
These Q&A are taken from the Q & A pages on the Halacha For Today website.
Although the answers I give to questions are taken directly from the Sifrei HaPoskim, and aren't my own, they are still for study purposes only, NOT for Psak Halacha.
Questions can be emailed to HalachaForToday@Gmail.com
Reader's Question:
I have heard that there is no problem with making a bracha when drinking water from a water fountain. How is this possible due to the fact that one can not see the water he is about to drink?
Answer:
Although the food/drink one is reciting a Bracha over needs to be in front of them, and preferably in their hands, while reciting the bracha, in the case of a water fountain it is not possible.
Ideally, the water should be filled into a cup and then the Bracha recited. If that is not practical, the water must at least be turned on and flowing before the bracha is recited, as even though the actual water that was there when the bracha was recited is different than the water you will drink, still it is considered from the same water flow and thus isn't a Bracha L'Vatalah. (See Shulchan Aruch Siman 206:6 regarding one who drinks from a flowing stream. See also Shu"t Rivevos Ephraim Vol. 3 Siman 129)
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CHIZUK CORNER
This section is dedicated L'Ilui Nishmos the Telzer Rosh Yeshiva, HaRav Chaim Yaakov Stein Zatzal and the Mir Rosh Yeshiva, HaRav Noson Tzvi Finkel Zatzal. May we all strive to follow in their ways and may they both be Melitzei Yosher for all of Klal Yisroel.
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זכר צדיקים וקדושים לברכה
It's true that we don't know What we've got until it's gone, but it's also true that we don't know What we've been missing until it arrives.
Important Numbers
