The Joy of the First Fruit
Beginnings are exciting.
The first year of a marriage.
The birth of a first child.
Beginning a new project.
Moving into a new home.
The challenge, of course, is that after a while, the novelty wears off, the excitement subsides and we begin to take the blessing for granted.
Judaism invites us to return to that original sense of joy and gratitude, not just once, but on an ongoing basis.
This week’s Torah portion begins with the detailed description of the commandment of Bikurim, bringing the first fruit to the temple, and declaring thanksgiving to G-d. The Bikurim were brought to the temple in a joyous ceremony, as described in the Mishnah:
The flute would continue playing before them until they arrived at the Temple Mount. Once they arrived at the Temple Mount, even Agripas the King would carry his basket on his shoulder and enter until he reached the courtyard. Once they got to the courtyard, the Levites would speak in song (Psalms 30:2), "I will extol you, O Lord, because you have raised me and not allowed my enemies to rejoice over me." (Bikurim 3:4)
It is relatively easy to experience joy in the beginning of the spring, after months of plowing, planting, and waiting for the weather to brighten and for the earth to yield its bounty. But how can we maintain that feeling of elation, gratitude, and delight all year long?
Later in the portion, Moses tells the Jewish people:
This day, the Lord, your God, is commanding you to fulfill these statutes and ordinances, and you will observe and fulfill them with all your heart and with all your soul.
The statement “this day” seems incorrect; the Jewish people received the commandment forty years earlier at Sinai, how then can Moses refer to the Torah as being given “this day”?
Rashi quotes the Midrash that explains that indeed, Moses is empowering us to experience the Torah as new each and every day:
Every day, you shall regard the commandments as brand new, as though you are just today being commanded regarding them!
Rashi explains the meaning of the words “this day”, but does not explain how we can indeed experience the Torah as being given today.
The Midrash teaches that Moses foresaw that when the temple would be destroyed the Bikurim would cease, he therefore instituted that we pray three times a day, in place of the Bikurim.
The Chasidic masters explain that prayer is the mechanism and the tool through which we can experience the novelty and joy that the Bikurim capture.
A foundation of Chassidic philosophy is the doctrine of perpetual creation. That creation was not merely an event in the past, but rather, it is ongoing every moment. As we say in the morning prayer: “Who in His goodness renews each day, continuously, the work of creation”. Every breath, every heartbeat, is a testament to this ongoing process. The Divine power of creation creates us anew at every moment, the blessings we have in our life, are renewed at every moment. Prayer is the meditation that allows us to experience the Divine energy that constantly renews us. Prayer is the time when we cultivate the feeling of renewal and its by-product - gratitude and joy.