The Laws of Tu BiShvat
Contents
The Laws of Priority in Blessings
Priority
A. The laws of priority in blessings apply to someone who has two foods before him and wishes to eat both of them now. If the foods are not before him, even if he intends to bring them, he may recite a blessing over the food before him and need not bring the other food, even if the other food’s blessing would have priority. [1]
Likewise, foods that people customarily eat in a certain order — for example, a meal that begins with fish and continues with rice and potatoes, or if one eats cooked vegetables and afterward eats compote — in such cases, even if the blessing on the later foods is preferable according to the laws of priority, one need not bring them first. [2]
The Order of Advantages
A. Priority in blessings is determined according to the importance of the foods, and there are five advantages regarding blessings:
a. A more specific blessing [for example: the blessing “Borei peri ha’etz,” which exempts only fruits of the tree, is more specific than “Shehakol,” which exempts everything].
b. A food from the Seven Species.
c. A whole food.
d. A preferred food.
e. A larger food.
Below it will be explained how to act when one advantage stands against another, such as when one has fruits before him, one of which is of the Seven Species and the other is preferred, or one whose blessing is “Mezonot” and the other is whole.
The Definition of “Preferred”
B. The Rishonim disagree regarding the definition of “preferred”: whether it refers to the type that is generally always preferred by him, or to the one that is preferred by him at that moment. In practice, the Shulchan Aruch [3] rules that we follow the type that is generally preferred by him [and if both are equally preferred by him, but now he prefers one of them, he should give it precedence].
After the Fact
C. All the laws of priority apply lechatchilah, in the first instance; however, after the fact, if one first recited a blessing over a food that should have been later, and intended with his blessing to exempt the more important food, he has fulfilled his obligation. [4] However, if he recited a blessing over a food and afterward wishes to eat a more important food, the first blessing does not exempt the more important food unless he intended to exempt it at the time of the blessing [and similarly, if he recited a blessing over grapes and an olive was also before him, the olive is not exempted by the blessing over the grapes].
The Order of Priority: MAGA ESH
E. If several types of foods are before him and their blessings are not the same, the order of priority in blessings is: “Mezonot,” “Hagafen,” “Ha’etz,” “Ha’adamah,” and “Shehakol.” The mnemonic is: MAGA ESH. The reason for this order is based on the wording of the blessings: the more particular and specific the blessing, the more it takes precedence over another.
The Order of MAGA ESH Versus a Seven Species Food, a Whole Food, and a Preferred Food
The advantage of the specific wording of a blessing is more important than all the other advantages. Therefore, if one has before him a piece of cracker made from spelt flour, and a date that has all the other advantages — it is of the Seven Species, whole, preferred by him, and larger — nevertheless, the advantage of the blessing will decide, and he should first recite “Mezonot” over the cracker. [5]
An Exception to the Order of MAGA ESH — a Ha’adamah Food Preferred Over a Ha’etz Food
F. The order of blessings of MAGA ESH has an exception: where a person has two foods before him, one whose blessing is “Ha’etz” and the other whose blessing is “Ha’adamah” — if the Ha’adamah type is more preferred by him, it comes first.
However, in this case, that type must be preferred both generally and at this moment; but if the Ha’adamah type is generally preferred while now the Ha’etz type is more preferred, or the reverse — generally the Ha’etz type is more preferred and only now the Ha’adamah type is preferred by him — he should first recite the blessing over the Ha’etz type. [6]
Whole and Preferred
G. If one has before him a food whose blessing is “Ha’etz” and another whose blessing is “Ha’adamah,” and each has a different advantage, there is room for doubt whether the order is: preferred, Seven Species, whole — or: whole, preferred, Seven Species. Some say that only the advantage of being preferred is decisive, and if both are equally preferred, he may give precedence to whichever he wishes. (See below, section I, in parentheses).
The Seven Species
H. If one has before him several types of food whose blessing is the same, he recites the blessing over the food that is from the Seven Species. If there is no food from the Seven Species, he recites the blessing over the whole item. If there is no whole item, he recites the blessing over the preferred item; and if there is no preferred item, he recites it over the larger one. The mnemonic is ZShChG (Seven Species, whole, preferred, large). For example: “Z” — if one has before him half a biscuit made of wheat flour and a whole cake made of spelt flour, he recites the blessing over the biscuit because it is of the Seven Species, even though the cake is whole, larger, and also more preferred. Likewise, if he has before him a cut olive and a peach, he recites the blessing over the piece of olive because it is of the Seven Species. “Sh” — if he has before him a whole cucumber and slices of bell pepper, he recites the blessing over the whole cucumber, even though the bell pepper is more preferred. [7]
“Ch” — if all the foods are of the same type and all are whole, he gives precedence to the one he prefers. “G” — if they are equally preferred, he gives precedence to the larger one.
If one has before him a baked item and a cooked dish from the same species, he first recites the blessing over the baked item.
Nearest to “Eretz”
H. If one has before him several kinds of fruit from the Seven Species, he first recites the blessing over the species closest to the word “Eretz” in the verse “אֶרֶץ חִטָּה וּשְׂעֹרָה...” — “a land of wheat and barley...”; the order of the species is: olive, date, grapes, fig, pomegranate. [8]
Wheat That Was Not Ground
I. One who has before him fruits from the Seven Species and puffed wheat — “shalva” — if the shalva is more preferred by him, he should give it precedence. [9]
Priority in Eating
J. The law of priority applies only to which blessing is recited first; it does not determine the order of eating. For example, if one has before him three kinds of fruit — one of the Seven Species, one whole, and one cut — he first recites the blessing over the Seven Species, as above; but after he recites the blessing and eats from the fruit that is of the Seven Species, he need not first eat the whole fruit, and may eat the cut fruit first if he wishes. Similarly, if one has before him various fruits, including some of the Seven Species [as is common at a Tu BiShvat meal], the law of priority is to recite the blessing over the olive, and once he has recited the blessing over it and eaten it, he may eat the other fruits in any order he wishes, and need not give precedence to the remaining fruits of the Seven Species according to their order in the verse. [10]
Additional Advantages
K. [The poskim mention additional advantages for giving precedence in a blessing, which come after the advantages of importance mentioned above; where the above advantages are absent (that is, both foods before him are equally preferred, both are whole, their size is the same, etc.), one should give precedence according to these advantages. These additional advantages are: a food over which “Shehecheyanu” is recited; a food with which a mitzvah was performed — such as jam made from an etrog, or bread from an eruv chatzerot or eruv tavshilin; fruits grown in the Land of Israel. [11] Fruits to which Israel is compared. [12] Leftovers from a seudat mitzvah. [13] A more nourishing food.
Food and Drink
L. Food and drink whose blessing is the same: according to the strict law, the food does not precede the drink, [14] but there is an advantage in preceding eating to drinking. [15]
Doubts Regarding Priority
M. It was explained above that one who has before him two kinds of fruit — one of the Seven Species and one preferred — recites the blessing over the fruit from the Seven Species. It was also explained that one who has before him a fruit and a vegetable, and the vegetable is preferred, recites the blessing over the vegetable even if the fruit is of the Seven Species. Based on these rules, the poskim discussed how to act in the following case: one has before him an olive, an apple, and a banana, and the order of his preference is apple, banana, and olive. It requires analysis which one should be blessed first: if he comes to recite the blessing over the olive, since it is of the Seven Species, he should first give precedence to the banana, whose blessing is not the same and which, because of its preferred status, should precede it. But he cannot recite the blessing over the banana, since the apple is preferred over it. And if he wants to recite the blessing over the apple, the law is to give precedence to the olive, which is of the Seven Species, and there is no end to the matter. The author of Kehilot Yaakov, of blessed memory, ruled that he should first recite the blessing over the fruit that is of the Seven Species. The reason is that when determining which blessing to precede among different blessings, one must examine which blessing is more important; and a blessing that exempts a preferred type has importance even if he will not immediately eat the preferred fruit. In the above case, the blessing of Ha’etz has more importance than the blessing of Ha’adamah, since it exempts the apple, which is more preferred. Since we have decided to recite Ha’etz, we now turn to discuss which of the tree fruits should be given precedence, and here the decision is based on the importance of the fruit; the rule is that the importance of a Seven Species item takes precedence over that of a preferred item. Therefore, he should first recite the blessing over the olive. [However, after he has recited the blessing and eaten from the olive, he need not first eat the apple before reciting the blessing over the banana, as it was explained that the laws of priority determine the order of blessings but not the order of eating].
The Custom of Feeding Birds on Shabbat Shirah
N. One should not feed doves on Shabbat; rather, one should place food for them before Shabbat.
Source
[1] Shulchan Aruch (siman 211, se’if 5), Mishnah Berurah (se’if katan 1 and 31), Sha’ar HaTziyun (se’if katan 20), and Shulchan Aruch (siman 168, se’if 1) and Mishnah Berurah (se’if katan 5).
[2] So it is in Hilchot Berachot of the Ritva (chapter 3, se’if 9) and in Kaf HaChaim (there, se’if katan 5) in the name of Halachot Ketanot.
[3] Siman 211, se’if 1.
[4] Shulchan Aruch (there, se’if 5); see Mishnah Berurah (se’if katan 32, 33). In Aruch HaShulchan (se’if 16) he wrote that one who does not know the law is ordinarily considered as having explicit intent.
[5] Shulchan Aruch (there, se’if 3).
[6] Shulchan Aruch (there) and Mishnah Berurah (se’if katan 18).
[7] Shulchan Aruch (there, se’if 1), Mishnah Berurah (se’if katan 4, 2), and Sha’ar HaTziyun (se’if katan 8).
[8] Shulchan Aruch (there, se’if 4).
[9] In Shulchan Aruch (there, se’if 5) he states that wheat and barley precede the other fruits of the Seven Species only when one made from them a cooked dish or bread whose blessing is HaMotzi or Mezonot; thus, they should be given precedence also because of the advantage of their blessing, even if they were not of the Seven Species. But if one chews wheat, whose blessing is Borei peri ha’adamah, he writes there that it should not be given precedence over a tree fruit. Nowadays puffed wheat — “shalva” — is common, and its law is like wheat eaten by chewing, as explained above (siman 208, se’if 4). The Mishnah Berurah (siman 211, se’if katan 9, 18, 27) writes that the Magen Avraham implies that this law applies specifically if the tree fruit is more preferred by him; but if they are equally preferred, the wheat should be given precedence over the other Seven Species, even though he eats it by chewing. According to his words, one who has before him shalva and a date: if the date is preferred, he should give it precedence; and if they are equally preferred, he should give precedence to the shalva, even though its blessing is Borei peri ha’adamah. However, the view of the Gra (there) is that when their blessings are not the same, there are no laws of priority other than preference. Therefore we wrote that if the shalva is preferred by him, he should give it precedence, for this is the law according to all opinions; but if they are equally preferred, we enter the dispute of the Magen Avraham and the Gra as to whether there is a law of priority among the Seven Species when their blessings are not the same.
[10] So it appears from the Mishnah Berurah (siman 211, se’if katan 10).
[11] Birkat HaBayit (sha’ar 13, se’if katan 7).
[12] Kaf HaChaim (there, se’if katan 7).
[13] Transmitted in the name of the Chatam Sofer; and so it is in Chidushei HaRim (on the Torah, matters of Shabbat).
[14] Pri Megadim (introduction to the laws of blessings, se’if katan 8).
[15] Aruch HaShulchan (siman 211, se’if 17), that eating precedes drinking.
[16] Mishnah Berurah (siman 324, se’if katan 31).
