The Calendar עִנְיְנֵי דְּיוֹמָא
What is Shavuot?
The Torah teaches that Shavuot is the holiday at the beginning of the harvest, when farmers would bring בִּכּוּרִים (bikkurim, first fruits) to the בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ (Beit HaMikdash, Holy Temple) (Shemot 23:16 and Vayikra 23:17).
The Talmud teaches that Shavuot was the day that God gave us the Torah on Har Sinai (Pesahim 68b).
This midrash connects these two ideas together:
רַבִּי מֵאִיר אָמַר: …קָבַע אֱלֹקִים שְׁלשָׁה רְגָלִים… חַג הַקָּצִיר, שֶׁבּוֹ נִתְּנָה תּוֹרָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, שֶׁאוֹכְלִים מִפֵּרוֹתֶיהָ בָּעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: "טוֹב פִּרְיִי מֵחָרוּץ וּמִפָּז" (משלי ח:יט).
R. Meir said: …God established three major holidays… One is the harvest holiday, which is the time that the Torah was given to Israel. This makes sense because Torah’s fruits are enjoyed in this world, as it says, “My fruit is better than gold, fine gold” (Mishlei 8:19).
R. Meir points out that Shavuot is the time for farmers to enjoy, for the first time, the fruits that were produced by their hard work. This symbolizes Torah. When you learn Torah, you don’t have to wait a long time to experience its rewards or the ways it impacts you, which is its “fruit.” You get to enjoy those fruits right away!
- Sometimes you work hard on something, but you don’t get to enjoy the effect of all that hard work for a long time. Sometimes only people who live long after you will get to enjoy the fruits of your work. Can you think of an example?
- What are some of the Torah’s fruits? What effects of Torah learning can you enjoy?
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