Likutay Moharan - Volume 2 - Torah-teaching 88

Not to Eat Fruit That Has Not Fully Ripened

One must be very careful not to eat fruit that has not fully ripened. And just as it is forbidden to cut down a tree before its time, as our Sages, of blessed memory, said [Bava Basra 26a], so too it is forbidden to pick fruit before its ripening, and it is forbidden to eat it. And one who eats fruit before its complete ripening can greatly harm his soul, for he can lose his soul through this. For the fruit, as long as it needs to grow, has a drawing force, for it needs vitality to grow. And therefore, certainly, it has a drawing force that draws its sustenance and vitality. And when one picks it before its time, before it has ripened as needed, it still has the drawing force. For when it is fully ripened, the drawing force ceases from it, for it no longer needs to draw vitality. But when it still needs to ripen, it still has the drawing force. And therefore, one who eats it before its complete ripening, the fruit can draw to itself the vitality of the soul of that person, since the fruit still has the drawing force, as above. Therefore, the fruit can draw to itself the vitality of his soul, and he can lose his soul. And despite this, if he blesses the blessing of the fruit with intention and with fear of Heaven, then he can be saved from this. And also, if he is stronger in the service of Hashem [G-d], he can also draw out additional vitality from the fruit and find there lost things. For there are lost things, and there are in this wondrous matters, hidden and awesome secrets, supernal mysteries. And the essence is that a person must be very careful about this, that is, not to eat fruit before it has fully ripened. And know that even when one cooks the fruits in his house, it does not help for this. But if the fruits that have not fully ripened on the tree are left for some time until they become ripened on their own when detached, this helps, and it is permitted to eat them. And this is similar to a person who is weary and breathes heavily [called panting] until he rests. Similarly, these fruits that were picked before they fully ripened need to wait until they rest from their panting, and then there is permission to eat them. And the matters are sealed. And know that there is an angel, and under him are several appointees, and they all hold shofars in their hands, and they stand and dig constantly and search constantly for lost things. And they blow a tekiah, a teruah, and then they blow a tekiah again. And when they find some lost thing, there is a great commotion and great joy. For there are many lost things, that is, many losses are lost through desires, in the aspect of: "The desire of the wicked shall perish" [Psalms 112:10]. And even one who is a tzadik [righteous one] loses sometimes, in the aspect of: "There is a righteous one who perishes in his righteousness" [Ecclesiastes 7:15]. And even the tzadikim who dig and seek after lost things lose sometimes, in the aspect of: "They dig and perish" [Psalms 83:18], for even those who dig after lost things return and perish sometimes, in the aspect of: "A time to lose" [Ecclesiastes 3:6]. "Taavas reshaim toved" [The desire of the wicked shall perish]—the initial letters are: Tekiah, Teruah, Tekiah [T-R-T]. For the angels searching after the lost things, which are in the aspect of "taavas reshaim toved," hold shofars in their hands and blow T-R-T, as above. And he also mentioned then that it is very, very difficult to be a recipient. And he also mentioned then: "The jealousy of scribes increases wisdom" [Bava Basra 21a], and he did not explain all this, for they are sealed and closed matters. And some were forgotten, for I did not write them at the time, but only by way of allusion [as was already printed in the first edition]. And he said: All the above, that is, the matter of the intention of Elul, which is a repair for the defect of the bris, and the matter of the aforementioned fruits, and this matter of the angel, etc., as above, are all one, and there are in this great mysteries.