how to set date format in hibernate mapping

i am using spring with hibernate.
i have maped one been with hibernate mapping and using date as a one property.
when i am updating date it is giving me error
unparsable date

please help me how can i configure date formate in hibernate mapping

thanks
amit

You shouldn't have to do anything; Hibernate will do this for you.

Is the Date object possibly null?

use named query or parameter it will automatically format for U..