SEPTEMBER 28 • 2023 | 43
J
N

SPIRIT

Mitzvah of the 
Four Species
T

he festival of Sukkot 
presents us with one of 
the most unusual prac-
tices in Judaism. Namely, the 
mitzvah of the four species.
The Torah (Leviticus 
23-40) bids us to: “Take 
for yourselves, on the first 
day, the fruit of a beautiful 
tree, date (palm) fronds, 
the branch of thick wood 
and brook willows and 
rejoice before the Lord 
your God for seven days.
”
This verse has been 
interpreted by Jewish 
tradition to an obligation 
to take the etrog (citron), 
lulav (palm branch), 
hadas (myrtle) and ara-
vah (willow) and to wave 
them together at specific 
times during the service.
Midrash VaYikra Raba 30:11 
explains: “Just as the etrog has 
taste and fragrance, there are 
those among the Jewish people 
with Torah learning and good 
deeds … just as the date has 
taste and no fragrance, there are 
Jews that have Torah learning 
but not good deeds … just as 
the hadas has fragrance but no 
taste, there are Jews that have 
good deeds but no Torah learn-
ing … and just as the willow 
has neither fragrance nor taste, 
there are Jews that have neither 
Torah learning nor good deeds. 
What does God do? He binds 
them together.
The Talmud states: “Each of 
the four species is indispens-
able for the performance of the 
mitzvah; the Jewish people not 
only must be bound together 
as one; but to fulfill our destiny 
we actually require amongst us 
those who lack Torah learning 
and lack good deeds.

Maimonides tells us that 
those who insist on interpreting 
all midrashim literally “are to be 
pitied for this stupidity … and 
they denigrate the sages.
” He 
also says that those who 
reject the midrashim 
outright “are even more 
stupid than the previous 
group.
” Maimonides 
reminds us that we must 
realize the greatness 
of the sages and their 
wisdom and find within 
their words that which 
teaches great truths.
Thus, according to 
the midrash, we are told 
that the Jewish people 
cannot exist as such 
without those Jews who 
are so far from tradition 
that they have no knowledge of 
Torah and who are so far from 
simple human goodness and 
decency that they lack good 
deeds.
How can such individuals 
be indispensable to the Jewish 
people?
It must be that the purpose 
and identity of the nation itself 
is predicated upon the welcom-
ing and inclusion of all Jews, 
even the most alienated. This 
attitude toward one another 
must be at the very core of the 
people and, therefore, without 
such individuals the Jewish 
people cannot exist.
So, as we raise the four spe-
cies and “rejoice before the 
Lord,
” let us do so in the real 
spirit of the Jewish people — 
committed to unity, mutual 
responsibility and love. 

Rabbi Eliezer Cohen, of blessed 

memory, was rabbi of Congregation 

Or Chadash. This article originally 

appeared in the JN on Sept. 20, 2002.

TORAH PORTION

Rabbi Eliezer 
Cohen 

Parshat 

Sukkot 1: 

Leviticus 

22:26-23:44; 

Numbers 

29:12-16; 

Zachariah 

14:1-21.

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