Esrog / Etrog: The Etrog is used with the
Lulav, Hadas (myrtle) and willow branch (Arava) at
the Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot . Of the Four
Species of plants enumerated in Lev. xxiii. 40 ,
on which the carrying of the lulav is based,
tradition takes "the fruit of the goodly tree" ( ,
properly "the fruit of a fair or noble tree") to
designate the citron.
The citron (κίτρον, κίτριον); Citrus fruit of a
tree of the orange and lemon family. It is oblong
in shape, and sometimes as much as six inches in
length. The skin is thick, some what hard,
fragrant, and covered with protuberances; the pulp
is white and subacid. Modern naturalists assume
the north of India to be its native home; but it
passed to the countries of the Mediterranean from
Media or Persia ; hence the name of the tree,
"Citrus medica," and of the fruit, "Malum medica,"
or "Malum Persica"
It is therefore possible that the Jews brought the
tree with them from Babylonia to Eretz Yisrael on
their return from the Babylonian Captivity.
What
to Look for In An Esrog
1. A
beautiful esrog should be shaped like a tower,
wide at the bottom
and narrow at the top. The esrog should also
be straight; it should be
recessed inward at the bottom where the stem
grows; it should have
a 'pitim' on the end opposite from the stem;
it should be free of spots
and blemishes; and it should be covered with
bumps and depressions.
"and you shall take of yourselves on the first day (of
Sukkot) the fruit of a goodly tree, a palm branch, the myrtle
branch, and the willow of the brook; and you shall rejoice before
the L-rd your G-d seven days"
Leviticus 23
(Esrog
grown
without pitim)
Click on the
image for a larger view.
2. If the esrog does not
have all of these features,
it may still be valid for
the sake of the mitzvah.
Therefore, if an esrog is
not recessed, the esrog is
still valid, and an esrog
that is smooth - without
bumps - is also valid. And
if the esrog does not have a
'pitim' it is also valid,
unless it originally had one
and it came off.
3. If part of the esrog's skin
came off, or if it is dry, rotten, or punctured, it is not valid. If there
are spots or
blemishes that do not come off when a gentle rubbing, then it should be
shown to a Rabbinic authority.
4. An esrog must be a pure bred, and not grafted from
different species.
5. An esrog
can be quite large in size, but it should not be smaller
than an average egg.
The Festival of
Sukkot begins on Tishri 15, the fifth day after Yom Kippur. It is
quite a drastic transition,
from one of the most solemn holidays in our year to one
of the most joyous.
This festival is
sometimes referred to as Zeman Simkhateinu, the
Season of our Rejoicing.
Sukkot lasts for seven
days. The two days following the festival are
separate holidays, Shemini Atzeret and Simkhat
Torah, but are
commonly thought of as part of Sukkot.
The word "Sukkot"
means "booths," and refers to the temporary
dwellings that we are commanded to live in
during this holiday. The name of the holiday is
frequently translated "The Feast of Tabernacles,"
which, like
many translations of technical Jewish terms, isn't
terribly useful unless you already know what the
term is
referring to. The Hebrew pronunciation of
Sukkot is "Sue COAT," but is often pronounced as
in Yiddish, to rhyme
with "BOOK us."
Each day of Succos we
take the Lulav and Esrog and wave it gently
in every direction; right, left, forward, up,
down, and to the rear, to show that Hashem is truly
everywhere.
The
Blessing on the Lulav
Take the Lulav in your
right hand and say the blessing:
During the morning
service, we take the Lulav and Esrog and
hold them during the Hallel prayer, waving them at
certain points. Then we take out a Sefer torah and stand
with it in the center of the synagogue (on the Bima),
and circle it, holding our Lulav, as we recite a
special prayer for blessing in the coming year. This is
called
Hoshaa-nos.
