Meaning of the Minim

(1) (Lev. 23:40:) “And you shall take for yourselves on the first day.” Is it the first [day]?⁹⁷Lev. R. 30:7; PRK 27:7. Is it not the fifteenth day? So how is it the first? It is simply the first for the reckoning (heshbon) of sins. R. Mani and R. Joshua of Sikhnin in the name of R. Levi said a parable, “To what is the matter comparable?⁹⁸Eccl. R. 9:7:1. To a province which owed back taxes⁹⁹Gk.: loipas. to the king. [When] the king sent to collect [the sum], they did not hand it over, because the bill was large. So it happened the first time, and a second time; when he sent [for it], they did not hand it over. What did the king do? He said to his courtiers,¹⁰⁰Literally, “children of the palace (palation).” Cf. Lat.: palatium; Gk: palation. ‘Arise and let us move against them.’ While they were traveling about ten mil¹⁰¹Milin; cf. Lat.: mille passus. [away], the people of the province heard [what was happening]. What did they do? The nobles of the province began to go to a meeting¹⁰²Gk.: apante. with the king. He said to them, ‘Who are you?’ They said to him, ‘We are people of such and such a province where you sent to collect our taxes.’ He said to them, ‘So what do you want?’ They said to him, ‘If you please, show us kindness, because we have nothing to hand over.’ He said to them, ‘I will remit half for you.’ While he was [still] coming, the ruffians of the province went out and greeted him about five mil [away]. He said to them, ‘Who are you?’ They said to him, ‘We are people of such and such a province where you sent to collect our taxes, but we don’t have the ability to stand [up to the demand]; if you please, have mercy upon us.’ He said to them, ‘I have already remitted half [your debt], but for your sake I am remitting half of [the remaining] half. While he was [still] coming, all the people of the province came out to him, [both] large and small. He said to them, ‘What do you want?’ They said to him, ‘Our Lord king, we don’t have the ability to remit what we owe you.’ He said to them, ‘I have already remitted half plus half of [the remaining] half, but for your sake I am remitting everything. However, from now on there [begins] a new account (heshbon).’ This king is [the supreme King of kings], the Holy One, blessed be He. The people of his province? These are Israel, who acquire sins during all of the whole year. What does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He says, ‘Do penance at the beginning of the year.’ So they come in submission on the Day of Atonement, when they humble themselves and do penance. Then the Holy One, blessed be He, forgives them. And what do they do? The eve of Rosh Hashanah, the great ones of the generation fast, and the Holy One, blessed be He, relinquishes [Israel] a third of its sins. And from Rosh Hashanah to the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), individuals fast, and the Holy One, blessed be He, relinquishes [another] third of their sins. And on the Day of Atonement, all of Israel fasts and requests mercy, men, women and infants. And [so] the Holy One, blessed be He, relinquishes everything; as it is written (in Leviticus 16:30), ‘As upon this day, there will be atonement for you….’ What does Israel do [then]? They all take their lulavim on the first day of the festival and render praise to the Holy One, blessed be He. Thus He is reconciled to them and forgives them. He says to them, ‘See, I have relinquished all your former sins for you. However, from now on there is a new account (heshbon).’ Thus it is stated (in Lev. 23:40), ‘And you shall take for yourselves on the first day.’ [It is] first for the reckoning (heshbon) of sins.’” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, “In this world I have told you to make a sukkah in order to pay me my remuneration for what I have done for you. It is so stated (in Lev. 23:42-43), ‘You shall dwell in sukkot for seven days […]. In order that your generations may know that I had [the Children of Israel] dwell in sukkot.’ So I reckon it to your credit, as if you are rendering payment to Me. But in the world to come I will appear over you like a sukkah, as stated (in Is. 4:6), ‘There shall be a sukkah as a shade from the heat by day.’”

(1) The commandment of taking the lulav: The commandment of lulav, that we should take in our hands on the first day of the holiday of Sukkot the fruit of a hadar tree, palm fronds, the branches of a braided tree and willows of a brook, as it is stated (Leviticus 23:40), "And you shall take for yourselves on the first day the fruit of a hadar tree and palm fronds, the branches of a braided tree and willows of a brook." And the explanation came about it (Sukkah 35a) that the fruit of the hadar tree is the citron (etrog); the fronds (kappot) of date palms is the lulav - and it is written kappat, lacking [a letter] vav (which could make it singular), to hint that the obligations is that we take one lulav, and not two or three or more; the branch of a braided tree is the myrtle; and the willows of a brook is the willow that is well-known among Israelites.

(2) From the roots of the commandment, [there is a need to] preface [that] I have already written to you several times in what preceded, my son - that a man is impacted according to his actions that he constantly does; and his thoughts and pursuits are all caught according to the deeds of his hands, whether good or bad. And therefore since the Omnipresent wanted to give merit to His people Israel which he chose, He multiplied the commandments; such that their spirits constantly be effected by them for the good, all of the day. And among the commandments that He commanded us to grab our thoughts with His service in purity, is the commandment of tefillin - that they should lay across from the limbs of a man that are well-known as the dwelling place of the intellect. And [these limbs] are the heart and the brain. And from this constant action of his, he will dedicate all of his thoughts to the good, and always remember and be careful to calibrate all of his deeds in righteousness and justice.

(3) And so too from this root is the commandment of the lulav with its three [other plants]. As the days of the holiday are days of great joy for Israel, since it is the time of the gathering of the grain and the fruit of the tree into the home; and all men rejoice a great rejoicing. And for this reason is it is called the holiday of the gathering (haasif). And God commanded His people to make a holiday in front of Him at that time to give them merit, such that the main joy will be for His sake, may He be blessed. And since joy greatly elicits the physical and makes one forget the fear of God, God commanded us at that time to take in our hands things that remind us that all the joy of our heart is for His sake and His honor. And it was from His will that the reminder be from that which brings joy, just as the time is a time of joy - as all of the words of His mouth are just. And it is well-known that it is the nature of all of these four species to gladden the heart of those that see them.

(4) And there is also another matter with these four things - that they are similar to precious limbs in a man (see Vayikra Rabbah 30:14; Midrash Tanchuma, Emor 19): As the citron is similar to the heart, which is the dwelling place of the intellect, to hint that he should serve His creator with his intellect; the lulav is similar to the backbone, which is the essence of a person, to hint that he should straighten himself completely for His service, blessed be He; the myrtle [leaves are] similar to the eyes, to hint that he should not stray after his eyes 'on the day of the rejoicing of his heart'; and the willow [leaves are] similar to the lips, with which a man completes all of his acts of speech, to hint that he should put a muzzle to his mouth, calibrate his words and fear God, may He be blessed, even at a time of joy. And the reason that it is only practiced one day in the country (outside of the Temple) is well-known - since the main joy is on the first day. And if you should ask, "Why would one not take it on Shemini Atseret, which has great joy on it for Israel" - the answer is that the day of Shemini Atseret is completely for God, may He be blessed. And [it is] as they, may their memory be blessed, said (Bemidbar Rabbah 21:22; Midrash HaGadol, Shemot 29:36), "A parable of a king who made a feast, etc.," as it is [found] in the Midrash. And at the end, He said to them, "Remain with me one day, as your departure is difficult for me." And therefore, it is called atseret (a stopping). And if so, there is no need for any other reminder. And the holiday of Pesach does not require another reminder with the lulav, as behold the matsa and marror and the body of the Pesach sacrifice are between his hands; and further since it is not a time of joy as [much as is] the holiday of the gathering. And the holiday of Shavuot also does not require another reminder, since the essence of [that] festival is only from the angle of the giving of our Torah - and that is the great reminder to straighten our ways. And this is what appears to me in these matters from the side of the simple understanding. And I have come to believe that the kabbalists (mystics) have wonderful secrets about the commandment of the lulav and the three [other plants].

(5) From the laws of the commandment is that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Menachot 27a) that these four species are one commandment and impede one another when he does not have [one of them]. But if he has [all of them] and he takes them one after another, he has fulfilled [the commandment]; as it is established for us that the lulav does not need a binding (Tosafot on Menachot 27a, s.v. lo shanu, in the name of Bahag). And we take one lulav, two sprigs of willow, and three sprigs of fit myrtle - meaning that its leaves are formed in threes on the nodes, as is explained in the Gemara (Sukkah 32b), and the verse hints to this when it calls it "braided." And the minimum measure of the length of a lulav is four handbreadths; and [of] a myrtle and a willow is three handbreadths, which is [the span of] ten fingers of the thumb. And the measure of the citron is that it cannot be less than a kabeitsah (like a large egg). And the law of the things that disqualify (Sukkah 29, 34) the lulav, the citron, the willow and the myrtle; the law (Bava Batra 137b) of partners that have purchased a citron in partnership - or brothers that acquired it from the contents of a house - such that if they acquired it with the intention to fulfill [the commandment] with it, each one of them fulfills [it] and they do not need the acquisition of the one from the other. So did our teachers - may God protect them - instruct us. And the laws of shaking (Sukkah 38a), such that the obligation is to extend [it] and to bring [it back], to raise [it] and to lower [it]. And the matter is to arouse the soul, that it remember at the time of joy that all belongs to God, may He be blessed - from above to below and the four directions, as all is included in this. And the rest of its details are elucidated in Tractate Sukkah.

(6) And this commandment is practiced in every place and at all times by males, but not by females. And one who transgresses it and does not take these four species on the first day of the holiday of Sukkot that does not fall on Shabbat in any place - and so [too,] on all seven [days of Sukkot] in the Temple - has violated this positive commandment. And in the Temple it was taken on the first day, even on Shabbat.

(9) Another explanation: "The fruit of a beautiful tree (ets hadar)" - this is [referring to] the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written about Him (Psalms 104:1), "You were dressed in splendor and beauty (hadar)." "The branches of a date palm" - this is [referring to] the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written about Him (Psalms 92:13), "The righteous One flourishes like a date palm." "And a branch of a braided tree (a myrtle)" - this is [referring to] the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written (Zechariah 1:8), "and He is standing among the myrtles." "And brook willows (arvei nachal)" - this is [referring to] the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written about Him (Psalms 68:5), "praise the One that rides in the skies (aravot), with His name of the Lord."

(10) Another explanation: "The fruit of a beautiful tree (ets hadar)" - this is [referring to] our father, Avraham, who the Holy One, blessed be He, graced (hider) with a good old age, as it is stated (Genesis 24:1), "And Avraham was old, had come along in days;" and it is written (Leviticus 19:32), "and you shall grace (hadarta) the old." "The branches (kappot) of a date palm" - this is [referring to] Yitschak, who was bound (kafut which is spelled with the same letters as kappot) and tied up on top of the altar. "And a branch of a braided tree (a myrtle)" - this is [referring to] Yakov. Just like this myrtle bustles with leaves, so too was Yakov bustling with children. "And brook willows" - this is [referring to] Yosef. Just like this willow gets withered before these three [other] species, so too did Yosef die before his brothers. Another explanation: "The fruit of a beautiful tree (ets hadar)" - this is [referring to] Sarah, who the Holy One, blessed be He, graced (hider) with a good old age, as it is stated (Genesis 18:11), "And Avraham and Sarah were old." "The branches of a date palm" - this is [referring to] Rivka. Just like this date palm, it has food and it has thorns, so too Rivkah brought up a righteous one and an evildoer. "And a branch of a braided tree (a myrtle)" - this is [referring to] Leah. Just like this myrtle bustles with leaves, so too was Leah bustling with children. "And brook willows" - this is [referring to] Rachel. Just like this willow gets withered before these three [other] species, so too did Rachel die before her sister.

(11) Another explanation: "The fruit of a beautiful tree (ets hadar)" - this is [referring to] the Great Sanhedrins (high courts) of Israel, who the Holy One, blessed be He, graced (hider) with a good old age, as it is stated (Leviticus 19:32), "And you shall get up in front of a venerable one." "The branches (kappot) of a date palm" - this is [referring to] the Torah scholars who force (kofin) themselves to learn one from the other. "And a branch of a braided tree (a myrtle)" - this is [referring to] the three rows of students who would sit in front of them (since three myrtle branches are customarily waved). "And brook willows" - this is [referring to] the two judges' scribes who would stand in front of them and write down the words of those who would render innocent and the words of those who would render guilty (since two willow branches are customarily waved).

(12) Another explanation: "The fruit of a beautiful tree" - these are [referring to] Israel. Just like this citron (etrog), which has taste and has smell, so too Israel has among them people that have Torah and have good deeds. "The branches of a date palm" - these are [referring to] Israel. Just like this date, which has taste and has no smell, so too Israel has among them those that have Torah but do not have good deeds. "And a branch of a braided tree (a myrtle)" - these are [referring to] Israel. Just like this myrtle, which has smell and has no taste, so too Israel has among them those that have good deeds but do not have Torah. "And brook willows" - these are [referring to] Israel. Just like this willow, which has no smell and has no taste, so too Israel has among them people that have no Torah and have no good deeds. And what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do to them? To destroy them is impossible, but rather the Holy One, blessed be He, said "bind them all together [into] one grouping and these will atone for those." And if you will have done that, I will be elevated at that time. This is [the meaning of] what is written (Amos 9:6), "He Who built the upper chambers in the heavens" (indicating his elevation). And when is He elevated? When they make one grouping, as it is stated (Ibid.), "and established His grouping on the earth." Hence Moshe warned Israel, "And you shall take for yourselves on the first day."

(14) Rabbi Mani opened, "'All of my bones shall say, "Lord, who is like you"' (Psalms 35:10). This verse was only stated for the sake of the lulav (the four species). The spine of the palm branch is similar to the spine of man. And the myrtle is similar to the eye. And the willow is similar to the mouth. And the etrog (citron), is similar to the heart. David said, 'In all of the limbs, there are no greater ones than these, as they are compared to the entire body.' This is [what is meant] by 'All of my bones shall say.'"

(16) ... Rabbi Brachya in the name of Rabbi Levi says. in the merit of fulfilling the verse you should take for yourself on the first day.I will reveal myself to you and take revenge for you from the first -the Beit Hamikdash- of which it is written " A glorious throne on high from the first the place of the sanctuary"(Jeremiah 17:12). And bring for you the First-King moshiach- of whom it is written "The first shall say to Tzion(Isaiah 41:17)