NO MORE WALLOWING IN WILLOWHOOD! A Message for Succot
One of the most ancient minhagim (sacred customs) of the Jewish calendar not directly sourced in the Torah – it dates at least from the era of the last of our prophets Haggai, Zecharia and Malachi – is to take a five-strong band of arava (willow) branches on the last day of Succot, Hoshana Raba, and to beat it on the ground five times (Succa 44b, O.C. 664:4).
It is a uniquely curious practice. Why just the arava, rather than the entire arba’a minim (four species) that we have been waving together all through Succot? And why beat it on the ground? And why five aravot five times?
There are profound mystical explanations of this practice. However I would like to propose a novel approach to a more basic understanding of this rite by invoking the well-known symbolism of the humble arava as representing the simple Jew lacking in the Torah wisdom exemplified by the taste of the date-palm, and deficient in mitsvot (good deeds) as symbolised by the fragrance of the hadas (myrtle), not to mention the thoroughly-endowed etrog (citron) which possesses both the aroma of mtsvot and the taste of Torah learning. (Vayikra Raba 30:12)
The arava thus appears as the poor relation of the other three species. Yet on Hoshana Raba we lay aside those three and take up the arava as if to say that when we compare ourselves to our righteous and scholarly ancestors (and almost all Jews living today will boast at least one rabbinic sage or tsadik in their family tree going back several generations whether they know it or not) we are honest enough to confess that we resemble the humble willow.
So when we beat the hoshana (the name we give to the five-branch willow bundle), we are in effect symbolically chastising our willow selves. We are indulging in a virtual self-flagellation, a graphic atonement for only being willows. (The vivid ritualisation is not dissimilar to Tashlikh on Rosh HaShana or Kaparot on Erev Yom Kippur.)
But we don’t overdo it. Five klapps of the hoshana are enough!
Why five? Perhaps the reference is to the chamishei chumshei Torah, the five books of the Torah which, two days later, we shall be concluding and recommencing anew. Not only will we again read each successive sidra in shul, but we shall hopefully eagerly peruse its contents gaining fresh insights from its eternal and inexhaustible wisdom as part of our daily learning schedule, while at the same time attempting to fulfil more and more of its precious mitsvot.
May I now suggest another way at looking at this same ritual. Are we perhaps attempting to beat the willow out of ourselves?
After all, we are not destined to have to remain willows forever. We can aspire to perform in a higher league, can we not?
We can gain promotion to the lulav division by resolving to be more diligent in our study of the weekly parasha with its commentaries in greater depth in the year to come. And maybe not only engage with the five books of the Torah but also the six orders of the Mishna and Talmud, perhaps even joining the ranks of the page-a-day Talmudists who are looking forward to successfully completing the present 7.5-year cycle in eight months’ time!
And when it comes to mitsvot, both Torah and rabbinic – all of which are rooted in the five books of the Torah even if only by way of asmakhta (allusion) – our symbolic beating may be intended to goad us into increasing our daily, weekly and yearly quota so that we can aspire to the ranks of the fragrant hadas.
And to the extent that we succeed in beating the arava-limitations out of ourselves, who knows: we may even reach the highest-functioning tier of the etrog!
To resolve to reach higher in Torah learning and in mitsvot: maybe that is the quintessential kavana (intention) that should animate us when we give the hoshana a good hiding!
Still and all, the custom is to not beat every one of the leaves off the willow branches but to leave a few behind. There is something pure and transparent about the pintele yied, the simple Jew which we are to take with us when we climb the ladder to the lulav, hadas and etrog realms.
In summary, when we klapp hoshanas this year, let’s resolve not to be content to wallow in willowhood!
Chag Sameakh!
N