The Torah commands us to take “Pri Eitz Hadar” and lucky for us – it turned out to be the Etrog or Esrog, a citric fruit which grows on a tree full of needle like thorns. The Esrogim are growing all year long. They endure everything and don’t really care if it’s snowing, if it’s raining, if it’s hot or cold – they are stubbornly persistent (I think it reminds me of a certain religion).
The esrog is part of the Arba’at HaMinim, which are an essential part of Sukkot. If you’ve never seen an esrog, just think about a lemon. A weird lemon. In the ritual of Sukkot, the esrog, which has a nice taste and a nice smell, represents those of us who have both the Torah and good deeds. Another explanation is that the esrog represents the heart. That is why we have to be careful when choosing an esrog and follow strict guidelines.
Your typical esrog is about 5 inches long and it has a bumpy rind to it. The esrog should be oblong shaped, a completely round esrog is not kosher! The bottom side of the esrog should also be larger than the top.
What else? It should have a nice yellow color to it, and no black spots or discoloration of any kind. In one end of the esrog you’ll find the stem that connects to the tree. At the other side there needs to be a Pitam.
The pitam is the big deal. Scientists will call it stigma. We’ll call it “Fragile”. You see, if your nice little esrog has a pitam, then you need to be extra careful not to break it. If it breaks – we have a problem and you must call the rabbi. But! If you get an esrog that grew (!) without a pitam – you’re good to go.
Even if you’ve seen an esrog all your life – you probably missed the inside of it, which is fairly interesting. Actually there’s almost no inside to the esrog. The citrus has very little juice to it and most of the esrog is the peel and the white part, common in most citrus fruit.
Because the esrog is so precious, it’s recommended to protect it during Sukkot. The esrog is usually wrapped in flex fibers and stored in a unique esrog box. There are many beautiful esrog cases, some are made of decorated silver, and others are made of velvet, wood or even leather. Remember to complete the set and get a Lulav (front of a palm tree), Hadass (branch with leaves of the myrtle tree) and Aravah (branch and leaves of the willow tree)
If you are looking for that special esrog case, or just the esrog itself, or maybe an esrog with a lulav, you can find them all at www.Eichlers.com along with many other Judaica items such as kosher cookbooks, kosher inventions, Jewish music, Tzizis, Tallis, and anything else you can imagine. Get ready with all your high holiday gifts and shopping at www.Eichlers.com – the world’s Judaica store.
