What the Lulav and Etrog Teach Us About Real Unity
Every Sukkot, we take four very different plants and hold them together: a lulav, or palm branch; an etrog, the citron fruit; three hadassim, or myrtle branches; and two aravos, or willow branches.
At first glance, it may seem like an unusual collection. Why these four plants? And why must they be brought together to perform one mitzvah?
The answer contains a powerful lesson about community, relationships, and the way we view people who are different from us.
Four Species, Four Types of People
The Midrash explains that the Four Species represent four kinds of Jews.
The etrog has both a pleasant taste and a fragrance. It represents someone who combines Torah learning with good deeds.
Dates, the fruit of the palm tree, have taste but little fragrance. The lulav therefore represents someone whose strength is learning and understanding.
The myrtle has fragrance but no edible taste. It represents someone whose strength is action: helping others and doing mitzvahs.
The willow has neither a noticeable taste nor fragrance. It represents someone who may not yet display either of these qualities openly.
But here is the surprising part: not one of the four can be left out.
Even the beautiful etrog, which appears to have every advantage, cannot fulfill the mitzvah alone. It must be joined with the simple willow. Each one is necessary, and each one contributes something that the others cannot provide.
Being Different Is Not the Problem
We sometimes imagine that unity means everyone thinking, behaving, or believing exactly the same way.
The lulav and etrog teach the opposite.
The four species do not lose their identities when they are brought together. The lulav remains a lulav. The etrog remains an etrog. The myrtle does not need to become a willow, and the willow does not need to pretend that it is an etrog.
They create one mitzvah because they are different, not despite being different.
The Rebbe explains that this is a deeper kind of unity. It is easy to feel united when differences are ignored. Sukkot asks us to remain united while recognizing that people have different personalities, talents, backgrounds, and levels of Jewish knowledge.
Real unity does not mean, “You must become more like me.” It means, “You have something that I need, and together we can become something greater.”
Unity Is Built Into the Four Species
The theme of unity is not only found in bringing the four plants together. According to the Rebbe’s teaching, each species displays unity in the way it grows.
- The leaves of a kosher lulav are joined closely together.
- The hadas grows with sets of three leaves arranged together around the same stem.
- Willows naturally grow in groups.
- The etrog remains on its tree through changing seasons. It experiences heat, cold, wind, and rain, yet each season contributes to its growth.
The etrog does not grow by hiding from change. It grows by absorbing something from every environment it encounters.
That may be the most practical lesson of all.
It is not enough to tolerate people who see things differently. We can learn from them. Their experiences may reveal something we have never noticed. Their strengths may help us improve an area in which we are weak.
The Humility of the Etrog
The etrog appears to be the most complete of the Four Species. It has both taste and fragrance. Yet the Rebbe emphasized that the etrog’s true beauty depends on humility.
A person may be knowledgeable, accomplished, and deeply committed. But when those qualities lead to arrogance or distance from others, something essential is missing.
The etrog becomes part of the mitzvah only when it is brought close to the other species, including the willow.
Our strengths are not meant to place us above other people. They are meant to help us connect with them.
Someone with knowledge can teach. Someone with warmth can inspire. Someone who is generous can help. And someone who is still searching can remind everyone that Judaism belongs to every Jew, not only to those who already know the most.
A Sukkot Question to Take With Us
When we hold the lulav and etrog, we can ask ourselves:
- Do I only feel comfortable around people who are similar to me?
- Do I recognize the strengths of people whose Jewish background is different from mine?
- Can I remain true to who I am while making room for someone else?
The Four Species teach us that no person is complete alone. We need the scholar, the doer, the deeply involved, and the person who is just beginning.
On Sukkot, we bring them all together, not as identical branches, but as different parts of one people.
Unity does not erase our differences. It gives those differences a shared purpose.
Adapted from teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, including “The Unity of Our People” and “Four of a Kind.”
Preparing for Sukkot? Explore EasyEtrog’s lulav and etrog sets.