BSD

Sukkah 32b

Shvat 2, 5782. January 4, 2022

1-  Lulav – We discussed the date palm tree and its many species. 

2- ציני הר הברזל  

Our Mishna discusses a Lulav – palm trees – from a place called הר הברזל. While this area is on the East Bank of the Jordan River, the גמרא says that such an area of palm trees also existed right outside the walls of Yerushalayim. 

‘Two palm trees are in the valley of Hinom. Smoke arises in between them. These trees are of the הר הברזל species and are OK to use as a Lulav. And that site, where the smoke escapes from, is the door to גיהנום! ’

Holy smoke….

We discussed the opinion of some that there is an actual physical גן עדן and גיהנום on earth. 

3- Canary Island palm trees- הלולב הקנרי

These islands are off the Moroccan coast . They are famous as a tourist destination and infamous for a multiple airplane tragedy that happened there in 1977.

The controversy about the species of the Canary Island palm trees to use for לולבים. 

The question was/is if these Canary date palms are the same species as the standard palm trees that have been used for thousands of years. 

Some say that they are פסול and one should not make a ברכה  on them, even if its the only לולב available. Others allow it. 

Until this came to the forefront in 1978, this was the לולב species used by many in some countries! 

See here: 

https://www.torahmusings.com/2016/10/trees-count-lulav-trees/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_canariensis

https://www.ebay.com/itm/392769132989

(Thanks to Zev Sero for the above 2 links) 

4 – נענוע

We discussed the phrase in the Gemara that the הדסים need to be 3 טפחים in length and the Lulav an additional טפח. And here are the crucial words: כדי לנענע. 

Meaning that this extra טפח that the Lulav extends above the הדסים is for the purpose of נענוע. 

What is לנענע? Is it to shake, flap and wiggle. Or perhaps just to ‘move from side to side’ or to ‘wave’? 

If it means for the top of the Lulav to shake loosely, we have the issue of all the closed לולבים (with the layer of brown growth) or the לולבים that have a קנעפעל as discussed in a previous shiur. These לולבים are stiff and do not wiggle at all! 

It would seem that if the Lulav needs (as per the גמרא above) to extend above the הדסים  for  נענעים , then it must mean to wiggle and shake. For if it is just to ‘move’, then what does this extra טפח accomplish? It moves even if it’s the same length as the הדסים. 

This is a topic that we find discussed by some. For starters, the רמ”א writes explicitly (651, 9) that one needs to wiggle the Lulav.  מכסכס . 

But is this the actual נענוע? A bit unclear.

 

We mentioned the מאירי that writes that some actually bring proof from our גמרא that a לולב  must be loose enough to shake and wiggle! He argues and says that all we need is the ability to wiggle, thus the extra טפח  to protrude over the הדסים, but no actual wiggling is required.

He uses the term כל הראוי לבילה. 

The ביכורי יעקב  says that the ריטב”א says that , קשקוש , a real shakin’ is a must! And he wonders as to why no פוסקים mention this חיוב. 

See here.

So we have 3 opinions. 

A– Stiff with no wiggling. No shaking is needed. נענוע means ‘moving’. גאונים. 

B– Full shaking and flapping of the upper part of the לולב the   . רמ”א, ריטב”א. 

C– The ability to be wiggled. מאירי, Chabad and others.

5-    כהנים מיוחסים

We mentioned the interesting topic of ‘who is a real כהן’? 

There is a קבלה from the ראשונים that if 300 כהנים would circle the הר הזיתים Moshiach will arrive. 

בספר הרקח (פרשת תצווה) לרבי אלעזר מוורמייזא מובא:”אם היו שלוש מאות כהנים עומדים בהר הזיתים והיו אומרים ברכת כהנים, היה בא המשיח”.

See here. (Thank you Dani for this source) 

We spoke about the story brought in a certain edition of the ספר חסידים   

 (מק”נ  תרל)  ,about Rav Hai Gaon who tried to do the above circling and,  as we sadly know…. it didn’t work…. 

When he met אליהו הנביא he asked him why was not he  successful in bringing משיח? 

אליהו  responded that from all the Kohanim gathered there, only one was was a real כהן, a descendant of אהרן הכהן, and he  ל”ע was  half blind and a limping בעל מום!!!

See here about the DNA tests that generated much debate a few years back. Some said it can show a direct lineage to אהרן הכהן.

However, see here.

 

We finish with a good note.  ומסיימין בטוב

Moshiach now!