Etrog and Hadas in Judaism: Meaning, Symbolism, and Healing Properties

The etrog is a strikingly beautiful citrus fruit, with a wonderfully pleasant fragrance, and a very delicate flavor. The Torah refers to it as “pri etz hadar” (“the fruit of a beautiful tree”), and in the writings of the Sages it is likened to the human heart.

The etrog is one of the Four Species taken for the mitzvah on Sukkot. It possesses many beneficial medicinal qualities, some natural and others segulot (spiritual properties).

Segulot (Spiritual Properties)

• One who suffers from eye pain should frequently look at the appearance of the etrog.

• A woman who has difficulty in childbirth should eat an etrog on Hoshanah Rabbah, specifically an etrog over which the blessing of the Four Species was recited.

• One who purchases a beautiful etrog and spends a great deal of money on it for the sake of Heaven and not for pride merits children who are Torah scholars.

It is customary to use the etrog over which the blessing was recited to prepare a preserve or jam, which is eaten on Tu B'Shvat.

Natural Properties

• One who has difficulty speaking should chew etrog peels.

• Eating etrog peels strengthens the heart.

• The etrog balances liver activity, stimulates appetite, and refreshes the body.

• Those who suffer from depression or melancholy should increase their consumption of etrog.

• Etrog juice helps quench intense thirst and stabilizes blood pressure. Those with fluctuating blood pressure are advised to drink etrog juice daily.

The etrog should not be eaten during or immediately after a meal, but rather between meals or before eating. However, since the peel is difficult to digest, people with digestive problems are advised not to eat it.

Additional Uses

• To remove stains from clothing, rub the fabric thoroughly with the flesh of the etrog.

• The fragrance of the etrog repels clothing moths.

Hadas (Myrtle)

The hadas is an evergreen ornamental shrub. It grows mainly in mountainous regions — on the Golan Heights, around Safed, and in the Galilee, and is also cultivated in home gardens and public parks. There are many varieties of hadas, and its identifying feature is its leaves, which grow in pairs or triplets.

The hadas produces flowers and berries, but these disqualify it from use in the mitzvah of the Four Species, as the mitzvah requires a hadas with leaves only, without flowers or fruit.

Hadas in Tanach and Chazal

The hadas is mentioned many times in the Tanach, and first appears among the Four Species taken on Sukkot. In the words of the prophets it appears in various contexts:

• In Yeshayahu, within visions of redemption, as a symbol of goodness and perfection.

• In Zechariah, where the prophet likens it to the people of Israel.

In the halachic and aggadic literature of Chazal, the hadas is discussed extensively. The Sages were well acquainted with its botanical features, and in Tractate Sukkah all its parts are described in detail.

There are many varieties of hadas: some used only for ornamentation, others for producing oil used in medicine, perfumes, and cosmetics, and some that are even fit for consumption.

Fragrance and Custom

The fragrance of the hadas is gentle and very pleasant. Kabbalists, as well as many Jews of Middle Eastern communities, follow the custom of the Arizal to smell the hadassim before Kiddush. It is also smelled during Havdalah on Saturday night for the blessing over spices.

Among Middle Eastern Jewish communities, hadassim are also smelled at celebrations such as brit milah and pidyon haben. The Talmud relates the beautiful custom of Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai, who would take branches of hadas and dance with them before the bride. Rabbi Shmuel bar Yitzchak did likewise, tossing three hadas branches while dancing and catching them one after another.

Why was the hadass chosen specifically for dancing before the bride? Because the hadas is beautiful, fragrant, and evergreen, it symbolizes success, freshness, and genuine love between husband and wife, and thus became a symbol of successful married life. The Tosefta records that “crowns of grooms” were made from hadassim (Sotah 49b).

Medicinal Properties

The hadas is effective for:

• Stopping bleeding

• Constipation and diarrhea

• Strengthening the teeth

• Preventing uterine prolapse in women

• Acting as a powerful disinfectant, particularly against dysentery

• Treating skin irritations, inflammation, and wounds

• Preventing hair loss and refreshing its appearance

The Talmud mentions hadas as a remedy for high blood pressure (Gittin 68b).

Methods of Use

• Ointment: Dry the hadas leaves, crush them, and mix with olive oil. Apply the paste to sensitive skin, hair, and gums.

• Tea: Steep the leaves and drink as tea for intestinal inflammation, ulcers, constipation, and urinary tract infections.

Ancient sources note that a woman struggling in childbirth should have crushed hadass leaves mixed with a small cup of warmed wine, which would ease delivery. It is also recorded that a woman who frequently smells hadas, especially on Motzaei Shabbat, will merit wise children.

The Druze customarily rub infants with powdered hadas to remove scalp flakes and strengthen hair roots.

Asaf the Physician wrote of the great power contained in myrtle oil: “Its nature is warm; it is effective for intestinal ailments, strengthens the stomach, relieves distress, stops bleeding, helps hemorrhoids, promotes hair growth, darkens it, strengthens it, and enhances its appearance.”