In past years we have focused our attention in the month of Nissan on the letter Heh and the Sense of Speech that is associated with it. In this Jewish leap year the addition of a month has the Torah portions in the month of Nissan relate to the Metzorah (manifesting with a spiritually based skin affliction) who is seen as suffering because of a misuse of speech. In this context we are doubly reminded of the power that speech has for good and evil.

This year as we approach the Seder and the observance of Passover it is interesting to note that from the mystical tradition what is at the center of our focus is the Maror (the bitter herbs). This is demonstrated by the placement of the Maror in the middle of the Seder plate. The six K'arot-cups and the Seder plate itself represent the lower 7 Sefirot and the 3 Matzot represent the upper 3 Sefirot. The Sefirah (singular of Sefirot) that is in the middle, onto which the Maror is superimposed, is the Sefirah of Tiferet-which means both beauty and harmony. Two questions arise: 1.Why should our focus be on the Maror? 2. How is remembering pain and bitterness (by eating the Maror) a thing of beauty?

The Double Reish

We turn to looking at the letters that constitute the root of Maror to guide us in an understanding of the meaning of the word and the concept it conveys. The 3 letter root is Mem-Reish-Reish which is used in many different contexts to mean bitterness. We have commented in the past that when a word has a double letter (here 2 Reishes) that the doubling is a clue to the essential meaning of the letter. In the past we have explained the Reish as indicative of a starting point or the place or person that leads. Literally, the Reish is the "head" whether in relation to the individual's body, a leader in relation to the people or Nissan as the head of the months in relation to the other months.

It is curious to find in the Torah portion of Metzorah a word that is constructed of 2 letters--the word Ror, spelled--Reish-Reish! Surely the double use of Reish in this word leads us to something fundamental about the letter Reish. The verse containing the word Ror refers to the Zav who experiences an issue from his body that creates a state of impurity. In Leviticus (15:3) the Torah distinguishes between flesh "running with the issue" where the word for "running" in Hebrew is Ror and flesh being "closed up with the issue." The translation of the word Ror seems unequivocal, because of its contrast to its comparison word in the second half of the verse-Hechteem-which means to be stopped up. The meaning then for the double Reish is "to flow."

This information about the letter Reish provides a fresh insight into its meaning in relation to time, place and person. The Reish or Rosh (head) represents the nexus of the flow. In the example of the physical body, all thought and movement flow from the head to the rest of the body. In time, the different heads of the Jewish year (Roshei Hashana) create a flow of energy to the ensuing month(s) or the entire year and from places that are the Rosh flow forth energies to the world [so too we find the Torah beginning with the word Rosh as in Beresheet which can now be translated as : "in the initial flow" (of G-d's creative energy).

Jewish Beauty

Let us extend our understanding of the Reish and apply it to its double presence in the word Maror. What flows as a result of the Maror? We have all witnessed the physiologic response to biting down on a particularly pungent piece of Maror. The face becomes flushed and the eyes can tear. This is the physical manifestation of the flow from the Maror. The emotional/spiritual dimension of the Maror is to activate a feeling and flow of empathy for pain and suffering resulting from being oppressed. There is not only a harmony that resonates when empathy is experienced for another but also a beauty. This is the core of Jewish Beauty and the essence of our constant reminder to "remember that we were slaves in Mitzrayim." We who have suffered at the hands of oppressors must cherish the gift of freedom and yet not forget the pain of others who are still oppressed.

May we merit to feel the pain of others, to share and allow its expression and to act in ways that bring freedom to the world and end oppression. Thus will the word of G-d be fulfilled, "and freedom shall be proclaimed for all the inhabitants." (Leviticus 25:10). The Hebrew word for freedom? Dror--its root as well spelled with a double Reish--Dalet-Reish-Reish.