Height Really Does Matter
Why is the blessing recited over the lulav rather than the etrog, although the etrog is beautiful, expensive, fragrant and rich in symbolism? The sages answer: because the lulav is taller than the others. But perhaps real height is not what a person possesses, but what those gifts allow that person to become.
The etrog is usually the star of the four species. It is expensive, beautiful, fragrant, and the Torah itself calls it “the fruit of a beautiful tree.” Yet the blessing is “on taking the lulav.” The Gemara asks why we do not lift the etrog and bless over it, and answers: “because in its species it is the tallest of them all” (Sukkah 37b).
At first glance the answer sounds almost technical: the lulav is simply taller. Yet this halakhah opens a window onto the meaning of “height” in human life. The Midrash compares the four species to different types within Israel. The etrog, with taste and fragrance, represents both Torah and good deeds. The lulav represents Torah. If so, why does the lulav give its name to the mitzvah?
Perhaps because personal completeness is not the end of the story. The question is not only what a person has, but what those gifts do to that person and to everyone nearby.
A person can accumulate Torah and remain unchanged. One can know a great deal and still speak harshly, hold an impressive position and diminish others, succeed greatly and turn success into a wall. Torah is therefore measured not only by the amount of information we possess but by the human transformation it creates.
Rav Yosef said of the day of the giving of the Torah, “If not for this day, how many Yosefs are there in the marketplace?” (Pesachim 68b). Torah created a new kind of height within him, not the height of status but the height of consciousness. Genuine learning should broaden vision, refine judgment, soften ego and bring depth into ordinary reactions.
This height is tested precisely where it can be misused. If I know more, does someone who knows less feel small beside me or safe? If I have money, does it only widen the distance between me and others, or does it open possibilities for kindness? If I have authority, do I need to display it constantly, or am I secure enough to listen?
The four species are bound together. The tall lulav does not stand alone; it is joined to myrtle and willow, with the etrog beside them. Perhaps this reminds us that truly elevated people do not need isolation in order to feel great. They remain connected.
The world may ask a successful person: how high did you climb? Torah asks a more exact question: what did you do with your height? If God gave you more Torah, influence, talent or resources, did anyone beside you rise because of the way you used them?
Real height is not the distance between you and the people below you. Real height is how many people you managed to lift with you.