One of our favorite classes at B’erot is Herbal Workshop as no such
class exists in any other women’s midrasha or seminary. We integrate the
learning of herbal and Torah teachings about the plants that grow in our
vicinity when they’re at their peak. Then we go out into nature and pick enough
of the particular plant for tea, medicated oil, or tincture. Not all the
wonderful plants that grow in our surrounding area can be traced back to the
Torah, but it is very exciting when we do find plants – mentioned in the Bible
– growing right near our doorstep. I really enjoy relating the spiritual
significance of various plants that grow here in Israel to their context in the
Torah. Rockroses grace the bare land here in Bat Ayin around Pesach time. Large
drifts of pink and white ephemeral flowers fill our edges and meadows. Two
rockrose varieties are growing in our area. One has white petals with butter-yellow
centers and is smaller than the pink variety with wrinkled petals. These hardy evergreen
shrubs native to the Land of Israel hardly need any caretaking. They are very
common in the Mediterranean including in the Judean Hills where we live. Rockroses
are great edging plants with their low maintenance needs and rough, gray leaves.
Rockroses grow in the back of my flower garden towering over the pansies,
snapdragons, and daisy bushes. Hailing back from Biblical times, rockroses are
also mentioned in the Mishna, where the Rabbis discuss whether or not the laws
of Shemitta (the Sabbatical year) apply to them (Mishna Shevi’it,
Chapter 7, Mishna 6). Although rockroses are very adaptable, they are not for
everyone. They only grow in climates with relatively mild winters. I’ve never
met a rockrose anywhere but in Israel. Usually, each flower lasts only until
mid-afternoon before gently falling to the ground. The bush is part of the Rockrose
charm. Blooming for only a few weeks each spring, the shrub’s characteristic as
a carefree evergreen is endearing too. Yet, when the few weeks of early spring
finally arrive and the melding of the millions of pastel flowers becomes a
daily experience, we truly appreciate the rockrose. There are so many flowers
on a mature rockrose that it is hard to see the bush.
The
Choicest Products of the Land Accompanying the Exiled Yosef
From Biblical times, rockrose has been popular as a perfume and
aromatic. When Yosef’s brothers decided to sell him as a slave, they grabbed
the opportunity to have him sent down to Egypt with a company of spice-selling
Arabs:
ספר בראשית פרק לז פסוק כה וַיֵּשְׁבוּ לֶאֱכָל לֶחֶם וַיִּשְׂאוּ עֵינֵיהֶם
וַיִּרְאוּ וְהִנֵּה אֹרְחַת יִשְׁמְעֵאלִים בָּאָה מִגִּלְעָד וּגְמַלֵּיהֶם
נֹשְׂאִים נְכֹאת וּצְרִי וָלֹט הוֹלְכִים לְהוֹרִיד מִצְרָיְמָה:
All the plants mentioned here served both as remedies and for
embalming the dead (Da’at Mikra). One of the aromatics mentioned in our
Torah verse is לֹט/lot, which Targum Onkelus
translates as לֹטּוֹם/lotum
– the Hebrew word for rockrose, or more specifically, for the resin – labdanum
– produced from it. Although it is generally challenging to identify most
plants mentioned in the Bible, most commentaries and botanists have little
doubt that the biblical לֹט/lot refers to rockrose.
Thus, לֹּטֶם/lotem
– labdanum mentioned in the Mishna is identified with לֹט/lot in
Scripture (Bereishit 37:25). “There are those who identify it with the
native bush with large, pretty flowers in the colors of white-yellowish or pink
(Cistus). It
grows mainly in the mountains of the Land of Israel” (Kehati, Mishna Shevi’it,
Chapter 7, Mishna 6). לֹט/Lot – labdanum is a perfume
produced from rockrose plants (Rabbi Ya’acov, Fliks, The Plant World of
Scripture, p. 272-273). The very same labdanum that accompanied Yosef down
to Egypt is what Ya’acov intuitively chose to give as “a gift to the man” –
second in charge to Pharaoh, who was no other than Yosef in disguise.
The Choice Products of the Land Reminding Yosef of his Connection
to Israel’s Land
ספר בראשית פרק מג פסוק יא וַיֹּאמֶר
אֲלֵהֶם יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲבִיהֶם אִם כֵּן אֵפוֹא זֹאת עֲשׂוּ קְחוּ מִזִּמְרַת
הָאָרֶץ בִּכְלֵיכֶם וְהוֹרִידוּ לָאִישׁ מִנְחָה מְעַט צֳרִי וּמְעַט דְּבַשׁ
נְכֹאת וָלֹט בָּטְנִים וּשְׁקֵדִים:
“So, Israel, their father said to
them, ‘If it must be so, then do this: take from זִּמְרַת
הָאָרֶץ /Zimrat Ha’aretz – ‘the choicest products of the
land’ in your vessels and carry down to the man as a present, a little balm,
and a little (date) honey, a spice mixture, ֹלֹט/lot – ‘labdanum,’ pistachios and
almonds’” (Bereishit 43:11).
Rashi
explains thatזִּמְרַת
הָאָרֶץ /Zimrat Ha’aretz refers to “that which is praised in the Land, about which people
sing praise when it comes into existence.” Despite the severe famine, that gripped the
land of Israel at the time, Ya’acov had various choice products on hand to send
to Egypt. These choice products represent the bounty of the land of Israel, similar
to the Seven Species through which the Land of Israel is praised. Nevertheless,
in contrast with the Seven Fruits of the Land, these crops can survive even during
drought years, since they require relatively small amounts of rain. Balm, gum,
and labdanum are products of the sap dripping from the bark and leaves of
various plants. Pistachio and almond trees flower early, fruiting before olive,
grapes, and pomegranate trees have even blossomed. Most plants in Israel
including the Seven Fruits of the Land depend on specific weather conditions
that determine the fate of their crops. This applies especially during the
sensitive period between Pesach and Shavuot distinguished by multiple climatic
changes and contrasts. For the Israelite farmer, whose sustenance depended on
the success of his crop, the drastic shifts between the southern and northern
winds could easily tempt him to regard them as battles between various deities.
This poses a danger of “being enticed to serve the other gods” (Devarim
11:16), of the local Canaanites. Yet, the plants that Ya’acov chose to send as
a gift to the ‘Egyptian ruler’ aren’t dependent on the weather conditions. They
grow even during a severe famine. Therefore, they do not present the worrisome
agricultural problems that could lure people away to serve other gods. (Noga
Reuveni, Nature in Our Biblical Heritage pp. 35-28). It is interesting
that the ‘Choice Products of the Land’ include three kinds of produce: 1. צֳרִי נְכֹאת וָלֹט/tzori, n’chot v’lot – ‘balm, gum and labdanum’ – plants used for their perfume. 2. דְּבַשׁ/devash
– ‘honey’
– liquid foods. 3. בָּטְנִים
וּשְׁקֵדִים/botnim u’shekdim
– ‘pistachios and almonds’ – solids (Da’at Mikra). Perhaps these choice products of
the land allude respectively to the three garments of the soul: Thought, speech,
and action. The צֳרִי נְכֹאת
וָלֹט/tzori, n’chot v’lot – balm, gum, and labdanum that may
represent the aspect of thought, reminded Yosef about his connection to Israel,
as they were identical with the merchandise carried by the caravan that brought
him down to Egypt from Israel.
Uniting Together to Become Vessels
for the Sefirot of the Upper Land
The
choice products of the land that Ya’acov sent to Yosef were called “Zimrat
Ha’aretz” – the strengths and praise of Hashem because they were drawn from
the upper world and had the power to transform ‘din’ (judgment) into ‘rachamim’
(mercy). Moreover, these species, including rockrose, represent the unity of
the sefirot. Before Israel went down into the Egyptian exile, they had to be
completely united. Through the power of this unity, Israel would survive the
exile and emerge as a complete nation during the Exodus. When the sefirot are
united in the Infinite (Ein Sof) good influences are drawn down from the
upper worlds into the lower world. Of all the sefirot two specific sefirot (on
the middle axis) unite and connect the rest of the sefirot: Tiferet and Yesod.
Ya’acov, who represents Tiferet, draws down the influences of the upper
worlds to Yosef. Yosef, the embodiment of Yesod, then divides these
influences into the lower world. This is the secret of Ya’acov’s Zimrat Ha’aretz
gift, which he sent to Yosef (Maor V’Shemesh, Parashat Miketz). The Zimrat
Ha’aretz embodied the sefirot, which must be united. When the brothers sold
Yosef into slavery, the sefirot went down into exile. This is symbolized by the
fact that the Zimrat Ha’aretz accompanied Yosef down to Egypt. Ya’acov sent
Yosef the gift of Zimrat Ha’aretz with his brothers because he understood
that it was time to rectify the blemish in the unity of the sefirot caused by
the sale of Yosef. By bringing the Zimrat Ha’aretz to Yosef, the
brothers became vessels for the sefirot from the upper land that united
them all together.
The Rockrose Helped Yosef to
Overcome His Trauma and Forgive his Brothers
Rockrose
is a medicinal herb for the body, mind, and soul. I find it interesting that
the spiritual properties of rockrose are synchronized with the emotional needs
of Yosef when he as a tender youth of 17 was harshly ousted by his brothers and
sold into slavery to the most spiritually decadent society of Egypt. We can
imagine how Yosef’s reaction to his abusive treatment by his own brothers may
have elicited the ‘fight, flight, or freeze’ response. Yet, he couldn’t run away or fight against
his stronger and older brothers, the only response available to him was ‘freeze.’
By divine providence, Hashem brought it about that the rockrose – a remedy for
alleviating suffering from coldness and feelings of internal numbness –
accompanied Yosef down to exile. Specifically, these properties of the rockrose
had the ability to thaw Yosef’s frozen heart. Rockrose is furthermore the chief
ingredient in Rescue Remedy, recommended for panic, shock, and fears caused by
trauma that Yosef had just suffered. It
helps those who experience fear to think clearly. People take rockrose to
treat panic attacks, anxiety,
stress, extreme fright, or fear; and for promoting calmness and relaxation. The lightly creased, rockrose thus
became the antidote to Yosef’s delicate and beautiful feelings that otherwise
may have dried up or been destroyed due to the possible unmastered experiences
and emotions of the trauma Yosef suffered. Rockrose brings about expansion,
especially in the heart, lungs, gut, and womb, and creates deep relaxation. It
is a nourishing and softening herb enabling hope and ease, as we surrender to
our truth. How amazing that Hashem had prepared the healing to Yosef’s
wound and imparted within him the remedy that kept his flame burning and prevented
him from despair. The rockrose, the brothers brought Yosef years later, as a
gift, also releases old hurts and buried memories. This was exactly the remedy Yosef
needed when he prepared to face his brothers anew and completely forgive them. The
spiritual properties of rockrose explain how the choice products of Eretz
Yisrael “are praised in the Land, about which people sing praise when they come into existence” (Rashi). זִמְרַת הָאָרֶץ/Zimrat Ha’aretz with their ability to form the holy emotions of the Children of Israel indeed embody the praises of the Land of Israel. 
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