4 Adar II, 5774 (3/6/14) – Sukkah#31 {Tani}

Rabbanan: A dried out lulav is pasul (not Kosher to use as part of the bundle of 4 species) because just like by an esrog, it needs to be beautiful, a lulav by association has the same principle applied. Rabbi Yehudah says its Kosher because it should not be compared to an esrog.  An esrog needs “hadar”  (to be beautiful) but a lulav does not have that word mentioned in relation to it.

T’s Lesson: When it comes to doing mitzvos (like lulav and esrog) it is not enough just to do them. We have to do them in the best way possible, to make them beautiful.  Invest our time and money for the optimal performance of the mitzvah. The more beautiful, the more schar (reward) and the better the mitzvah. If you do not do the mitzvah in the best way, it is as if it is “dried out” because the beauty is lacking in the way the mitzvah was done.