Bitterness isn’t just a tradition in the Jewish community–it’s a commandment. Here we answer some frequently asked questions about Passover‘s bitter herbs, also known as maror. Show
Q: Where does the commandment to eat bitter herbs come from?A: In Exodus 12:8 the Torah commands us to eat the paschal sacrifice, “with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs.” This same law is repeated in Numbers 9:20. Though we do not have the paschal sacrifice any more the obligation to eat the bitter herbs remains. Q: What qualifies as a bitter herb?A: The Hebrew word used is maror, which comes from the root mar, meaning bitter. In the Talmud, the rabbis came up with a list of qualifications for whatever vegetable you use as maror. It should be bitter, have sap, and be grayish in appearance. It also needs to be a vegetable that grows from the earth, not from a tree. (Pesahim 39a) Though we tend to refer to maror in English as an herb, it would be more accurate to say vegetable. Q: What are some examples of things that could be bitter herbs at my seder this year?A: The Mishnah (Pesahim 2:6) lists five possibilities that can be used at the seder, but it’s hard to know for certain exactly what plants they are referring to. The one that is most clear is called hazeret in Hebrew, which is commonly understood to mean lettuce. So many halakhic authorities today say the best form of bitter herbs is romaine lettuce, even though it is not initially bitter, but has a bitter aftertaste. The outer older leaves of romaine lettuce can contain a grayish milky sap that is very bitter. If lettuce is not available, any vegetable is suitable, and other common options are celery and horseradish (also known as chrein). Q: What is the symbolism of maror?A: Though it isn’t explicit in the Torah, bitter herbs are commonly held to be a symbol of the bitterness the Israelites felt when they were slaves in Egypt. By eating the herbs we feel bitterness ourselves, and can more easily imagine ourselves as slaves. When we dip the maror in the haroset we are associating the bitterness we feel with the hard labor the Israelites experienced at the hands of the Egyptians. Q: Why would we say a blessing over something that’s bitter and symbolizes hardship and suffering?A: When we dip maror in haroset we recognize that bitter and sweet often come together in life. To be a Jew is to see both the bitter and the sweet in the world, and to bless God for both. Maror also reminds us that misery is not meaningless. The pain that the Israelites suffered as slaves in Egypt was not for naught. It led to their cries for freedom, and ultimately their redemption.
Pronounced: MISH-nuh, Origin: Hebrew, code of Jewish law compiled in the first centuries of the Common Era. Together with the Gemara, it makes up the Talmud.
Pronounced: SAY-der, Origin: Hebrew, literally “order”; usually used to describe the ceremonial meal and telling of the Passover story on the first two nights of Passover. (In Israel, Jews have a seder only on the first night of Passover.)
Pronunced: TORE-uh, Origin: Hebrew, the Five Books of Moses.
Empower your Jewish discovery, daily The foods on the Seder plate sensually and memorably help fulfill the purpose of Passover. That purpose of the holiday is to retell — and symbolically relive — the slavery and then freedom of the historic Israelites. More than any other food during the Seder, the bitter herb symbolizes the bitterness of slavery. Eating bitter herbs (maror in Hebrew) is a 5,000 year old practice described in the Bible as the commandment to eat “unleavened bread and bitter herbs” (Numbers 9:11). Most Seder texts (haggadot in Hebrew) provide the instruction to eat bitter herbs in combination with charoset, the Hebrew word for the fruit & nut paste on the Seder plate, which represents the clay used by the slaves to make bricks. What are “bitter herbs”? There is no definition in the Bible. In the Talmud, acceptable bitter herbs are listed as a certain type of lettuce (understood today to mean romaine, due to its bitter after-taste), endive, chervil (a type of parsley), and other produce of that time. (Pesachim 2:6 and Pesachim 39a). An herb generally means an edible leaf. However, the food most commonly used for bitter herbs today is a root vegetable: horseradish. Notably, the common practice of choosing the horseradish root — instead of the leaf — packs a denser, more concentrated taste of bitterness. Seder participants usually eat either a raw chunk of the horseradish root (peeled and cleaned) or horseradish prepared as a condiment with vinegar. Either way, horseradish is a meant to be a serious hit of bitter. Some however make bitter herbs into a special salad and pleasing part of the meal, adding mint, scallions, and more: The New York Times, Bitter Herbs Salad Recipe. But here’s the thing…If the bitter herb doesn’t cause you to wince or shed a tear, then you haven’t fulfilled the purpose of eating it, to symbolically remember our people’s slavery. Bottom line, here’s the concept of how to eat “bitter herbs” at the Seder: If we’re gonna do bitter, let’s go all the way. This raises the question: What if you like horseradish? At every Seder table, there’s always someone why says, “I like horseradish. Give me a lot!” Is this just boasting? Definitely for some. (You know who you are :-). But for others…they like horseradish as a condiment, even during the Passover meal and throughout the year: Even the sushi condiment wasabi is often made using horseradish when wasabi isn’t available. The pleasure of eating the bitter wasabi is even extolled in the famous Budweiser ad that created the meme “wa-sa-beeee”. If horseradish doesn’t make you wince, or… If you take a big bite and feel like shouting wa-sa-beee, then horseradish may not your best choice at the Passover table! If horseradish gives your pleasure, consider choosing a different food that tastes bitter to you, that makes your wince or tear-up, even just briefly. You’ll then be more connected to the purpose and meaning of Seder. Here are some ideas for a food that may be bitter to you:
Or you may want to choose a food that isn’t bitter — if you like bitter — but is just unpleasant to you, or when eaten raw, such as: The key concept is: Choose a food that is bitter or unpleasant to you.
Choose one of those, and you’ll have an evocative, tiny taste of what it meant to be an Israelite slave, and fulfill the purpose of maror, the bitter herbs, at your Passover Seder. |
What are considered bitter herbs for Passover?
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