The next element of the 15 elements of Passover is maror.
Where have we heard that word before?
Maror is a bitter herb. When you mention maror, most people think of horseradish. It is hot and not easy to eat. Be careful how much of it you put on your Passover plate!
It is during this part of the Seder that we taste a little bitter herb. Quickly we realize how unpleasant it is on our tongue. We dislike doing this. It is a hard, but necessary part of the service. If you want to continue with the rest of the Seder, you have to get through tasting the maror.
SYMBOLISM OF MAROR
This is symbolic of so many things in life. No matter how much we like to cross our t’s and dot our i’s; no matter how organized and careful we are; at some point in life we are going to experience some trouble that is totally out of our control.
Life often takes us by surprise. This happens just like the tasting of this flavor being so hot and spicy. It takes those who have not tasted the maror before by surprise.
Often in life, we are not happy with the results of something, but there is nothing we can do about it. If we are not careful we end up with an attitude as bitter as this maror.
EATING BITTERNESS
Why on earth would we be commanded to eat bitterness?
By eating the bitter herb ourselves, we experience a tiny bit of the bitter way a slave must have felt in Egypt. Later, when we dip the maror in the charoset, we will associate the bitterness that comes from constant hard labor without rest or refreshment.
The maror symbolizes the bitterness and the charoset associates the making of bricks the slaves were forced to do. (We will talk about this in another article.)
But; why would we say a blessing over something so bitter? It does not even taste good. Maror leaves a bad taste in our mouths.
THANKFUL FOR THE BITTER AND THE SWEET
Faithful people have learned over the years that we need to thank God for the bitter as well as the sweet. If we never know bitterness, how will we learn to appreciate sweetness? God allows both. The two opposites are meant for creating balance.
I ran across a great animated clip by Hanon Harchol which explains a lot about Maror. The Father tells the son who is doubtful about eating maror, “you can’t have the Garden of Eden without the snake.” That is how bitter herbs work in life; just like the snake in the garden. View this video to get a better idea of why this is true. The end results of eating the bitter herb seem to produce faith; and that is a great thing!
Here is a link to the animated video I speak of. It is worth your time to watch: https://youtu.be/PMglldaETwQ.
THE SIGNIFICANCE COMES LATER
The end of the conversation comes and the father tells the son that eating the bitter herbs produces faith.
It is a lesson we all need to learn.
Sometimes we simply have to eat the maror and taste the bitterness of life. We never know the significance of that moment until much later.
So, go ahead. Taste the maror.