K'zayit
- Leann Shamash
- Aug 13
- 4 min read
#parshateikev #seferdevarim #eikev #romblaslavski #bread #olives #kezayit #thesizeofanolive #birkathamazon #deuteronomy
Soon after we begin Parshat Eikev, Mose reiterates the hunger that the Hebrews felt in the desert, which resulted in the gift of the Manna.
[God] subjected you to the hardship of hunger and then gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your ancestors had ever known, in order to teach you that a human being does not live on bread alone, but that one may live on anything that י-ה-ו-ה decrees.
Deuteronomy 8:3
It is also in Parshat Eikev that we learn about plenty with a description of the seven species of The Land, including dates, figs, grapes, wheat and olives and barley which leads us to phrase we include in the Birkhat Hamazon, (the prayer following a meal)
וְאָכַלְתָּ֖ וְשָׂבָ֑עְתָּ וּבֵֽרַכְתָּ֙ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ עַל־הָאָ֥רֶץ הַטֹּבָ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָֽתַן־לָֽךְ׃
When you have eaten your fill, give thanks to your God יהוה for the good land given to you.
Deuteronomy 8:10
Thinking about food and blessings, the rabbis wonder what constitutes a meal and it is bread which is deemed the anchor food of any meal. It is on bread that we make the Hamotzei (the bread blessing) and the Birkat Hamazon (prayer following a meal which includes bread), but in true talmudic fashion, the rabbis need to understand the details as to what constitutes a meal. How much bread do we need to make a meal? The amount they decide upon is small amount, about the size of a large olive. This is called K'Zayit, or"like an olive, thus whether a meal is a feast or meager, we still thank Gd for bread.
The rabbis ask us to be thankful both when we are blessed with ample food, but also for the smallest amount of food when gratitude is much more difficult to muster. The rabbis wrote for a people who often suffered at the hands of others, so thanking God was less about the amount of bread that you ate, but the fact that one had bread at all.
*
About two weeks ago we saw the video of one of the Israeli hostages, Rom Braslavski, his body weakened and emaciated. In a Islamic Jihad propaganda video he stated that his meal that day had been three falafel balls. Three small balls the size of three olives. The image of Rom haunts me, especially on this week where we learn about a land blessed with milk and honey and foods that make our mouths water.
Hunger can never be justified.
Depriving people of food is wrong.
Anywhere.
Anytime.
Anyone.
Never.
Kazayit: Three Felafel Balls Per Day
The table is set.
Summer tables laden with food.
Ice cubes swim in frosty glasses of water.
Pomegranates stain lips red,
while the juice of grapes coats our mouths with sweetness.
Wine tickles the palate.
Sweet dates and figs sweat in colorful ceramic bowls.
Crusty bread made from the wheat of the fields,
and golden olive oil for dipping.
Surrounded by jars of olives; brown, black, green.
Wine lends happiness to the occasion.
This day of savory mixed with the sweet of The Land.
K'zayit, the rabbis say,
a meal becomes a meal with a piece of bread the size of an olive
Sometimes we remember to bless before we eat
on a glorious summer day,
and sometimes the blessing is forgotten
in the rush to fill our bellies.
We are so blessed and we forget to bless.
Our heads turned by food,
we take the plenty on the table for granted.
Gratitude one of those things on our lists.
We'll remember to bless tomorrow.
K'zayit…bread the size of an olive.
*
Rom,
You barely survive on three felafel balls a day
Your arms as thin as corn stalks
Your body bent like a reed in the fields
Your cheeks sunken from lack of water
Your eyes dulled and dry
How can we eat, how can we enjoy our food while you starve?
How can we sit at a table and eat?
If we forget you, Rom, let our right hands wither
If we forget you, Rob, let our tongues cleave to the roof of our mouths.
Ribbono, Shel Ha'olam,
Teach us the blessing to say in order to bring them home.
*
Three felafel balls,
the size of three olives
K'zayit
You languish, our brother.
We weep in disbelief and cannot be comforted.
Where is our power to bring you home?
For this post I have loosely gathered text from Psalm 137*
1 By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
2 There on the poplars
we hung our harps,
3 for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
4 How can we sing the songs of the Lord
while in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill.
6 May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.*
*(verses 7-9 are not included here)
*Thank you to Rabbi Michael Siegel and Jonathan Eyck for the podcast dated August 21, 2024 on Eikev: Blessings: The Jewish path of Satisfaction, which inspired this week's post.
Rabbi Siegel hosts a podcast called The Pen and The Yad.
אֱלֹהִ֤ים ׀ אֵלִ֥י אַתָּ֗ה אֲֽשַׁ֫חֲרֶ֥ךָּ צָמְאָ֬ה לְךָ֨ ׀ נַפְשִׁ֗י כָּמַ֣הּ לְךָ֣ בְשָׂרִ֑י בְּאֶרֶץ־צִיָּ֖ה וְעָיֵ֣ף בְּלִי־מָֽיִם׃
God, You are my God; I search for You, my soul thirsts for You, my body yearns for You,
as a parched and thirsty land that has no water.
וַיַּרְעִבֶ֒ךָ֒
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