Pesach - The Two Dippings

 

** This week's Derasha is dedicated in memory of Avraham ben Gemilah A"H **

 

As the child observes during the singing of מה נשתנה, there are two points during the seder when we dip some food before eating it.  Early in the seder, after kiddush, we dip the karpas (a piece of vegetable) in saltwater, or vinegar (depending on one's family custom), and later, right before the meal, we dip the marror in haroset.  What might these two dippings represent?

 

The Ben Ish Hai explained that the two dippings, which are performed before and after the main part of the seder, correspond to two dippings that in essence bookended the period of exile in Egypt.  The first dipping commemorates מכירת יוסף, Yosef's sale as a slave by his brothers, when they dipped his special garment in goat's blood to make it appear as though he was attacked by a wild animal.  As we prepare to tell the story of our ancestors' bondage in Egypt, we bring to mind how it started – with hated among brothers, with divisiveness, with jealousy, with brothers turning against one another.  Then, after we learn about the process of Yetziat Mitzrayim, we dip a second time to commemorate the night Beneh Yisrael left Egypt.  In preparation for this night, they slaughtered a sheep and dipped branches in the blood, which they then smeared on their doorposts.  These branches were bound together into a bundle, symbolizing unity, as the people corrected the scourge of hatred and divisiveness that had caused their exile and joined together in peace and harmony.

 

I also saw an additional explanation of the two dippings.

 

The first time, we take the karpas, a tasty vegetable, and dip it into something foul-tasting.  The second time, we do just the opposite – we take the bitter marror and dip it into the sweet haroset.  The karpas and the marror represent the two different kinds of stages we go through in life.  At times, we enjoy "karpas" – good fortune, happiness and success.  But we all go through phases of "marror," of "bitterness."  Every person, without exception, struggles at various points in life.  Whether it's devastating loss, financial hardships, problems within the family, or challenges with physical or mental health, we all deal with "marror" of one kind or another.

 

The two dippings instruct us how to handle both the joys and the bitterness.

 

During times of joy and good fortune, we need to exercise caution not to become too confident or arrogant.  We must not become overly self-assured, certain that we will always enjoy unbridled happiness and success.  We must remind ourselves that life is fragile, that we are always vulnerable.  The dipping of the karpas into the saltwater thus represents the tempering of our joy, teaching that while we are certainly entitled to enjoy our good fortune, we must ensure not to see ourselves as invincible, or that our continued success is guaranteed.

 

But in times of "bitterness," when we are struggling, when life has taken a wrong turn, when we feel pain, sorrow or anxiety, we need to do the opposite – we need to "dip" these feelings into the "haroset," and make them "sweeter."  We must believe that Hashem is always helping us, and even the direst, most painful situation can be reversed.  Instead of wallowing in sadness and self-pity, we need to "sweeten" our feelings through emunah, by reminding ourselves that Hashem is in control.

 

The message of the two dippings, then, is we must never get too high or too low.  Both in times of joy and in times of struggle, we need to place our faith in Hashem, and trust that He is managing our lives, and that we can and must always rely only on Him. - Rabbi Joey Haber

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https://itorah.com/weekly-inspire/pesah--the-two-dippings/15/29565