Our Gemara defines what the Mishna means by the term “Paritze Zeisim”, literally translated as, “brazen, disobedient olives.

מַאי פָּרִיצֵי זֵיתִים? אָמַר רַב הוּנָא: רִשְׁעֵי זֵיתִים. אָמַר רַב יוֹסֵף: וּמַאי קְרָאָה – ״[וּבְנֵי] פָּרִיצֵי עַמְּךָ יִנַּשְּׂאוּ לְהַעֲמִיד חֲזוֹן וְנִכְשָׁלוּ״. רַב נַחְמָן בַּר יִצְחָק אָמַר: מֵהָכָא – ״וְהוֹלִיד בֵּן פָּרִיץ שֹׁפֵךְ דָּם״.

The Gemara asks: What is the meaning of unruly [peritzei] olives? Rav Huna said: Wicked olives, i.e., olives that barely produce any oil. Rav Yosef said: And what is the verse from which it is derived? “Also the children of the wicked [peritzei] among your people shall raise themselves up to establish the vision but they shall stumble” (Daniel 11:14). This verse indicates that the word peritzei means wicked. Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said that the meaning of this word can be derived from here: “If he begets a son that is a robber [paritz], a shedder of blood” (Ezekiel 18:10).

There is a mystical idea that when there is physical corruption in the world it has an effect on the divine flow and therefore manifests symbolically and relatedly in the material world. There is a Midrashic teaching that due to the immoral sexual perversions of the generation of the Flood, even the beasts interbred (see Rashi Bereishis 6:12.) Ha’amek Davar (Bereishis 19:19) elaborates on this, stating that when laws of meat and milk or wool and linen are broken, this causes disruptions in the physical world and can affect the ecosystem. These so-called unruly olives are not just using a borrowed term, but they actually are a manifestation of human rebellious behavior. In a modern sense, what ills that affect the environment come from our spiritual desecrations? The rise in autism, allergies and autoimmune conditions might also be indicative of a societal lack of internal balance and integrity.

Sefer Daf al Daf in our gemara wonders why Rav Yosef uses one prooftext, and Rav Nachman bar Yitschok uses another: Rav Yosef’s verse is stated in a plural context regarding the entire Jewish nation, while Rav Nachman bar Yitschok’s verse relates to an individual. Though both Amoraim hold that perverse and evil behavior can affect the physical world and cause similar disruption and corruptions, Rav Yosef holds that the community holds this power, but not an individual. On the other hand, Rav Nachman bar Yitschok holds that even an individual’s immoral behavior can have a negative impact on his physical conditions. Rav Yosef holds that only a wicked society can cause the manifestations of rebellious olives, but Rav Nachman bar Yitschok holds that even a private person’s behavior will affect his orchard.

If we study Rav Nachman bar Yitschok’s personal history, we can see that he was especially vigilant about his own individual spiritual status, which may be a part of this middos and philosophy. There is a tradition (Shabbos 156a) that his mother was told by a fortune-teller that her son would be a bandit. In order to counter his natural tendencies and potential fate, she had him always wear a head covering (the progenitor of our custom to wear a yarmulke) to maintain mindful fear of God. The Gemara tells us that Rav Nachman’s personality was so sensitive to these inclinations that one day, when his head covering accidentally fell off, he became overcome with animal lusts and urges. Similarly, Gemara Sotah (5a) records a dispute between Rav Nachman bar Yitschok and his colleagues. While his colleagues held that a sage must at times tap into and utilize a sense of pride at a minimum level (presumably to promote respect for him and Torah), Rav Nachman held even the smallest amount of pride was spiritually toxic. We see Rav Nachman bar Yitschok may have had an overall ethic of greater personal responsibility for the spiritual and physical state of the world.

Translations Courtesy of Sefaria, except when, sometimes, I disagree with the translation

Do you like what you see? Please subscribe and also forward any articles you enjoy to your friends, (enemies too, why not?)