If you were to venture into the kitchen and start exploring the contents of each cabinet, you would most likely chance upon a cabinet whose contents contain numerous containers of spices. You may ask yourself, “What is the point of all this? Food can be cooked and served as is, why the need for spice? After all, isn’t the purpose of eating in order for my body to absorb the necessary vitamins, nutrients, and other benefits food has to offer for my survival?”

 The purpose of spice is to give the consumer a greater appreciation for the food that one eats. No, it is not necessary for survival, but it definitely helps the process. The same is with the commandments. One should perform the commandments because we believe that G-d only had our best interest in mind when He gave them to us in order to fulfill our purpose of why we were created. But we often wonder about the reasons behind them. One can perform the commandments without this understanding, but one would appreciate fulfilling the commandments much more with this knowledge, just as spice added to food. (Although ultimately one should fulfill the commandments whether or not he has an understanding of them yet.)

At the conclusion of this week’s Torah portion, Shelach, the Torah teaches us about the commandment of tzitzit. The Torah states: “They shall make for themselves tzitzit on the corners of their garments.” (Numbers 15:38). Elsewhere, the Torah elaborates, “Twisted threads you shall make for yourselves on the four corners of your garment with which you cover yourself.” (Deuteronomy 22:12) In short, there is a biblical commandment that garments that have four corners should have special strings twisted and tied with several knots in a specific way attached to those corners. The most common fulfillment of this commandment that may come to mind may be the talit, the prayer shawl. (Women are exempt from performing any positive commandment bound to a time frame; since the commandment to wear tzitzit is during to the daytime hours only, women are exempt from it.) (For a more detailed discussion of this commandment, please see The Code of Jewish Law sections 8-24.)

The following are some insights into the commandment of tzitzit that will give us some “spice” to the fulfillment of this commandment. (Most of which are based on a great book, Nesivos Shalom, by the great Slonimer Rebbe, Rabbi Shalom Noach Berzovsky).

The Torah states in reference to the tzitzit, “You shall see it and you shall remember all the commandments of G-d.” (Numbers 15:39) In addition, the Talmud states, “The commandment of tzitzit is tantamount to all the 613 commandments of the Torah.” (Tractate Menachos 43b)  What is the meaning of the above statements? How is one to remember the commandments by looking at the tzitzit? How is the single commandment of tzitzit in any way equivalent to all the commandments?

In essence, the tzitzit is our uniform. Just as the stripes, color, and design of an athlete’s uniform indicate which team he is a member of, so too when one looks at a tzitzit-clad individual, it is evident that this is a member of “G-d’s team.”  How so? What is it about the tzitzit that gives this impression?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

• The numerical value of the Hebrew letters that make up the word tzitzit equal 600. The tzitzit consist of eight strings that have five knots. Add all of this together and you get 613 – equal to the number of the mitzvot in the Torah! 
• The five knots parallel the five books of the Torah.
• The four corners remind us that G-d is the king over the four corners of the world.
• This garment represents our being members of the nation of One G-d. The Hebrew word for one is “Echad.” Thisword is made up of the three letters, Aleph, Chet and Daled. Aleph, which has the numerical value of one, represents that there is one garment to the tzitzit. Chet has a numerical value of eight, which is equivalent to the tzitzit’s eight strings. Daled’s numerical value of four is equal to the four corners of the tzitzit.
• The knots that are tied on the strings represent the relationship between G-d and the Jewish people. Just as a knot connects one entity to another, so too do we have a connection to G-d.

These fascinating points give us some insight into how the tzitzit is the uniform for the members of G-d’s people. We now have an understanding of how looking at this garment can raise our awareness of the commandments, which connect us to G-d. This also explains how this single commandment is tantamount to all the others, as tzitzit is intended to be a physical reminder of all the commandments.