This Shabbat will be our oldest daughter’s Bat Mitzvah. When we asked her what she wanted as a special gift to remind herself of this special occasion, she answered without hesitation: a Star of David! This got me thinking of how pervasive the Star of David is in Jewish life.
The Star of David can be found around people’s necks, on the Flag of the State of Israel and in almost all imaginable Jewish ritual objects. A yellow Star of David is a symbol of the infamy of the Holocaust, whereas a Red one reminds us of the Jewish equivalent of the red cross: the Magen David Adom. The MDA is Israel’s national emergency medical, ambulance and blood bank service.
Where does the Star of David come from and is it really connected with King David? What is the origin of this six-pointed star?
The six points of the Star of David symbolize God’s rule over the universe in all six directions: north, south, east, west, up and down. It personally reminds me of the way we shake the lulav during Sukkot. We do it in all these six directions, again to symbolize God’s all-encompassing presence everywhere around us.
Originally, the Hebrew name Magen David — literally “Shield of David” — poetically referred to God. It acknowledges that our only empire maker and greatest military hero, King David, did not win by his own might, but with divine guidance and support. This is also alluded to in the third blessing after the Haftorah reading on Shabbat: “Blessed are you God, Shield of David.”
Curiously, the Star of David is not mentioned in the Bible nor in the Talmud, so it is evident that it only gained preponderance later in Jewish history. A prevalent theory is that the Star of David originated in the first century during the Bar Kochba rebellion. It was the outcome of a new technology developed for shields using the inherent stability of the triangle. Behind the shield were two interlocking triangles, forming a hexagonal pattern of support points.
The symbol’s association with King David comes mostly from Jewish legend. There is a Midrash that says that when David was a teen he fought his enemy King Nimrod. David’s shield was composed of two interlocking triangles attached to the back of a round shield. At one point the battle became so intense that the two triangles were fused together. David won the battle and the two triangles were henceforth known as the Shield of David.
The Star of David is not mentioned in rabbinic literature until the middle ages. It was during the latter part of this era that Kabbalists began to associate the symbol with deeper spiritual meaning. The structure of the star, with two overlapping triangles, has also been thought to represent the relationship between God and the Jewish people. The star that points up symbolizes God and the star that points down represents the Jewish people on earth. Yet others have noticed that there are 12 sides on the triangle, perhaps representing the Twelve Tribes.
Among the many meanings ascribed to the Star of David is that a six-pointed star receives form and substance from its solid center. This inner core represents the spiritual dimension, surrounded by the six universal directions. Similarly it would be the Sabbath, the seventh day that supplies balance and perspective to the six weekdays.
When Denisse and I place the beautiful six pointed star that we picked out and purchased for our first born daughter, our hope is that she will wear it proudly as a reflection of her own Judaism.
Rabbi Jacques Cukierkorn is the spiritual leader of Temple Israel and the proud father of Raquel who becomes a Bat Mitzvah this Shabbat.
