Mandrake
The "Love Plant" believed to aid fertility.
Botanical Facts
scienceHerb
דּוּדָא (Dudai)
Mandragora officinarum
2 references
Use and Superstition
The mandrake has a forked root resembling a human body, which led to much ancient superstition regarding its power to cause conception. In Genesis, Rachel traded a night with Jacob for Leah's mandrakes (Genesis 30:14), hoping to conceive.
Ironically, after trading for the "fertility plant," Rachel remained barren while Leah conceived without it. The Bible records the cultural use of mandrakes without endorsing the superstition, teaching us that life is from the Lord, not magic.
The Fragrance of Love
In the Song of Solomon, the mandrakes give off a fragrance (Song of Solomon 7:13). Here they redeem the symbol, representing the physical intimacy and passion of marriage within the beauty of covenant love.
Botanical Context
A member of the nightshade family, containing slightly hallucinogenic and narcotic alkaloids.