As myrrh (mor) is the foremost
of spices so Mor-decai was the foremost of the righteous in
his generation (Esther Rabbah 2.5)
Mordecai
raised Esther. She had been named Hadassah (myrtle) because
as the myrtle spreads fragrance, so she spread good works throughout
the entire land. She was also named Hadassah because the righteous
are compared to myrtle, like Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, of whom
it is said: "And he stood among the myrtle trees" (Zechariah
1.8). She was also named Hadassah because, as the myrtle does
not wither in summer or winter, so the righteous do not perish but
have a share in this world and in the world to come. Esther remained
the same in her youth and in her old age and never ceased from doing
good.
She was called Esther, because she was
like the planet Venus, which in Greek is Astara. (II Targum
2.6,7)
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From:
Philip Goodman, The Purim Anthology, Philadelphia: Jewish
Publication Society, 1988 pages 126-27
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