Sukkah 46 - A full cup

Rabbi Zeira said, "Observe how human properties differ from God's. In the human world, an empty cup can receive liquid, but a full one cannot. But in the spiritual world, only a person who already has a certain measure of Torah knowledge in him - only he can receive more." What is the proof? The Torah said, "And it will be that if you listen, then you will listen." That is, if you listened before, then you will listen more.

A young child can acquire things but cannot legally give them to others. This is due to a combination of Torah law and later decrees. Therefore, one should not give the lulav to a young child on the first day of Sukkot before he has fulfilled the mitzvah of the lulav himself. Otherwise, the child may acquire the lulav but will be unable to legally give it back. As a result, the father will be doing the mitzvah with a lulav that does not belong to him, and one must own the lulav.

Art: A Cup of Water and a Rose by Francisco de Zurbarán