2998 —אתרוגים עם מסורת כשרים בלי פטום או גומא

B"H, the 5th of MarCheshvan, 5715. Brooklyn.

Haraha"g vavac"h iy"a nu"n etc. Yaakov Zaltz

Shalom u'Vrachah!

In response to your letter from after the festival and all of Tishrei, which was received after some delay: As you requested, I will mention you and your family at the holy resting place of my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe, of blessed memory, at an auspicious time.

Thank you for the good news that a minyan was held in the Chabad Beis Midrash during the Ten Days of Repentance, and for the addition that it served not only as a synagogue but also as a study hall. It is well known what our Sages said on the verse 'Ohev Hashem Sha'arei Tzion Mikol Mishkenot Yaakov' (Berachos 8a) ('The L‑rd loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob').

Regarding what you wrote about non-murkov esrogim in which you see several that lack both a pitum and a groove in that place, and therefore you are unsure which is preferable—such an esrog or a murkov one—since there is this deficiency, as explained in later authorities on Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 648.

See Responsa Chatam Sofer Orach Chaim section 207, where he rules that an esrog is like a kosher bird that is eaten only by tradition. It is also explained there that these signs are certainly not from the Torah and are not mentioned in the Talmud or early authorities.

From this we also learn regarding your question about the necessity of a groove—that this ruling comes from practical reality. However, when esrogim known by tradition to be non-murkovim are found without pitum or groove—and it seems clear that several of those esrogim mentioned by Chatam Sofer as having tradition lack both pitum and groove—it is possible these varieties did not reach those later authorities who wrote about the necessity of a groove.

With blessing.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that when there is a reliable tradition regarding esrogim being non-murkovim, their lack of pitum or groove does not disqualify them. Halachic requirements may depend on local custom and established tradition rather than absolute physical features.