THE FESTIVAL OF SUKKOT

 

THE FESTIVAL OF SUKKOT

Eric Levy, French, 1800's

Sukkot is called the “Festival of Ingathering” and” the” Festival of Booths”.

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TORAH SOURCES FOR CELEBRATING SUKKOT

Exodus 23:14 and in part 16 – states:

שָׁלֹשׁ רְגָלִים, תָּחֹג לִי בַּשָּׁנָה

“Three pilgrimages in a year shall you celebrate for Me”.

וְחַג הָאָסִף בְּצֵאת הַשָּׁנָה, בְּאָסְפְּךָ אֶת-מַעֲשֶׂיךָ מִן-הַשָּׂדֶה

“…and the festival of ingathering at the departure of the year, when you gather in your labors from the field”.

Exodus 34:22 (in part):

וְחַג֙ הָ֣אָסִ֔יף תְּקוּפַ֖ת הַשָּׁנָֽה

“…and the festival of the ingathering, at the turn of the year”.

Leviticus 23:34:

דַּבֵּר אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, לֵאמֹר:  בַּחֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר יוֹם, לַחֹדֶשׁ הַשְּׁבִיעִי הַזֶּה, חַג הַסֻּכּוֹת שִׁבְעַת יָמִים, לַיהוָה

“Speak to the children of Israel, saying: On the fifteenth day of this seventh month, is the Festival of Succoth, a seven day period to the Lord”.

“Now, the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the produce of the land, you shall keep the festival of Hashem, lasting seven days; a complete rest on the first day, and a complete rest on the eighth day.

 On the first day you shall take the fruit of majestic trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before Hashem your God for seven days.

You shall keep it as a festival to Hashem seven days in the year; you shall keep it in the seventh month as a statute forever throughout your generations.

 You shall live in booths for seven days; all that are citizens in Israel shall live in booths,

 so that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am Hashem your God”.

Deuteronomy 16:13:

חַג הַסֻּכֹּת תַּעֲשֶׂה לְךָ, שִׁבְעַת יָמִים:  בְּאָסְפְּךָ--מִגָּרְנְךָ, וּמִיִּקְבֶךָ

“You shall keep the feast of booths seven days, after that you have gathered in from your threshing-floor and from your winepress”.

These Torah sources about Sukkot date back to the time of Moses, 3,500 years ago. There is a lot more to say about Sukkot in the time of King Solomon around 900 BCE, the return of the Exiles in the Book of Ezra and Nehemiah in the 6th century BCE, in the 2nd Temple period around the year 100 BCE and as recently as the 16th century.  

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Some time ago, Rabbi Wein had somethings to say on Sukkot . Here are some excerpts:

The holiday of Sukkot is, perhaps, unique amongst all the holidays of the Jewish calendar year. The laws pertaining to the commandments particular to this holiday are almost all exclusively derived from the oral law given to our teacher Moshe on Sinai

There is no way that a succah can be successfully and traditionally constructed without recourse to the intricacies and nuances that the oral law that the Torah provides for us.

Here in Israel when Covid was rampart the construction of succah was much more muted and minimal than in previous years. There was a far greater reliance upon the so-called imaginary walls that the oral law envisions for us, to somehow be halachically acceptable and valid, and allowed much outside air to enter and escape, as mandated by the health authorities.

Simply reading the text in the Torah itself does not allow for partial walls to be considered as complete walls, and for walls and roofs to be considered as touching each other, even though strictly speaking to our human eyes, they do not touch.

There are myriad laws involved in the proper construction of a succah. But these laws are not readily apparent from the reading of the text of the Torah itself. It is only the oral law that breathes life into words and letters of the Torah and gives them meaning and practical vitality.

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MAX’S SUKKOT QUIZ QUESTIONS

My friend Max came up with a quiz that relates to Sukkot.  Attached are his questions.  Do your best.  Answers are appended on to the end of the post.

1-Who are the guests to welcome daily in the Sukkah?

2-How many Clouds did HASHEM provide for the Jews in the Desert?

3-What are the walls requirement of the Succah ?

4-How many Blessings to make on the first nite of Sukkot ?

5-Who instituted to bench on Lulav & Estrog daily during Sukkot ?

6-What is the Best Simcha in Life during Beit HaMikdash?

7-What are the 2-Blessings women do while lighting the Candles ?

8-How many cows were offered during Sukkot ?

9-What Mitzvots are performed during Sukkot ?

10-Why is Sukkot celebrated in Tishrei and not in Nissan?

11-What are the 2-Definitions used in Torah regarding Sukkot ?

12-What is the S'Chach made out of ?

13-Do we recite Berachah of dwelling in Sukkah Daily?

14-When is the ideal time to build the Sukkah ?

15-What are the minimum of walls required to build a Sukkah ?

16-What are the dimensions of the Walls ?

17-What are the essentials in building the Sukkah and S'Chah ?

18-What are the requirements of the Four Species  ?

19-What are the 2-Main Directions for the Shaking the Four Species ?

20-Laws of Simcha Torah and SHEMINI Atzeret ?

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 DO NOT MISS THIS FILM: "USHPIZIN"

Ushpizin is an Aramaic word meaning "guests".  It refers to a Kabbalistic tradition where "Exalted Guests" such as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are invited into your succah.  In the film, however, the exalted guests are escaped criminals.

Moshe and Mali Bellanga are an impoverished, childless couple in Jerusalem.  They cannot pay their bills, much less prepare for the upcoming Jewish holiday of Sukkot.  After some anguished prayer, they receive an unexpected monetary gift on the eve of the holiday.

Moshe admires a particularly beautiful etrog required for the holiday observance.  Moshe buys the etrog for 1000 shekels, a large sum of money that is much more than he can afford.

The couple is visited by a pair of escaped convicts, one of whom knew Moshe in his earlier, sometimes violent non-religious life, and the story really takes off.

Don’t miss it…great acting…great characters.

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Rav Kook on Sukkot, excerpted and adapted from Mo'adei HaRe’iyah p. 96, Chanan Morison:

The Talmud in Sukkah 27b makes a remarkable claim regarding the holiday of Succoth:

“For seven days... all who belong to the people of Israel will live in sukkot [thatched huts]” (Lev. 23:42).

This teaches that it is fitting for all of Israel to sit in one sukkah.

Obviously, no sukkah is large enough to hold the entire Jewish people. What is the meaning of this utopian vision — all of Israel sitting together in a single sukkah?
During the holiday of Succoth we absorb the light of Torah and a love for truth. Conflicting views become integrated and unified. Through the spiritual ascent of the Days of Awe, we attain a comprehensive unity, a unity that extends its holy light over all parts of the Jewish people. During this special time, it is as if the entire nation is sitting together, sharing the holy experience of the same sukkah.

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MAX’S SUKKOT QUIZ QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

A year ago, Max came up with a quiz that relates to Sukkot.  Attached are his questions and answers.  How did you do?  Maybe you have to study more; I do.

1-Who are the guests to welcome daily in the Sukkah?

ABRAHAM, ISAAC, JACOB, YOSEF, MOSHE, AHARON, & DAVID

2-How many Clouds did HASHEM provide for the Jews in the Desert?

7-CLOUDS, 4-ON EACH SIDE, 2-TOP & BOTTOM, 1-FRONT

3-What are the walls requirement of the Succah ?

WALLS ON SUKKAH CAN BE MADE OF ANYTHING, MUST STAND WINDS

4-How many Blessings to make on the first nite of Sukkot ?

4-BLESSINGS, 1-PRI HAGAFEN, 2-VZAHAMIM, 3-LESHEB, 4-SHEHEYANU

5-Who instituted to bench on Lulav & Estrog daily during Sukkot ?

RABBI YOHANAN BEN ZAKAI AFTER THE TEMPLE DESTRUCTION

6-What is the Best Simcha in Life during Beit HaMikdash?

THE WATER LIBATION WHICH TOOK PLACE ON CHOL LAMOED

7-What are the 2-Blessings women do while lighting the Candles ?

 LHADLIK NER SHEM LE YOM TOV , & SHEHECHEYANU

8-How many cows were offered during Sukkot ?

70 COWS , REPRESENTING THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD

9-What Mitzvots are performed during Sukkot ?

1-DWELL IN SUKKAH, 2-LULAV & ESTROG, 3-HOSHANA RABA, 4-SIMCHA TORAH

10-Why is Sukkot celebrated in Tishrei and not in Nissan?

FOR THE SAKE OF THE MITZVAH, AND TO WEATHER CONDITION

11-What are the 2-Definitions used in Torah regarding Sukkot ?

1-TEMPORAY DWELLING, 2-CLOUDS OF GLORY FOR PROTECTION

12-What is the S'Chach made out of ?

MUST BE GROWN FROM THE GROUND, DETACHED, AND PURE

13-Do we recite Berachah of dwelling in Sukkah Daily?

IT IS INCUMBENT UPON EVERYONE TO DWELL DAILY IN THE SUKKAH

14-When is the ideal time to build the Sukkah ?

RIGHT AFTER FINISHING YOM KIPPUR

15-What are the minimum of walls required to build a Sukkah ?

COMPRISED OF 3-WALLS,

16-What are the dimensions of the Walls ?

70 CM WIDE, 100 CM TALL COVERED WITH  THE SCHACH

17-What are the essentials in building the Sukkah and S'Chah ?

ALL THE MATERIALS USED FOR THE SUKKAH MUST BE GOTTEN HONESTLY

18-What are the requirements of the Four Species  ?

LULAV 40 CM HIGH, ETROG 60 GRAMS, 3-HADASSIM 30CM LONG

AND 2-BRANCHES OF ARAVOT (WILLOWS ) 30CM LONG

19-What are the 2-Main Directions for the Shaking the Four Species ?

SHULCHAN ARUCH -EAST, SOUTH, WEST, NORTH, UP & DOWN

ARIZAL-SOUTH, NORTH, EAST, UP & DOWN, WEST

20-Laws of Simcha Torah and SHEMINI Atzeret ?

IN ISRAEL BOTH DAYS ARE CELEBRATED ON THE SAME DAY,

 NO SIITING IN SUKKAH ,

DAY TRULY DESIGNED TO HAVE TREMENDOUS SIMCAH WITH TORAH