Like everything else in Judaism, the building of a Succah is encompassed by various regulations. These Halakhic parameters serve not only to define a kosher Succah but give us an insight into the ideas behind the mitzvah. One such rule, that can be somewhat inconvenient to fix if you forget, concerns the order of the construction of the Succah. You may think that the S’chach or roof is the most important thing, and therefore decide to put up four poles and the S’chach on top, worrying about filling in the walls later. Such an action, however, renders the Succah not kosher. It is obligatory to first construct at least two and a half kosher walls and only then add the roof. If one did the opposite, you need to lift up the S’chach and put it back again. What could be the reason for this requirement? Why is the order in which you build the Succah at all important? If you look at the two components of the Succah, we can notice that one seems to be more important than the other. The mitzvah of Succah, according to the Torah, is to remind us of the Succot our ancestors dwelled in, in the wilderness. According to the Rabbis this signifies the protection of the Divine Presence. Yet this is signified by the S’chach. It is the flimsy roof of branches that points to the greater Divine protection above. The walls are merely what supports the S’chach. Surely they should be built last? Yet, here lies an important lesson that goes to the very heart of the idea of Succot. It can be seen that the S’chach represents spirituality and the walls the material world. By forcing us to build the walls before the S’chach, therefore, the Halakha is teaching us an important lesson about the relationship between the two. Without a material basis there can be no spiritual advancement. As the Rabbis put it in the ‘Ethics of the Fathers’: ‘if there is no flour there is no Torah’. Our physical lives, needs and desires, are the basis on which, and through which, is built our spirituality. If we neglect the base, the whole structure becomes unstable. Judaism totally refutes Augustine ideas of a separation between the spiritual and material. The way to G-d only lies through are material activities. That, indeed, is the purpose of the mitzvot. Nowhere is this message more apparent than during Succot. Coming after the intensely spiritual Yom Kippur, Succot, our most physical festival, teaches us to serve G-d through the material world. The ideas of Yom Kippur must be brought to earth and it is that which makes us rejoice. So build your Succah properly and be happy.
TORAH PREVIEW
FIRST DAY: 104-108 HAFTORAH: 109-112
The Torah Reading is from Leviticus and deals with the Festival cycle. The Haftorah is from Zechariah and describes the apocalyptic war at the end of days.
SECOND DAY: 104-108 HAFTORAH: 109-111
The Torah Reading is from Leviticus and deals with the Festival cycle. The Haftorah is from Kings and describes Solomon‘s dedication of the Temple.
SHABBAT: 112-116 HAFTORAH: 117-118
The Torah Reading is from Exodus and deals with the giving of the Second Tablets and Festival cycle The Haftorah is from Ezekiel and describes the War of Gog and Magog.
SUCCOT SITTING
-
One should eat, drink and sleep in the Succah.
-
Only cake, bread and wine, must be eaten in the Succah.
-
If it rains one is not obligated to stay in the Succah, except for the first night.
-
If it stops raining you are not obligated to return to the Succah.
-
If it is too cold one does not have to sleep in the Succah.
-
It is a mitzvah to eat at least 14 meals in the Succah.
-
In the Diaspora, it is customary to eat in the Succah on Shemini Atzeret.
SUCCOT SIZZLERS
- How many walls does a Succah have to have to be kosher?
- What tree does a lulav come from?
- How many times to we wave the lulav each day?
- Why don’t we take the lulav on Shabbat?
- Who is the Preacher in Ecclesiastes.?
- The myrtle is used, especially by Sefardim, in what two other rituals?
- What is the last day of Succot called and why?
