The festival of Sukkot is different from all other major holidays because it does not celebrate or commemorate a historical day or a day specifically arranged by G-D to be a holiday. Sukkot fundamentally celebrates the harvesting of the crops left to dry after the initial harvest, however the traditions of Sukkot also serve to remind us of how our ancestors lived during their wandering of the desert for 40 years.
One of the key mitzvot of Sukkot is dwelling in the sukkah. The Torah commands us to “Live in sukkah for seven days: The Israelites are to live in sukkah so that “…our descendants will know that I had the Israelites live in sukkot when I brought them out of Egypt: I am the Lord your G-d” (Vayikra 23:42-43). By living in a sukkah, we experience a small taste of what it was like for the Jews who fled Egypt and wandered in the desert for 40 years. The sukkah is a small hut made of weak materials and it is a physical reminder of the rootlessness our ancestors experienced and a reminder that in those days they were all equal.
The Torah instructs us “You shall rejoice in your festival, with your son and daughter, your male and female slave, the [family of the] Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow in your communities.” Sukkot is a time for celebration where all material possessions and social status are left behind, where people celebrate with each other Las equals, no matter their wealth or influence. This unity and equality among the Jewish people is further exemplified through the waving of the Arba Minim (the 4 species of Etrog, Lulav, Myrtle and Willow) each representing a different type of Jew, one who has no Torah knowledge and no good deeds, one with Torah knowledge but no good deeds, one with good deeds but no Torah knowledge and one with both Torah knowledge and good deeds. We bring them together to represent the need for unity among all types of Jews, the need for the talents of each type for Israel to prosper, as well as their fundamental equality.
The lesson to be learned from Sukkot is twofold. Firstly we must remember that each person is equal and capable of contributing to society and thus we must not discriminate. Secondly Sukkot encourages us to reflect within the Sukkah as we discard our material possessions for a short period, on what truly matters to us: is it the material possessions we discarded or something else? As we live in an increasingly consumerist society it is important that during Sukkot we contemplate this question and find what we truly treasure and what we will pursue throughout our lives.
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach!
Luca, Grade 12