Sukkot

Sukkot

Sukkot is a weeklong Jewish festival which falls in the fall season just after the high holidays. For many in Israel and in the diaspora, it is a exciting time when people construct their sukkah, sleep inside it, wave their lulav and etrog, and celebrate with family and friends. It is a holiday which commemorates when the Jewish nation were wondering in the desert for 40 years and slept in huts that they built and the harvest season in the land of Israel. The holiday is filled with special significance each day from many perspectives

The Sukkah

The sukkah is the foundation of the holiday of sukkot. It is designed to be a temporary dwelling and all major activities should be done inside of the sukkah instead of the home. For 7 days families sleep, eat, read, play, and relax inside the sukkah. The sukkah can be built a few different ways and from various materials and sizes as long as it fits within the requirements laid down by Jewish tradition. The most important aspect is the roof, which must be made from something natural like leaves, branches or similar. There is also a special point to make sure in the night the stars can be seen through the roof. This helps to remind people that it is a temporary dwelling. Despite it being somewhat fragile and not permanent there is still a sense of security in the sukkah as we are reminded that our creator is the one who supplies the security, and not our actually home with cement walls and strong roofs.

4 species

In the holiday of Sukkot there is a mitzvah to wave the 4 species; the lulav, Etrog, willow and myrtle. Each year people carefully select their 4 species to make sure it is as beautiful and complete as possible. They are held together during the morning prayers either in the sukkah itself or in the synagogue and waved in 6 directions. This is symbolic gesture to show in each direction g-ds presence exist. Each of the 4 species represent a different type of person in the nation of Israel, as each specie is quite different from the other. But the mitzvah is only fully complete when they are all held together touching one another in unison.

Agriculture

The sukkot festival can also be referred to as the harvest festival. In the fall season Is the harvest time for many crops in the land of Israel. It was a celebratory time when farmers harvested their crops to bring to the markets. Long days each season are spent tending to and harvesting crops in the summer heat. These actions can lead people to think they have the power over these crops, that their actions alone produced the grains, fruits and vegetables. The timing of sukkot in addition to the use of the 4 species and living in the sukkah to help remind individuals that their creator is also the creator of the world, and without his assistance there would be no harvest.