Sukkot and Simhat Torah—Festiva s Traditions
A traditional custom in Jewish experience is to hammer in the first
stake for the sukka after breaking the Yom Kippur fast.
Observance of the Sukkot festival commences next Wednesday
evening.
The Bible records several names for the Sukkot festival: Hag ha-
Sukkot, the Festival of Tabernacles or Booths (Leviticus 23:34); Hag ha-Asif,
Festival of the Ingathering (Exodus 23:16); Hag Adosherri, Festival of the
Lord (Leviticus 23:39), and Ha-Hag, The Festival (I Kings 8:2). The designa-
tion of Sukkot as The Festival connotes its preeminence in the cycle of the
Jewish year.
The newest Jewish Publication Society volume in the festival series,
"The Sukkot and Simhat Torah Anthology" by Rabbi Philip Goodman con-
tains a "Glossary of Sukkot and Simhat Torah Terms." In their totality they
explain all the symbolisms of the festivals. They are reproduced here be-
cause they are a most informative guide for an understanding of the
two festivals:
Arava, p1. aravot (wil-
low). One of the Four
Species.
Arbaah Minim (Four Spe-
cies). The Four Species are
the etrog, lulav, hadas and
arava, the plants used in
the Sukkot ritual.
Baal Maftir. The person
called to the reading of the
last portion of the day's
Torah reading, and to read
the portion of the Prophets.
Etrog (citron). One of
the Four Species; called
"fruit of a goodly tree" in
the Bible.
Geshem (rain). Prayer
for rain read on Shemini
Atzeret.
Hadas, pl. hadasim (myr-
tle). One of the Four Spe-
cies.
Hag Ha-Asif (Festival of
Ingathering).
Hag Ha-Sukkot, Feast of
Booths; Feast of Tabernac-
les.
Hakafa, pl. hakafot (cir-
cuit). T h e processional
circuits in the synagogue
on Simhat Torah when the
particpants carry the
Scrolls of the Law. Similar
processions with etrog and
Lulav are conducted on
Hoshana Rabbah.
Hallel (praise). Psalms
113-118, recited on the fes-
tivals.
Ha t a n Bereshit (bride-
groom of Genesis). Title of
honor bestowed on the per-
son called on Simhat Torah
to the Torah reading inaug-
urating the yearly cycle of
the weekly scriptural por-
tions.
Hatan Torah (bridegroom
of the Law). Title of honor
bestowed on the person
called on Simhat Torah to
the Torah reading that com-
pletes the yearly cycle of
the weekly scriptural por-
tions.
Hazkarat Neshamot (re-
membrance of souls [of the
deceased] ). Memorial serv-
ices for the departed recited
on the last day of the festi-
vals and on Yom Kippur.
Hol Ha-Moed. The inter-
mediate days of Sukkot,
considered half-holidays, be-
tween the first two days
and Shemini Atzeret.
Hoshana, pl. hoshanot
(please save). On Hoshana
Rabbah, circuits are made
with the Four Species while
reciting the Hoshana invo-
cations for forgiveness and
redemption.
Hoshana Rabbah (Great
Hosanna). The seventh day
of Sukkot, being the last of
the five intermediate days
of the festival, on which
God's final judgment for
the year is sealed; the name
derives from the recitation
of more Hoshana prayers
recited on this day while
making circuits with the
Four Species than on any
other festival.
Hoshanot (willow twigs).
Bundle of willow twigs tied
together, which are used
for striking at the conclu-
sion of the c i r c u i is on
Hoshana Rabbah.
Kiddush (sanctification).
A prayer usually chanted
over wine in sanctifying the
Sabbath and festivals.
Lulav (branch of a palm
tree). One of the Four Spe-
cies. See Arbaah Minim. It
is also a generic term for
the bouquet of palm branch,
the three myrtle twigs, and
the two willow twigs bound
together.
Mahzor (cycle). Prayer
book for the cycle of holy
days and festivals through-
out the year; also applied
to the festival liturgy in
which piyyutim are in-
cluded.
Pit ma (protuberance).
The pestlelike protuberance
on the blossom end of the
citron, having the appear-
ance of a pestle set in a
mortar.
Pitum. The popular name
of pitma.
Piyyut, pl. piyyutim (po-
em). A liturgical poem of
praise recited on a festival.
Sekhakh (overhanging
boughs). Branches and
twigs of trees,_ bambo o
sticks, and other vegetation
of the soil used for the suk-
ka roofing.
Shalosh Regalim (three
pilgrimages). The three ma-
jor festivals (Passover,
Shavuot and Sukkot); also
known as the pilgrimage
festivals.
Shemini Atzeret. Eighth
Day of Solemn Assembly;
the concluding day of Suk-
kot, which falls on Tishre
22; also considered a sep-
arate festival.
Simhat B e t Ha-Shoeva
(rejoicing of the house of
[water] drawing). A joyous
celebration held on each
night of the intermediate
days of Sukkot to recall
these events in the days of
the Temple.
Simhat Torah (Rejoicing
in the Law). The Festival of
Rejoicing in the Law on
which the annual cycle of
the Torah reading is con-
cluded and begun anew. It
occurs on Tishre 23, the day
following Shemini Atzeret.
In Israel it coincides with
Shemini Atzeret.
Sukka, p1. sukkot
(booth, tabernacle). T h e
temporary structure erected
in fulfillment of the com-
mandment to live in booths
during Sukkot; it recalls
the frail booths in which
the children of Israel dwelt
during their wandering in
the wilderness after the
exodus from Egypt.
Sukkot (booths, taber-
nacles). Feast of Booths or
Tabernacles; Festival of In-
gathering; the last of the
three pilgrimage festivals,
commencing on Tishre 15,
which marks the harvest
season and commemorates
the sojourn of the Israelites
in the desert after their de-
parture from Egyptian
bondage.
Tikkun Lel Hoshana Rab-
bah. Order of service for
the night of Hoshana Rab-
bah.
Tishre. The seventh
month of the Hebrew cal-
endar, in which Rosh Hash-
ana, Yom Kippur and Suk-
kot occur.
Ushpizin (divine guests).
The fancied celestial guests
— Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,
Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Dav-
id—who, according to Jew-
ish mysticism, appear in the
sukka, one on each day of
the festival, and are wel-
comed by reciting Aramaic
greetings.
Yom Tov (good day). A
festival.
Zeman Simhatenu (Sea-
son of Our Rejoicing). The
term applied to the Feast
of Booths in the liturgy.
Elegy on the Etrog and the Lulav
By Hayim Nahman Bialik
0 my lulav,
Who has stripped
Off your belt,
Your glory ripped?
Who has damaged
My etrog?
Nipped his stem,
His navel broke?
48 Friday, October 5, 1973
—
My fruit of gold
Is dried and done,
My lulav just
A skelton.
Their feast is past,
Their beauty fast
Is gone with none
To save at last.
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
In jam its end
The etrog breathes.
The lulav I
Shall weave in wreaths.
Tiny wreaths
And braids and bands,
And even rings
For little hands.
Translated by Jessie E. Sampter
•■••
Delicacies for Sukkot Festival
Rabbi Philip Goodman's
Sukkot and Simhat Torah
Anthology contains a sec-
tion, by Hanna Goodman
devoted to delicacies for
Sukkot. Here are a few of
them:
STUFFED CABBAGE
1 large cabbage (4 pounds)
1 1/2 pounds chopped meat
2 onions, grated
3 /4 cup bread crumbs
2 eggs
salt and pepper
1 clove of garlic, mashed
2 onions, sliced
28-ounce can tomatoes in puree
meat bones
1 /2 cup brown or light sugar
2 bay leaves
juice of 1 lemon
With a sharp knife core the
cabbage, removing as much as
possible of the center.
Bring a big pot of water to
boil. Immerse the cabbage in
the water with the core down.
Take off each leaf with a fork.
When all the leaves are re-
moved, put them back into the
water and turn off the heat. Let
stand until the filling is pre-
pared and then drain the water.
To make tne filling, add' the
grated onions, bread crumbs,
eggs, salt, pepper and the
mashed garlic to the chopped
meat, and mix well.
Lay each cabbage leaf flat on
a plate. Cut off the hard part
of the cabbage leaf. Put some
of the filling on each leaf. Cov-
er the filling by folding two
sides of the leaf over it and
roll up like a blintz.
In a large roaster or pot, put
the sliced onions, tomatoes and
bones. If any cabbage leaves re-
main, shred and place them in
the roaster. Lay the stuffed cab-
bage leaves end down on top.
Cover the roaster and bring to
a boil. Lower the heat and cook
for 1 hour. Add the sugar,
bay leaves and lemon juice,
and continue to cook for 1 hour
longer. Taste for seasoning and
add more sugar or lemon juice
as may be required. The cab-
bage can also be• cooked in the
oven at 32.5 degrees.
The stuffed cabbage improves
in taste if left standing for a
day. If this is done, reheat slow-
ly. It may be served with rice
as a main dish.
If small stuffed cabbage por-
tions are preferred, use a small
head of cabbage, or cut big
leaves in half.
• • •
KREPLAKII
Meat Filling
1 /2 pound chopped meat
1 egg
1 small onion, grated
1 tablespoon bread crumbs
salt and pepper to taste
Dough
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups flour (approximately)
1 /2 teaspoon salt
Prepare the meat filling by mix-
ing well the chopped meat, egg,
onion, bread, salt and pepper.
To make the dough, beat the
2 eggs in a bowl, add the flour
and salt, and knead until the
dough is elastic. A little warm
water will help to form a soft
dough.
On a floured board or floured
wax paper, roll out the dough
into a very this oblong. Cut in
squares to size desired. On each
square, place a small ball of the
filling and quickly fold into a
triangle, pinching the edges to-
gether. Allow the finished krep-
lakh to stand for 15 minutes.
Bring a large pot of salted
water to a boil, add the krep-
lakh and cover the pot. Cook
for 25 to 30 minutes, depending
on the thickness of the krep-
lakh. Drain and add to soup.
NUT CAKE
1 /4 cup margarine
1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs, separated.
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups chopped walnuts
Syrup
1/2 cup sugar
1 /4 cup water
1 /2 cup honey
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons rum
Cream the margarine, then add
the sugar and beat until fluffy.
Add the egg yolks one at a
time. Beat the egg whites until
stiff. Fold the beaten egg whites
into the egg yolk mixture.
'Combine the flour with the
baking powder and cinnamon
and add to the mixture. Add
the nuts, mixing well.
Pour the batter into a 9x9-
inch grease' pan and bake in a
350-degree oven for 30 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the
syrup. Boil together the sugar
and water for about 10 minutes
until syrupy. Stir in the honey
and cinnamon. Cook for 5 more
minutes and then add the rum.
Pour the hot syrup over the
hot cake. Let the cake stand
overnight before serving.