"

page 112

page 117

Spectacular
Season

• •ik*.

'

'

.

'

page 120 <

' I

•

French t
with ba

The bounty of the harvest is the meal choice for Sukkot.

:
moments before the real cold sets in.
You don't have to be Frank Lloyd Wright to design a
a sukka. Though some sukkot resemble elaborate add
the home, a sukka can be a simple construction made r'
.,,,
supports, three sides of fabric and a hastily assembled
: '
twigs and branches; enough to provide shade during
but exposed enough to see the stars at night . Ara
mitzvah of making the sukka as "home-like" as pos
the most humble of structures is appropriate for t .
The holding and directional shaking of three of
species" — lulav, a ceremonial holder of boughs, inc l
of palm, two of willow and three of myrtle — is pagg
that's included in the morning prayers during Sukkot",x , •
n
practice affirms God's predomi ance in our lives.
But it is also said to embody other meanings. Some
the three species to body parts. Another compares -th'''''''
to types of people. An additional rationale for the Itil'"
to agriculture. During ancient times the lulav was in u
part of an appeal to God for rain.
The etrog, or citron, the fourth specie, is the other
sential symbol of Sukkot and considered to be the ill
tant of the species.
Often bumpy and elongated, the thick-skinned citiirs,
closely resembles a large lemon. The etrog symbolizes the'

ANNABEL COHEN
Special to the Jewish News

I

love Sukkot. Not just the happy holiday, but the foods
associated with the holiday and the sukkot themselves —
the "huts or booths" that serve as symbolic makeshift
homes during this pilgrimage festival of celebration and
as reminders of our humble past.
Just when you think summer's over, there's a chag, holiday,
that allows us to be inside while being outside.
The eight-day celebration of Sukkot, concluding with
Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, is among the most jubi-
lant of the Jewish festivals. Often dubbed "The Season of Our
Rejoicing," Sukkot, like Passover and Shavuot, began as a pil-
grimage or harvest festival, laden with agricultural significance.
Later, Sukkot became associated with the 40 years of wandering
in the desert, and the sukka, or booth, became symbolic of the
temporary shelters used during the nomadic experience.
We're commanded in Leviticus to live in booths during
Sukkot. For most Jews, living means eating every meal in the
sukka. But in fact, many religious Jews eat and sleep in sukkot
for the duration of the festival.
Although we're sheltered during Sukkot in a sukka, there's
still the feeling of being out of doors for those last precious

"

• " • ' • '

'

'

sks

' '

9/2
199

Jewish News LW
Detroit Jewish