Traditions, New And Old

The history and heritage of Sukkot recall our ancestors' period of wandering the desert.

etrog, the family decided to fulfill the mitzvah of
not so far apart that
_. ±'
= there is more light than 1 dwelling in a sukkah.
She and her husband David opted for the smaller
shade.
of the three choices Hillel offered — "a starter
§ A sukkah may be
I ust five days following the
sukkah," she calls it. Her hope is that the 5-by-5-foot
adorned with holiday-
end of the solemn Days of
sukkah will have enough room to make a special
themed decorations,
Awe, we are led into the Sea-
family time for their children, who also include 18-
including children's art-
son of Rejoicing, the holiday
year-old Stephen and Jennifer, 20.
work, greeting cards,
of Sukkot.
colorful fruit or paper
With it Comes the opportunity
Lulav And Etrog
chains.
to fulfill the only mitzvah that
In addition to dwelling in the sukkah, we are corn-
"In our sukkah, we
allows us to be completely sur-
' manded to "rejoice before the Lord" on Sukkot with
painted the walls
rounded, from head to toe, by
I the four spices made of the etrog and the three
with designs, the
the mitzvah itself — the com-
parts of the lulay.
words of the Sukkot
mandment to dwell in a tem-
The etrog is a citrus fruit native to Israel, similar in
blessings and a wel-
porary shelter called a sukkah
appearance to a lemon. (See AppleTree story, "The
come sign to people
(sukkot is plural).
Most Beautiful Fruit," on page 101.)
who visit," says
The sukkah reminds us of the
The lulav is a bundle made up of leaves from
Dayna Fidler, 16, of
dwellings built by the Jews as
From Sukkot last year, Michelle Sider reaches up
one long branch of a palm, three shorter branch-
West Bloomfield.
they wandered the desert for
to admire decorations in the Subia family's Hunt-
' es of myrtle (hadasim) and two shorter willow
"We also have col-
40 years following the exodus
ington Woods sukkah.
branches (aravim)
lages that we made
from Egypt. So for this holiday,
Except on Shabbat, during the daytime of each
from the fronts of
we erect sukkot, where for
1
day
of Sukkot, a blessing is recited over the lulav
Rosh Hashanah cards. Each year we add some-
seven days we will eat our meals, learn, socialize
I and etrog. It is then waved in all directions — east,
and, for many, sleep.
thing to the decorations."
A few years ago, the Fidlers also added to the 1 south, west, north, up and down — symbolizing
The holiday begins on Friday night, Oct. 13
I that God is everywhere.
size of their sukkah, making it nearly three times
(the 15th of Tishrei), and ends the afternoon of
At religious services during Sukkot, the lulav and
Friday, Oct. 20.
as large.
etrog
are also held during the Hallel prayer and
Sukkot is also a celebration of the fall harvest
For the Fidlers, building a sukkah is a family tradi-
processions
around the bimah each day during the
and sometimes given this name: the Festival of
tion. "We've had a sukkah for as long as I can
remember. My mom grew up in a home where my 1 holiday, commemorating those once made around
the Ingathering.
the ancient Temple in Jerusalem.
The two days following Sukkot are Shemini
grandparents had one," says Dayna.
1
The processions are known as HoShanahs,
Atzeret (Festival of Conclusion) and Simchat Torah
For others, like the Maiseloff family of West
referring to the term HoShanah (please save us)
Bloomfield, this year will mark the first time they will
(Rejoicing in the Torah). Although separate holidays,
they are commonly thought of as part of Sukkot.
have a sukkah at their home. "No one in my family I repeated while marching. Seven circuits are
made on the seventh day of Sukkot, with the day
has one, but my kids are always so excited to go
being known as HoShanah Rabah (the great
to someone else% sukkah," says Ellen Maiseloff.
The Sukkah
I
HoShanah,
the final day of judgment). It is cus-
Canvas and wood are common choices for a
With two children who graduated from Hillel
tomary to stay awake the night before and recite
Day School of Metropolitan Detroit, where
sukkah, which must be built to withstand the
portions of Torah and the Book of Psalms. On
wind. A sukkah must have at least three tempo-
daughter Alyssa is an eighth-grader, Maiseloff
I HoShanah Rabah, five willow branches bound
rary walls. A permanent wall, such as the side of
says the family has, in the past, been able to
together are also used to beat on the floor, sym-
visit the school's sukkah. "I always said next year
a house is permissible.
bolically sweetening God's judgment. El
The sukkah roof must be made of scach, materi-
maybe we'll build one."

Shelli Liebman Dorfman
Staff Writer

I

al that grew from the ground and was cut off,
such as tree branches, bamboo reeds, sticks or 2-
by-4 pieces of wood. The scach should be laid
on top of the sukkah in loose pieces, not
attached to each other or to the sukkah itself, and
should be put on last.
The pieces must be placed closer than 10 inches
together, but should be far enough apart so that
stars can be seen and rain can be felt inside, but

10/13
2000

104

So when Hillel decid-
ed to sell boxed, pre-
made sukkot along with
their luluav and etrog
sale this year, Maiseloff
says the offer was too
convenient to turn down.
Along with their first-time
purchase of a lulav and

'Blessed
i
art Thou, 0 . Lord, our God -, King of th'e Universe, wh o
'Mo st sanctified us by Thy commandments and has bidden us to
wave the lulay.

• Blessing for the suk kah:

"Blessed art Thou, 0 Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who
hast sanctified us by Thy commandments and host bidden us to

dwell in booths."