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Spirituality
HOLIDAY 101
Sukkot from page 33
permeable roof. The walls can be made
of almost any material and can be tem-
porary or permanent, and the sukkah
can be attached to another building. The
size of the sukkah can range from a little
larger than a telephone booth to a struc-
ture that can accommodate hundreds.
The sukkah can be built on a back yard
patio or on the roof of a skyscraper, but it
cannot be built under a tree or any other
plant that will overshadow it, or under
the roof, canopy or overhang of another
building.
The key feature of the sukkah is the
roof. It must be made of harvested
plant material not still connected to the
soil (you cannot train a vine to grow on
top of the sukkah). The sukkah roof is
known in Hebrew as s'chach. The mate-
rial can be dried or fresh, but may not
have a finish on it, like varnish or stain.
Examples include corn stalks, tree
branches, evergreens, bamboo
poles or slats, wooden furring
strips, vines, straw, hay, grass,
leaves, palm fronds, etc. The
material must be laid across
the top of the sukkah so that
it provides more shade than
light, but not so thick that
a hard rain would not pen-
etrate it. One rabbinic opinion
states that the s'chach should
be spread so that you can see
the stars through it.
Because it may not be pos-
sible to live in the sukkah
as we would in a house (especially
because of cold weather), the rab-
bis ruled that at least if we have our .
meals in the sukkah we have fulfilled
the commandment (since one cannot
survive without eating). Nonetheless,
one should try to spend as much time
in the sukkah as possible, be it read-
ing, studying, having a coffee break
or a nap. Although most people place
only a table and chairs in their sukkah,
ideally the sukkah should be furnished
like a house, with a bed, recliners, and
a table and chairs, etc.
Many people decorate their sukkahs,
mostly on the inside, but some on the
outside as well. Walls are painted or
hung with photographs or artwork
(weatherproof, of course). Others hang
dried fruits or ornaments from the raf-
ters that hold up the s'chach.
People also get creative with sukkah
lighting, some opting for industrial
lamps and other for elaborate chande-
liers, while others festoon the sukkah
with strings of twinkle lights.
Hospitality is common on Sukkot.
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Many families especially invite friends
or relatives who have no sukkah of
their own. Inspired by the kabbalists,
it has become traditional to invite
symbolically the "seven shepherds
of Israel" —Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,
Joseph, Moses, Aaron and David into
the sukkah.
Each night, the ushpizin prayer
welcomes one of the "exalted guests,"
followed by the other six. (Ushpizin is
the Aramaic word for "guests.") Jewish
bookstores sell ushpizin wall hang-
ings and charts that show the seven
prayers. Lately, some have also devised
ushpizin for the matriarchs and worthy
women of Israel, as well: Sarah, Rachel,
Rebecca, Leah, Miriam, Abigail and
Esther.
The Four Species: Aside from the suk-
kah, another characteristic feature of
Sukkot is what is known in Hebrew as
the arba'ah minim or the "four species:'
This consists of a citrus fruit called the
citron, or in Hebrew the etrog, along with
an unopened palm frond, or lulav, which
are bundled with willow and myrtle
branches. All this is derived from the
Torah commandment to take "the fruit of
goodly trees, branches of palm trees and
boughs of thick trees and willows of the
brook" (Leviticus 23:40) and use these to
"rejoice before the Lord:'
Our practice is to hold the etrog in
the left hand and the lulav bundle in
the right hand and wave them in six
directions, the order of which var-
ies with the Ashkenazi, Sephardi and
Chassidic traditions. This is done as
a ritual by itself and also during the
Hallel prayer.
Liturgy: The Sukkot holiday service is
substantially the same as that for Pesach
and Shavuot: the morning service that
includes the holiday Amidah, followed by
Hallel, Torah reading and Musaf Sukkot,
however, also includes a procession
around the sanctuary of worshippers,
each holding an etrog and lulav, reciting
together a prayer called Hoshanah (a
different Hoshanah prayer for each day).
Sephardi and Ashkenazi rites differ as to
when in the service the Hoshana proces-
sion is done.
On the Shabbat of Sukkot, the book
of Kohelet, or Ecclesiastes, is read aloud.
As the rabbis teach, this sobering book
is read on Sukkot because even though
Sukkot, coming at the fall harvest,
inspires great joy, we must keep in mind
that all we have ultimately comes from
God. Our week in the flimsy sukkah
reminds us that no matter how prosper-
ous we become, life is fragile and in the
hands of the Almighty.
Hoshanah Rabbah: The seventh day
of Sukkot is Hoshanah Rabbah, both a
festival and a day of judgment. In Jewish
tradition, on Rosh Hashanah, God made
a decision concerning the fate of each
person for the coming year, and sealed
that decision on Yom Kippur. Between
Yom Kippur and Hoshanah Rabbah
are the last-chance days, because on
Hoshanah Rabbah the decision is made
final. For this reason, there is a degree
of solemnity to the Hoshanah Rabbah
synagogue service that is similar to Yom
Kippur — the chazzan even wears a kit-
tel, the white robe of Yom Kippur.
In the Hoshanah Rabbah synagogue
service, the worshippers, each holding
an etrog and lulav, make seven circuits
around the sanctuary, during which
time they recite all of the previous days'
Hoshanah prayers, hence the name of
the holiday, which in Hebrew means
"many Hoshanahs."
Shemini Atzeret: Many people think
that Shemini Atzeret is the last day of
Sukkot, but Shemini Atzeret
is a holiday unto itself.
It happens to come
immediately after Sukkot.
The name means "Eighth
[Day] of Assembly," with
the implied meaning that
although there is a connec-
tion to Sukkot (which was
just celebrated for seven
days), this eighth day has its
own reason for being.
The liturgy for Shemini Atzeret is
the same as for Pesach, Shavuot and
Sukkot; in fact, Shemini Atzeret is
also referred to as z'man simcha-
taynu, as is Sukkot. Because we do
not sit in the sukkah on Shemini
Atzeret (at least not in Israel), and
do not require dry weather, the
seasonal appeal for rain, Tefilat
Geshem, is recited. The prayer is
said in a distinctive cantillation
with the cantor wearing a kittel.
Also adding to the solemnity of the
service is the recitation of the Yizkor
memorial prayer.
If there was no Shabbat during
Sukkot, then the book of Kohelet is
recited on Shemini Atzeret.
Beyond the synagogue service, there
are no special rituals for Shemini
Atzeret and the day proceeds like every
other major Jewish holiday with kid-
dush and a festive meal. Some people
outside of Israel have a tradition to eat
in the sukkah on Shemini Atzeret.
In Israel, Shemini Atzeret also
includes the celebration of Simchat
Torah, and the same day is referred to
by both names. In the diaspora, Shemini
Atzeret is immediately followed by
Simchat Torah.