Sukkos

This Rosh Hashanah began a new Shmitta year here in Eretz Yisroel.  My third one.  My second one owning land along with two fruit trees, so I get to follow all sorts of halachos.

What makes it more … interesting… is living outside of Yerushaliyim, and all the more so, outside of the center of the country where most of the religious population lives.

There are two customs regarding produce grown on land owned by non-Jews.  According to the minhag kept in Yerushaliyim, the produce has no kedusha, holiness, to it.  Therefore, Shmitta does not apply to any produce grown on Arab lands.  The prevalent minhag outside of Yerushaliyim is that it DOES have kedusha to it.  Therefore, one must be careful on how one buys it and how one treats it.

When you live outside of the center of the country, it gets even more complicated, since many of the big stores stop selling produce that are kosher for Shmitta.  So, we're very limited on where we can buy vegetables at the moment.  And in another nine months or so, this will apply equally to fruits.  It gets a bit complicated, but… it makes the mitzvah more… real.

Ahhhh… I love Shmitta.

I read an interesting piece by Rav Mordecai Ilan from Tel Aviv.  The Torah commands us, regarding Sukkos, that it's a "time of our simcha".  In fact, it's mentioned three times, concerning Sukkos, twice concerning Shavous, and not even mentioned concerning Pesach.

The Tosfos write that during Pesach, no produce, whether from the trees or from the fields, are ripening.  On Shavous, the produce of the fields are ripe and are still sitting in the field, however, the fruits are not yet ready.  So… there is some simcha… but just not a 'complete' simcha.  Comes Sukkos, and both fruits and produce are not only ripe but also gathered into the warehouses, awaiting the winter.  This is when the farmer has true simcha.

However, the pasuk in the Torah states that "you shall be happy BEFORE HASHEM", being that one's happiness over his spiritual situation should be even greater than that of his physical situation.  And that is why, explains Rav Ilan, that we read Koheles on Shabbos of Sukkos, which teaches us how temporary our physical pleasures are and how permanent out spiritual pleasures are.

I personally would like to suggest that perhaps it's not about pushing the physical to the side for the spiritual, but rather seeing them together.  When one has the physical pleasures of having steady income, one should contemplate that goodness that Hashem has given him.  On Sukkos, when the entire harvest is brought in, one should rejoice in brachos that he has received in the past year.  In fact, Koheles says (7:11) "Wisdom is good with an inheritance and a boon to those who see the sun…".  The Alshich writes on this, "It is good for the scholar to be self-supporting and free from financial worries so he can immerse himself in his studies"

Being that when one has financial stability, one is able to concentrate on what truly matters, his spiritual pursuits.  So, while the spiritual is certainly more important, the physical brachos we receive help us attain the spiritual brachos.

With that, I wish you all a wonderful Sukkos/Shabbos!

I was walking home from shul after Yom Kippur with a friend, and he made an interesting point.

We all know that Hashem works like we do.  The more we put ourselves in His hands, the more He takes care of us Himself.  The more we rely on ourselves, Hashem pulls away and allows it.

We also know that on Rosh Hashanah, the decree for the new year is written.  On Yom Kippur, it's sealed.  On the last day of Sukkos, it's "sent out."

Well, for us living in Eretz Yisroel, we might get off lucky if we are not worthy of a good new year.  Why?  Because Hashem is acting like we do.  Just as we use the Israeli Postal Service, so too Hashem.  Therefore, even IF the decree arrives, it will most likely arrive nine months late and at the wrong destination. :)

There is so much to discuss about Sukkos, yet, between Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, getting kids back to school, keeping them home two weeks later, this and that…Sukkos, I find, is barely learned about.  Yet, there are so many deep aspects to it.

One of those aspects is the Hoshanas that are done every day of Sukkos.  Sometime in the middle of Shachris, we take our lulav and esrog in hand, circle around the shul once (seven times on the last day, none on Shabbos) and we say a series of requests; each line starting and ending with "Hosha Na."

(Right before the shul was locked up last week, I was able to… liberate…a certain sefer dedicated to the Hoshanas.)

"Hosha" means "a complete rescue and return from all troubles".

But what does "Na" mean?  Some, like the Even Ezra, say that it means "now," that we ask Hashem to deliver us NOW from all our troubles.  Some, like the Shla"h, say that it means "please."  We are begging Hashem, "PLEASE save us from our troubles."  And there are those who say that it means both, that is why we begin AND end each line with "Hosha Na."

The Bnei Yissachar writes that "Na" stands for its numerical value: 51.  The last day of Sukkos, called Hoshanah Rabba, where the decree is sent out, is the 51st day since the first day of Elul, when we began the process of teshuva.  So, we are asking Hashem "Save us on the 51(st day), that the sending of the decrees should be done for our good and our salvation."

The beginning of each day’s Hoshanas, starts with four stanzas; in each one we ask Hashem to save us "for His sake."  Not for our sake, not for our families' sake, not even for the nation’s sake.  But rather, for His sake alone.  This reminded me of something I saw in my machzor.

At the end of the Shemoneh Esrei, we also say four times "for your sake": act for the sake of Your name, act for the sake of Your right hand, act for the sake of your Holiness, act for the sake of your Torah.  The Tur (Orach Chaim 122) writes that somebody who is careful when saying the four phrases will merit to greet the Divine Presence.  It is because we are davening for Hashem's "sake," that is where our loyalties lie.

While our davening and Hoshanas are for our good, ultimately, we beg Hashem, do it for YOUR sake.  The more the Jewish people languish in exile, the more Hashem's name is desecrated.  That should be our primary concern as Jews.  We ask Hashem for physical and spiritual bounty, not to sit back and relax in, rather to use as tools to bring honor to Hashem.

With that, I wish you all a wonderful Shabbos and Sukkos!

Yesterday, my wife and I had security called on us to remove us from the Postal Office.



Those who live in Israel can testify that the most corrupt service the government has (and they have a lot) is the Postal Service. When I say “corrupt," I mean they literally steal mail and packages from people. And yes, I’m speaking from personal experience, and my wife even saw it happen once in front of her. If you want to know what pure evil is, it’s them. And it goes to the top, and there’s nothing that can be done about it.



We’ve been expecting four packages that we ordered. The system is set up that every city (or area within the city) has a central office. When they receive packages, they ship it to several stores that work with the postal office, that serve also as pickup points. Then, you are to receive a notification that the package arrived with the information to pick it up. Fine. Naturally, our packages don’t arrive, and we have the shipping number for only one. My wife went down to the pickup place, and asked them to check on that one package. He explains that it was just shipped back to the central post office, since it’s been sitting at his place for a month. When my wife said that she received no notification, he replied, you’re not the only one. They do this all the time to people, and a lot of people are losing a lot of money. He explained that the central office will then send it back to the States, so we should try to do something about it soon. So, my wife made useless phone calls (of course) and got nowhere. Yesterday, we decided that we’ll go together to the central office and make a stand.



We got there and after a 30-minute wait, went to the worker who we needed to see, an Arab woman who was more interested in her iPhone than in helping us. (You have to understand, Arab professionals, such as doctors or pharmacists, are great. Arabs who work in professions that allow you to cheat and steal from people, well, excuse my racism/experience, you need to be on red alert from the beginning. That’s why when people have Arab workers in their home, it is the accepted "rule" to be home with them watching them the whole time, unless they have earned a good name. We told her the situation and she said, “No, the package is in the pickup point, it’s not here."



“We were just there. It’s not."



“Yes, it is."



“Okay," I said, “call them up right now and confirm it."



“No, I don’t want to."



“Then I want to speak to the manager right now."



So, she goes to the manager’s office, whose light is off, and comes back and tells me that he’ll be out in five minutes, so we should take a seat. “No," we said, “we’re happy waiting right here," because once we do that, we know that we’ll be sitting there all day "waiting" for him to never arrive. Needless to say, she wasn’t happy, and we had a nice, and very loud "discussion" about her lack of work ethic, etc. We had around thirty pairs of eyes watching this whole thing. We were loud, and defiant, but we were in control of ourselves. Finally, she realized that she wasn’t going to push us over, so she called Shlomo The Security Guard. Shlomo, a small, overweight Sfardi, with a kippa on his head, came over to see what was going on. He tried to get us to move, and we refused, and explained that we know if we do, we’ll never see the manager. He was in a quandary, since he knew that we were right, and we both knew that he wasn’t going to lay a finger on us. So, he asked us what the problem was, we explained to him the story, showed him papers from the Postal Service contradicting the worker. He looked over everything and agreed that we were right. He went inside himself to get the manager. He came out and explained that he wasn’t there, but he was right outside overseeing a shipment. He told us what his name was and what he was wearing. So, we went to the manager and explained the situation. He said he’ll take our number and get back to us. I made it clear that I wasn’t leaving until I got his personal number. He gave it to me.



At the end of the day, he never called of course, but I did call him. He told me that the package just arrived at the pickup point, and gave us the shelf number. The other three packages? He has no idea where they are and he’ll “continue to look into it." So, in the end, we got a partial victory. We got the expensive package, AND we had security called on us. What a great day!



Wait...why was I writing all this? Oh right…I have a dvar Torah.



“You were unmindful of the Almighty who begot you, and you forgot G-d who bore you” (Devarim 32:18).



The Dubner Maggid explained this pasuk with the following parable:



Reuven owed Shimon a large amount of money but did not have the money to pay him back. Shimon kept bothering Reuven for the money, and Reuven didn’t know what to do. So, he asked his friend Levi, for advice. Levi, who worked as a branch manager in the Israeli Postal Office, said, “Let me teach you a trick that I learned at work. When Shimon comes to you next time for his money that you rightfully owe him, pretend that you’re crazy, and then he’ll leave you alone!” So, Reuven tried it out, and lo and behold it worked! Shortly after, Levi saw that Reuven had potential and invited him to work as an Israeli Postal Clerk. A few months later, Reuven need some more money, since he wasn’t stealing enough from the locals, so Levi lent him the amount needed. When Levi came to collect, Reuven started to act crazy. Levi shouted, “I’m the one who gave you the idea to use this method. It’s a real chutzpah for you to use that against me!”



Hashem gave us the gift of forgetfulness, says the Dubno Maggid. If we didn’t forget, we would remember all the painful times with such clarity, we would not be able to function. He would be constantly down from remembering painful moments, that he would never be happy (I have heard that this is a problem for those with extremely powerful memories).



Every trait can be used for good and bad. Forgetting the painful past is a good usage for forgetfulness. But, forgetting the good that you received, is most certainly not.



Sukkos is a time of the gathering of the summer harvest. It is a time that we sit and look over the physical and spiritual bounty that we received over the past year. It’s specifically during this time, when we are to make a point and remember all the good that we have received, and then we will truly have a chag of Simcha!



Have a great Shabbos and a wonderful Sukkos!

There’s an Israeli here who holds U.S. citizenship because of his parents. Because of silly U.S. tax laws, by filing his U.S. taxes every year from his work, the government is “rebating” him with lots of money. For every child he has, he gets more of a rebate. And yes, it’s perfectly legal, and no, I’m not eligible.

So, this past summer, he took two of his youngest kids to the U.S. to get their citizenships (that’s how worth it, this is). His English is fine and he can even read a little, but he needed help with certain forms and making a few calls to the IRS on his behalf, which I helped him out with. Before he left for the States, he asked if I needed anything. I told him that if he can find a can of root beer, I would appreciate it. (Ironically, he packs his suitcase full of Israeli food, since his kids aren’t used to American food). A week later he returns and drops of a two-liter bottle of Barq’s Root Beer. I’m an A&W man myself, but I think the last root beer I had was four years ago when a friend found some generic brand in Jerusalem and brought it for me.

I decided that since my kids are Israeli (and naturally cannot stand root beer, of course they’ll want to try, read: waste, some), and my wife is from the east coast (and refuses to drink it, since it’s beneath her), that I had better use it wisely.

Finally, after several months of waiting, the root beer will be placed in the refrigerator, readying itself for consumption over Sukkos!

And before we begin: just a note that I will be shutting down for Sukkos. I will not be checking email throughout the week, nor sending any divrei Torah. I plan to go “Amish” just in case you don’t hear back from me.
To what is this time of year (post-Yom Kippur through the rest of the month of Tishrei and the whole month of Elul) comparable to?

Let’s say a smoker decides that he’s tired of the coughing, the bad smell on his clothes, in his car, and in his house. So he goes to his doctor to see what he can do. The doctor informs him that after 24 hours of not smoking, his body loses its addiction (compared to the mind), and starts to clean itself up. If he can just go 24 hours without a cigarette, he will start to see improvements.

After three days without a cigarette, the smoker comes back to the doctor. “I don’t understand! You said that after 24 hours, the body starts to clean itself up! I’m still coughing and I still smell bad!” The doctor explains, “It’s true that after 24 hours the body starts to clean itself up. In fact, if I showed you a picture of your lungs now compared to how they were four days ago, you would be surprised at the change. The smell? The coughing? That’s all secondary and will slowly go away if you keep away from smoking.”

On Yom Kippur, Hashem takes our souls and gives it a nice wash down. We come out with a much cleaner soul than we had 24 hours beforehand. The poor behavior we still might have? The strong feelings for certain sins? That’s all secondary and will slowly go away if you keep away from sin. If we realize that the soul within us IS really cleaner and we try our best to keep it that way, especially during the month and a half after Yom Kippur, then the negative feelings and traits will start to dissipate, because their roots in our souls have been destroyed and are no longer feeding them.

Have a great Shabbos, a great Sukkos, and a wonderful Shmini Atzeres!

Michael Winner

Right now we have a small break from Kollel and school to get everything ready for Sukkos. Thankfully, I’ve had time to go learn every morning for an hour and a half or so. During that time, two days ago, my hiking partner called me but I didn’t answer. I tried calling him back after learning, but he didn’t answer. So, I began to build the Sukkah with ‘help’ from the kids. Of course, within 15 minutes, in order that I should spare their lives, I opened a bottle of wine and helped myself to a few cups. Even with that help, they barely survived. I then received a call from my friend, “WHERE WERE YOU??? I was trying to put up the Sukkah and the kids were driving me crazy and I called you for support! Instead, I had to turn to my other good friend, Johnny Walker, to help me out!”

I told him that I was in the exact situation and had the same solution. We then noticed how it’s depressing that you go straight from Yom Kippur into preparing for Sukkos, which is known as Yom Simchaseinu (Day of our Simcha), and all you want to do is kill your children. THEN, you start feeling bad for having those feelings, AND you have all of those feelings in you as you’re doing the mitzvah of building the Sukkah, which should be done in happiness! It doesn’t make any sense!

So, I had wonderful thought about this. What is the Simcha that is so special about Sukkos? The fact you’re going into Sukkos and you DIDN’T kill your children, despite the strong desire to. THAT is the true happiness of Sukkos! Makes sense, no?

Okay, on to real Torah.
Rav Shimshon Pincus asks an excellent question. The progress we make, beginning with the month of Elul, followed by the Ten Days of Repentance (sounds terrible in English), followed by Yom Kippur, followed by Sukkos and Shmini Atzeres, lends us to believe that Sukkos and Shmini Atzeres are the height of the whole “holiday season”. In fact, there are many other proofs that say this. Yet, on the other hand, the Ramchal describes Yom Kippur as the day we reach the level of Adam HaRishon (Adam) before the sin. It seems as if Yom Kippur is the pinnacle of the season, and then we go “downhill” from there.

As a nation, we started off on Pesach, the birth of the Jewish people. After that came Shavous, where we received the Torah and which the Gemara (Taanis 26b) calls, “The Day of His Marriage”. The Gemara, continues and says “The Day of His Hearts Simcha” (this all sounds better in Hebrew, sorry), is the day the Beis HaMikdash was built.

Our “marriage” to Hashem was not called “simchas leibo” (simcha of His heart), because while the bride and groom our happy on their marriage day, it’s not a true simcha. For beneath their smiles, there is still trepidation of their future. Will the marriage be okay? Will we get along well? Will we bond? When is it that a couple becomes stronger and bonded closer together? After their first fight. After surviving the first troubles of marriage, the couple comes out stronger. They now have a better understanding of each other than they had before.

Shortly after we received the Torah, what happened? The Sin of the Golden Calf. After they realized what they did and did proper tshuvah, Hashem sent the second set of “Ten Commandments”, and started giving instructions on how to build the Mishkan (the predecessor to the Beis HaMikdash), so Hashem could dwell amongst the nation.

For us, our season begins with Tisha B’Av. We begin from the ruins of the Beis HaMikdash to improve ourselves and start the path of tshuvah. It continues stronger throughout the month of Elul. On Rosh Hashanah, we are all created anew. What Pesach is for the Jewish Nation, Rosh Hashanah is for the individual, a new beginning. On Yom Kippur we are forgiven for previous sins and our connection to Hashem is renewed and re-strengthened. It is also on Yom Kippur that we received the second set of “Ten Commandments”. After this rejuvenation, we go into Sukkos, “Yom Simchaseinu”. Despite our past “fights” with Hashem, Hashem has forgiven us and the bond between us is stronger than ever. For THAT is true simcha and the simcha of Sukkos.

I hope that everybody has a wonderful Sukkos and we’ll see you after Simchas Torah!

I had to take a taxi the other day from the center of the city.

For those not who are not familiar with Jerusalem at this time of year, travelling is something not recommended. As the driver and I were pondering on what route to take, he said that this (the traffic) was the amazing part of living in Eretz Yisroel on Sukkos. “The Torah said that the nation should be gathered on Sukkos, and you see first-hand how it is happening!” Everybody is out, religious and non-religious, to prepare for Sukkos.

He continued talking and told me that the entire country is slowly coming around doing tshuva…. even in Tel Aviv, the heart of secular-Israel. I gave him a questioning look and told him that I had a hard time believing him. He said that ten years ago, it was very difficult to find a minyan there, but now, there are more and more minyanim opening up. When I gave further thought, it did make sense. Currently, the secular establishment there has been trying to stop religious Jews from moving in. One city councilman bemoaned the fact that when the religious come, they open up mikvas, yeshivas, and *gasp*, encourage people to learn Torah, and that it needs to be stopped before the secular youth fall into their trap (the direct quote was better). From the increase in fighting on their side, you can see that they feel more and more threatened by those slowly coming back to Torah.

Good.

It should continue, and this year should be a year of success for Torah and the Jewish nation.
“There is an evil which I have observed in the world as if it were an error proceeding from the ruler. Folly is placed on lofty heights, while rich men sit in low places. I have seen slaves on horses and nobles walking on foot like slaves” (Koheles 10:5-7)

For the sake of this dvar torah, I’m looking at the “rich men” as good people and “rich” in Torah and middos.

We see it throughout society and throughout time; for whatever reason, some people get ‘easy lives’, attaining riches and honour, while others need to work hard to earn a basic living or to sit and learn properly. Without proper emunah in Hashem, it can become difficult to see this ‘reality’.

On Sukkos, things are quite different. Rich and poor leave the comforts of their homes to live in simple sukkos. True, some make nicer sukkos than others, but it’s generally the same. We all leave our physical homes and trade it in for something more spiritual. It reminds us that we should always be focused on the spiritual and that everything, including riches and honour, come directly from Hashem.

For the next seven days, we attempt to shed the physical lifestyle that we normally live, and trade it in for a simpler lifestyle. We either cut down or stop working all together during the week, we live in our sukkos, and we lesson the unnecessary physical pleasures. We realize that even though some attain wealth and luxury easily, it is not the main point in life. Our main point is what we are doing throughout Sukkos: ponder and enjoy the bounty that Hashem has given us throughout this past year, and focus on our spiritual development.

Have a great Sukkos and Shabbos!

Boys are fun. They are much different than girls. Far less intelligent, far less cautious, and far more destructive. When Rochel Leah was around one, if she went and did something that I didn’t approve of, I would yell, “NO!” She would jump and scamper away, never to do such a thing again. Chaim Moshe, on the other hand, simply gives you a look that says, “Duh….” and continues to do what he was doing.
His favourite word (okay, only word) so far is: ‘Gah!” Which I’m sure is Klingon for something manly like “I will eat the heart of my enemy!” Whenever he’s on the move (which is all the time), he eats or destroys all that comes in his way, leaving a path of destruction following him.

Thank G-d we had a girl first.
“Futility of futilities! – said Koheles – Futility of futilities! All is futile! What profit does man have for all his labour which he toils beneath the sun?” – Koheles (1:3-4)

There are two ways to view Koheles, which is read on the Shabbos of Sukkos. One, you can see it as an essay of depression. Or two, you can look at it as a reality check which enables us to focus on the important goals in life.

When a person’s life is based off of “when is my next vacation” and is primarily focused on the pleasures of this world, then Koheles seems depressing. After all, if “everything under the sun” is futile, and he’s spending his life chasing after everything under the sun… well… this view of Koheles comes as no surprise.

However, when one is spiritually focused, he read Koheles with an understanding the above person cannot fathom. He understands that chasing the next vacation while still attempting to satisfy one’s inner peace is futile. He knows that it’s the spiritual goal that one should be chasing.

This reminder is appropriate on Sukkos. The first mishnah in Rosh Hashanah states that there are four Rosh Hashanahs of the year, Sukkos being one of them; when we are judged on the amount of rainfall we will receive (read: income). So, while we are davening for physical sustenance, we take our selves and live in Sukkos for the week, which is certainly not a great example of fancy living. But that is the catch! While it’s true that we are davening for good and healthy income, we know that getting the income is not the goal in of itself and using the income to gratify our physical desires is not the goal. It’s using this physical income in its most minimal way, so we can focus on the spiritual. We asked Hashem to give us healthy income, so we can use it, not to lavish ourselves with, but for more uplifting pursuits.

May we internalize this lesson well and truly appreciate this year’s Sukkos.

We decided to take a simple trip to the Botanical Gardens located in Hebrew University on Mt. Scopus. It would be a good Sukkos trip since we read that it was open and free for admission over Chol Hamoed Sukkos.

According to the website, you can reach the gardens via three busses. Only one of them is accessible from another bus that we must take to leave Neve Yaakov. Fine. As we get off the first bus, we have three nearby bus stops which only one of them being the correct one where the second bus can be found. So, we go to the first. Nope, it doesn’t come there. The second? Nope. Okay, that leaves the third… oh look! That’s our bus leaving!

Fine. We’ll wait for another bus.

After 35 minutes of watching several other busses going to Mt. Scopus (but not ours) go by, ours finally arrives. As I get on the bus, I confirm with the bus driver that this is the correct bus. No, he says, I have to go in the other direction, there are no gardens on Mt. Scopus. Now, I checked the map, and I know that it’s on Mt. Scopus and inform him so. He thinks I’m still wrong, but he agreed to keep going (thanks).

We finally get to Mt. Scopus and we see no signs for the gardens. However, we see bus signs that tell me that I could have gotten on any of the busses that we previously saw to get here, which is contrary to what the Botanical Gardens says, and would have saved us 35 minutes.

Okay, let’s walk. Five minutes later I ask somebody working at a coffee shop. Yeah, he says, down the street where you came from. Okay, turn around and walk another 15 minutes (remember, 2 ½ year-old in tow). I finally ask an arab vendor. Yeah, he says, go back up where you came from and a little further and turn right at the intersection.

Fine. We go back up and walk around some more. I see a security office and go in and ask them. Yeah, it’s around here, they said, but it’s closed for another week.

…Silence…

So, we’ve been told that the Botanical Gardens is free and open to the public, located on Mt. Scopus, and also located the other side of the city, on the on both sides of the street, and closed to the public. We settled down on a piece of grass we found (a treasure in Jerusalem) and gave Rochel Leah some snacks. She was happy as ever in the “garden”.

Of course, when we came home, we called them up and yes, they were open, and yes, they were free, and yes, they were on Mt. Scopus, and yes, I could have caught any bus. The arabs got it the closest. We should have turned left, not right.

Okay, on to Torah!
The second mishnah in Rosh Hashanah states that we are judged for the amount of water we will receive (read: income) on Sukkos. This is somewhat interesting, since we know that our year’s needs are judged on Rosh Hashanah, and this is exactly what the Ran asks.

He also, thankfully, provides us with an answer. On Rosh Hashanah we are judged with what we need over the next year. If Hashem decides that we are to receive $100,000 in income, then we will receive that $100,000. However, on Sukkos, our income is judged on when we receive that money, and how it gets to us. If we are judged favourably on Sukkos, then we will receive the $100,000, and it will come at a good time which will help the person use that money to the maximum.

However, perhaps a person is not. Then he will receive the $100,000, but perhaps an excellent deal will come around in which that person needs to put down that $100,000, but he doesn’t have it at the time, since it’s been trickling in, and the deal falls through. Or perhaps his expenses will be higher than usual and will leave him with less of a profit.

Perhaps we are destined to make the big money this year, but if your expenses are super high or it comes in the wrong time, it might not make much of a difference in your life. This Hoshana Rabba (last day of Sukkos), let’s try to keep this in mind.

Have a great Shabbos and Sukkos!

Well, Sukkos time is here. A week before Rosh Hashanah you begin to notice the difference. Throughout the entire summer we don’t have clouds. It’s hot, extra-hot, or super-hot. Then, starting a few weeks ago, the weather began to cool and clouds started making daily appearances.

The mood also begins to change. Before Rosh Hashanah, you can feel Rosh Hashanah in the air. Now that Yom Kippur is behind us, everybody begins to relax and Sukkos building takes priority.

A friend of mine, Moshe, and I went to buy a lulav the other day in Meah Sharim. Naturally, it was packed with people. We went to a little apartment, snuggled away where nobody can find it. Moshe told me the finer things to look for in a good lulav, an excellent hands-on lesson. You know how they have photos out there of “ultra-orthodox” men staring at the ends of a lulav making a contorted face? Well, I was one of them. Contorted face and all. Found a lulav that even Moshe appreciated. What was amazing was Moshe needed two lulavim. So, he picked out five (each worth 100 shekel or 25 dollars), told the owner that he was going to take them home to look over. No deposit, no payment, and no problem. The owner has no idea who my friend is. He figures that since he’s a frum guy, he’ll be honest, and return the ones he doesn’t want the next day.

It’s nice to see that level of trust once in a while.

Okay, on to Torah!
It’s said that one has never seen simcha until they have seen Sukkos celebrated in the Beis HaMikdash.

Sukkos has always been a time a celebration. Not the drinking-type of celebration that Purim is known for. Nor is it an ‘independence day’ that Pesach is known for. Sukkos is a time where we celebrate everything that Hashem has given us.

The main harvesting season is over. Rain will begin shortly after Sukkos. Everybody is preparing for the cold winter ahead. We just came out of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, where we were “washed clean”. Now, after gathering the fruits of the field, we sit back and realize all that we have.

We’re still alive. We have family. We have friends. We have food on the table. Hopefully we have grown over the past year. Hopefully we have peace in the house.

We move out of the physical realm into the spiritual realm, out of our homes and into the sukkah. From here we are able to shed the physical world, which is only secondary. By minimizing our physical world, we are able to focus more on the spiritual world. At this point, we will be able to truly recognize the good that Hashem has given us over the past year, and celebrate and thank Him for the next seven days.

Have an excellent Sukkos and Shabbos!

My wife and I did something very foolish today. We went to Meah Sharim and Geula with child and a lot of errands. NOT a smart thing to do a few days before Sukkos. Starting the night after Yom Kippur the entire country takes a ‘breath of fresh air’ and a whole new feeling is in the air. Meah Sharim and Geula are two neighborhoods, side-by-side which become PACKED with people selling Lulavim and Esrogim, Sukkah decorations, gifts, food, and of course, there are tons of tourists (many of them New Yorkers named “Mauty… come look at this!”. It’s really a madhouse, but one cannot possibly begin to describe the atmosphere that this season produces. So I won’t. Needless to say, everybody should try to be here to witness it themselves.

Okay, on to Torah!

“Spread over us the Sukkah of Your peace” – Evening Davening

This “Sukkah of Peace”, says Rav Eliyahu Dessler, is connect with the “Clouds of Glory”, which protected us in the desert. These protective clouds were given to us in the merit of Aharon, who loved and pursued peace.

As written before, see “Happiness With What We Have” from last year, Sukkos is a time where we move into the Sukkah and leave the physical world, represented by our permanent homes, behind. We leave the comfort and security of our homes, to live in a smaller and most likely, less comfortable dwelling. We knock off the idea of ‘economic security’, and show that this is not the essence in life.

Rav Dessler says that as long as we ignore this “Sukkah Principle” we will never have peace in the world. As long as mankind is constantly looking at others and desiring what they have, society will continue to falter. How can society work together when we are constantly jealous of other people’s possessions?

The “Sukkah Principle” turns people towards their spiritual goals. When we throw off the idea that we “need” what other people have, we can begin to look at the world in a more spiritual plane. We can see that all of our real needs have been and will continue to be taken care of by Hashem. When we recognize this fact, then we are truly using Sukkos appropriately, and peace, represented by Aharon, will hover above our Sukkos.

A friend of mine once told me that whenever he feels worried about finances and such, he constantly reviews works on Emunah (trust in Hashem), reminds himself of all the other times in the past in which Hashem has helped him out, he does whatever is required of him to do at the time, and it always pays off: “something” happens.

The physical world is not the be-all and end-all of life. By focusing on the spiritual pursuits in our Sukkos, we minimize our physical pursuits, allowing true peace to reign.

Have a great Shabbos and an excellent Sukkos!

I hope everybody is currently enjoying their Sukkos. I'm currently sitting in mine, relaxing in the Jerusalem night. The temperature suddenly dropped, with highs in the high 60s-low 70s. We even had rain yesterday, which according to the Gemara (Tannis), is somewhat of a slap across our face from Hashem. Rain during Sukkos is bad, rain after Sukkos is excellent. Thankfully, I got everything inside before the rain hit, and cleaned up everything this morning, so we're back in business. On top of that, my wife has the entire holiday off, so I get fresh food everyday…including chocolate chip cookies!
I had an interesting thought over the first day I thought I would share. According to a Mishnah in Masecta (Tractate) Rosh Hashanah, the world is judged on Sukkos on how much water (both literally and figuratively, meaning livelihood) it will receive (On a side note, the Ran discusses the difference between this judgment and the judgment of Rosh Hashanah). So, how much parnassah (livelihood) we, as a nation, will receive, is judged over Sukkos.

If you look in the Mussaf prayers of Sukkos, you will see that Sukkos is referred to as a "the time of our gladness". On Pesach we would say, "the time of our freedom", and on Shavous we would say, "the time of the giving of our Torah". Pesach and Shavous both make sense. Pesach is a time that we, as a nation, were given our freedom from Egypt; and Shavous is a time when we were given the Torah. But concerning Sukkos, why is this "the time of our gladness"?

I came up with a little theory. I don't know if it's true or not, but it's an interesting thought.

What do we do on Sukkos? We leave the comforts of our home and, weather permitting, we literally move into our Sukkah. It is there where we eat, sleep, learn, relax, etc... for seven days. Instead of the comfortable leather couches, we perhaps have a mattress; instead we live in a little hut with a table and chairs, which always has bees visiting, and the temperature can range from freezing to boiling within a twelve-hour period (only on Sukkos, of course). What are we doing? We're living with the basic necessities.

When we live with just the basics in life and we show our happiness in that, then we are showing Hashem that we don't need the fancy things in life. We're happy with what He gives us and we use what he gives us to do His will. I think that is one of the lessons to be learned over Sukkos. When we use the physical gifts that Hashem has given us to follow the Torah, AND we do it in happiness, then Hashem will continue to grant us parnassah in the upcoming year.

With that, I wish you all a great Shabbos and a Sukkos full of happiness!

Ah... Sukkos is in the air. The mood of the city has shifted. For over a month now, people have 'tensed up' a bit due to the seriousness of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Now things have turned around a little bit. The air is a little more joyous. During the week of Sukkos, most shops close down along with schools and other business. Families get time to spend together, and thanks to the good weather, everybody can literally move into their sukkah. Wherever you look and wherever you go, Sukkos are up and running. They could be made on the roof of buildings, parking lots, the side of the street, on balconies... anywhere. People are selling schach (covering for the Sukkah) on the streets, along with lulavim, esrogim, decorations... Throughout the week, trucks will be going around blaring music. It's a relaxing time of the year.

This year, we have our Sukkah built on our balcony. It’s 1.3 meters wide and just over 3 meters long. We use Palm branches our schach and small, white, "decoration" (read: X-Mas) lights adorning the shach. Plus, our neighbor’s children made some decorations for us. I can't wait to move in. Photos will be up within the next few days.
I saw an interesting piece written by Rabbi Dovid Kaplan on Sukkos. As I wrote above, he speaks of the stress that a person goes through during the month of Elul and culminates with Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. During that time, introspection is what we focus on, as we tear ourselves and expose our faults. Throughout the forty day period, we try to work on ourselves and pinpoint our weaknesses. Finally, we get home from Yom Kippur, sitting at our table, breaking our 26 hour fast, and all we can think of is: Ahhhh...

The Shulchan Oruch states that the night Yom Kippur ends is the time we should put our Sukkah up. We finish up our meals and go right back to work.

Rabbi Kaplan told over a story of when he went to visit a talmud chacham. During that visit, he had the opportunity to leaf through the chacham's notebook and at the end of the book was a photo of a giant California Redwood, taken at an angle where the cameraman was looking straight up. The chacham said to Rabbi Kaplan, "It's a reminder. A person always has to grow."

Says, Rabbi Kaplan, this is one of the ideas of Sukkos. Right after Yom Kippur, we, rightfully, have a sense of relief. Our naturally tendency is to slacken down a bit and relax. But the Shulchan Oruch says different. It says, "Get to work on the next mitzvah!" So too is one of the reasoning we use something that grows, such as branches and leaves, as our Sukkah covering. A constant reminder that we need to push further. The same with the Lulav and Esrog, all of the "Four Species" that are taken were alive and growing.

While the month of Elul was a time of intensity, Sukkos is a time of happiness. But that doesn't mean that Sukkos is a time where we are absolved from doing mitzvos. During Elul we were to grow through introspection. During Sukkos, we are to grow through simcha and happiness, looking at everything Hashem has given us and being thankful for it. Sukkos is a time in the season when farmers finished gathering in their crops. They recognized the bounty that Hashem has given them. So too we look at everything He has given us, and we ask that he can continue to give us, so we can continue to grow in His way. Have a great Sukkos!