About the holiday: Sukkot
Tonight (Friday) starts my favorite holiday: Sukkot. I wrote a bit about it a few years ago, so I'm going to try to tell about the holiday without repeating myself too much.
Sukkot ("booths", literally) originated as an agricultural holiday. It's about harvest, similar to Thanksgiving in that sense. (Which is why I've always had an appreciation for the fact that Canadian Thanksgiving/harvest is in October!) Sukkot is a seven-day holiday, followed immediately by Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah (the latter used to be another of my favorite holidays because it's so joyous and celebrated with dancing and music and fun... but more on that later.) Part of the reason we "dwell" in these temporary shelters is because the farmers used to stay out in the fields while they gathered instead of returning to the house each night. Historically, Sukkot also commemorates the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were wandering in the desert, living in temporary shelters.
The word "Sukkot" means "booths," and refers to the temporary dwellings that we are commanded to live in during this holiday in memory of the period of wandering. The name of the holiday is frequently translated "Feast of Tabernacles," which, like many translations of Jewish terms, isn't very useful. This translation is particularly misleading, because the word "tabernacle" in the Bible refers to the portable Sanctuary in the desert, a precursor to the Temple, called in Hebrew "mishkan." The Hebrew word "sukkah" (plural: "sukkot") refers to the temporary booths that people lived in, not to the Tabernacle.
And so, as the major part of this holiday, we build temporary shelters ourselves and live in them. Not literally and not fully, but as much as we can. We have our meals there. If we were going to hang out in the house, we hang out in the sukkah. A "sukkah" is a temporary dwelling, with at least 3 walls (and a doorway) and a roof through which the stars can be seen. The inside is often decorated, usually by children, in the spirit of the season. New Year's cards; gourds, squash, corn, and other fall fruits & vegetables; paper decorations (chains are popular) and other things. See the wikipedia entry for some pictures. Building and decorating a sukkah is a fun family project, much like decorating the Christmas tree is for Christians. It is a sad commentary on modern American Judaism that most of the assimilated Jews who complain about being deprived of the fun of having and decorating a Christmas tree have never even heard of Sukkot.
Since it is outside and open, the mitzvah of being in the sukkah is weather-permitting. We try to be out there as much as we can, but if it's raining hard, there's no obligation to suffer. This is a happy holiday and we should rejoice in the mitzvah of dwelling in the sukkah; not grumble about having to be outside when it's uncomfortable.
Many Americans, upon seeing a decorated sukkah for the first time, remark on how much the sukkah (and the holiday generally) reminds them of Thanksgiving. This may not be entirely coincidental: our American pilgrims, who originated the Thanksgiving holiday, borrowed the idea from Sukkot. The pilgrims were deeply religious people. When they were trying to find a way to express their thanks for their survival and for the harvest, they looked to the Bible for an appropriate way of celebrating and found Sukkot. This is not the standard story taught in public schools today (that a Thanksgiving holiday is an English custom that the Pilgrims brought over), but the Sukkot explanation of Thanksgiving fits better with the meticulous research of Mayflower historian Caleb Johnson, who believes that the original Thanksgiving was a harvest festival (as is Sukkot), that it was observed in October (as Sukkot usually is), and that Pilgrims would not have celebrated a holiday that was not in the Bible (but Sukkot is in the Bible). Although Mr. Johnson claims that the first Thanksgiving was "not a religious holiday or observance," he apparently means this in a Christian sense, because he goes on to say that the first Thanksgiving was instead "a harvest festival that included feasts, sporting events, and other activities," concepts very much in keeping with the Jewish religious observance of Sukkot.
During the holiday, some Jews recite the ushpizin prayer which symbolises the welcoming of seven "exaulted guests" into the sukkah. These ushpizin, or guests, represent the seven shepherds of Israel: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joseph and David. According to tradition, each night a different guest enters the sukkah followed by the other six. Each of the ushpizin has a unique lesson to teach us that parallels the spiritual focus of the day on which they visit.
Going along with the metaphorical guests, it's a mitzvah to invite real guests (friends and family) to celebrate with you in the sukkah.
Another observance during Sukkot involves what are known as the Four Species (arba minim in Hebrew) or the lulav and etrog. We are commanded to take these four plants and use them to "rejoice before the L-rd." The four species in question are an etrog (a citrus fruit similar to a lemon native to Israel; in English it is called a citron), a palm branch (in Hebrew, lulav), two willow branches (aravot) and three myrtle branches (hadassim). The six branches are bound together and referred to collectively as the lulav, because the palm branch is by far the largest part. The etrog is held separately. With these four species in hand, one recites a blessing and waves the species in all six directions (east, south, west, north, up and down), symbolizing the fact that G-d is everywhere.
Why are these four plants used instead of other plants? There are two primary explanations of the symbolic significance of these plants: that they represent different parts of the body, or that they represent different kinds of Jews.
According to the first interpretation, the long straight palm branch represents the spine. The myrtle leaf, which is a small oval, represents the eye. The willow leaf, a long oval, represents the mouth, and the etrog fruit represents the heart. All of these parts have the potential to be used for sin, but should join together in the performance of mitzvot.
According to the second interpretation, the etrog, which has both a pleasing taste and a pleasing scent, represents Jews who have achieved both knowledge of Torah and performance of mitzvot. The palm branch, which produces tasty fruit, but has no scent, represents Jews who have knowledge of Torah but are lacking in mitzvot. The myrtle leaf, which has a strong scent but no taste, represents Jews who perform mitzvot but have little knowledge of Torah. The willow, which has neither taste nor scent, represents Jews who have no knowledge of Torah and do not perform the mitzvot. We bring all four of these species together on Sukkot to remind us that every one of these four kinds of Jews is important, and that we must all be united.
More info can be found on Chabad.org (or check out the Kids Zone, which is fun), Wikipedia, and Judaism 101. I tried to take the best parts from each one for a condensed explanation.
Sukkot ("booths", literally) originated as an agricultural holiday. It's about harvest, similar to Thanksgiving in that sense. (Which is why I've always had an appreciation for the fact that Canadian Thanksgiving/harvest is in October!) Sukkot is a seven-day holiday, followed immediately by Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah (the latter used to be another of my favorite holidays because it's so joyous and celebrated with dancing and music and fun... but more on that later.) Part of the reason we "dwell" in these temporary shelters is because the farmers used to stay out in the fields while they gathered instead of returning to the house each night. Historically, Sukkot also commemorates the forty-year period during which the children of Israel were wandering in the desert, living in temporary shelters.
The word "Sukkot" means "booths," and refers to the temporary dwellings that we are commanded to live in during this holiday in memory of the period of wandering. The name of the holiday is frequently translated "Feast of Tabernacles," which, like many translations of Jewish terms, isn't very useful. This translation is particularly misleading, because the word "tabernacle" in the Bible refers to the portable Sanctuary in the desert, a precursor to the Temple, called in Hebrew "mishkan." The Hebrew word "sukkah" (plural: "sukkot") refers to the temporary booths that people lived in, not to the Tabernacle.
And so, as the major part of this holiday, we build temporary shelters ourselves and live in them. Not literally and not fully, but as much as we can. We have our meals there. If we were going to hang out in the house, we hang out in the sukkah. A "sukkah" is a temporary dwelling, with at least 3 walls (and a doorway) and a roof through which the stars can be seen. The inside is often decorated, usually by children, in the spirit of the season. New Year's cards; gourds, squash, corn, and other fall fruits & vegetables; paper decorations (chains are popular) and other things. See the wikipedia entry for some pictures. Building and decorating a sukkah is a fun family project, much like decorating the Christmas tree is for Christians. It is a sad commentary on modern American Judaism that most of the assimilated Jews who complain about being deprived of the fun of having and decorating a Christmas tree have never even heard of Sukkot.
Since it is outside and open, the mitzvah of being in the sukkah is weather-permitting. We try to be out there as much as we can, but if it's raining hard, there's no obligation to suffer. This is a happy holiday and we should rejoice in the mitzvah of dwelling in the sukkah; not grumble about having to be outside when it's uncomfortable.
Many Americans, upon seeing a decorated sukkah for the first time, remark on how much the sukkah (and the holiday generally) reminds them of Thanksgiving. This may not be entirely coincidental: our American pilgrims, who originated the Thanksgiving holiday, borrowed the idea from Sukkot. The pilgrims were deeply religious people. When they were trying to find a way to express their thanks for their survival and for the harvest, they looked to the Bible for an appropriate way of celebrating and found Sukkot. This is not the standard story taught in public schools today (that a Thanksgiving holiday is an English custom that the Pilgrims brought over), but the Sukkot explanation of Thanksgiving fits better with the meticulous research of Mayflower historian Caleb Johnson, who believes that the original Thanksgiving was a harvest festival (as is Sukkot), that it was observed in October (as Sukkot usually is), and that Pilgrims would not have celebrated a holiday that was not in the Bible (but Sukkot is in the Bible). Although Mr. Johnson claims that the first Thanksgiving was "not a religious holiday or observance," he apparently means this in a Christian sense, because he goes on to say that the first Thanksgiving was instead "a harvest festival that included feasts, sporting events, and other activities," concepts very much in keeping with the Jewish religious observance of Sukkot.
During the holiday, some Jews recite the ushpizin prayer which symbolises the welcoming of seven "exaulted guests" into the sukkah. These ushpizin, or guests, represent the seven shepherds of Israel: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joseph and David. According to tradition, each night a different guest enters the sukkah followed by the other six. Each of the ushpizin has a unique lesson to teach us that parallels the spiritual focus of the day on which they visit.
Going along with the metaphorical guests, it's a mitzvah to invite real guests (friends and family) to celebrate with you in the sukkah.
Another observance during Sukkot involves what are known as the Four Species (arba minim in Hebrew) or the lulav and etrog. We are commanded to take these four plants and use them to "rejoice before the L-rd." The four species in question are an etrog (a citrus fruit similar to a lemon native to Israel; in English it is called a citron), a palm branch (in Hebrew, lulav), two willow branches (aravot) and three myrtle branches (hadassim). The six branches are bound together and referred to collectively as the lulav, because the palm branch is by far the largest part. The etrog is held separately. With these four species in hand, one recites a blessing and waves the species in all six directions (east, south, west, north, up and down), symbolizing the fact that G-d is everywhere.
Why are these four plants used instead of other plants? There are two primary explanations of the symbolic significance of these plants: that they represent different parts of the body, or that they represent different kinds of Jews.
According to the first interpretation, the long straight palm branch represents the spine. The myrtle leaf, which is a small oval, represents the eye. The willow leaf, a long oval, represents the mouth, and the etrog fruit represents the heart. All of these parts have the potential to be used for sin, but should join together in the performance of mitzvot.
According to the second interpretation, the etrog, which has both a pleasing taste and a pleasing scent, represents Jews who have achieved both knowledge of Torah and performance of mitzvot. The palm branch, which produces tasty fruit, but has no scent, represents Jews who have knowledge of Torah but are lacking in mitzvot. The myrtle leaf, which has a strong scent but no taste, represents Jews who perform mitzvot but have little knowledge of Torah. The willow, which has neither taste nor scent, represents Jews who have no knowledge of Torah and do not perform the mitzvot. We bring all four of these species together on Sukkot to remind us that every one of these four kinds of Jews is important, and that we must all be united.
More info can be found on Chabad.org (or check out the Kids Zone, which is fun), Wikipedia, and Judaism 101. I tried to take the best parts from each one for a condensed explanation.