Each autumn comes with a plethora of Jewish holidays, kicked off by Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (the day of atonement) most notably. Sukkot, however, is another week-long holiday coming up on the evening of October 2nd that usually doesn't get as much spotlight. Personally, it was a holiday my family never celebrated, leaving me to question the details behind its rituals and meaning.
Sukkot celebrates the years of voyage spent by the Jewish people on their way to the Promised Land, and the miraculous was in which G-d protected the Jews while they wandered the dessert. Known as the feast of booths, Jews today celebrate sukkot by building a tent-like structure in their yards and having their meals there throughout the holiday. This comes directly from scripture:
"You shall dwell in sukkot seven days...in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in sukkot when I brought them out of the land of Egypt" -- Leviticus 23:42.
However, you can't just buy an ordinary tent from Home Depot and set it up in your backyard. To properly commemorate the holiday, the sukkah, or tent, should have a roof made of branches and leaves (modernly, planks of wood are used for structure) and the sky must be seen when looking up.
In the age of technology and modern infrastructure, what is the point of dwelling in a flimsy tent for a week every fall? This ritual serves as a reminder that we are vulnerable and easily can be left exposed to the elements of nature. It guides us to be grateful for what we have and appreciate that life is a blessing.
There is more to the holiday of Sukkot than eating in a tent, however. Once in the tent, we assemble an etrog (citrus fruit), a palm branch, a myrtle branch, and a willow branch. These latter three branches are bound together and called the lulav. Each person takes the lulav and etrog together and shakes it in 6 directions before passing it on to the next.
Why these 4 elements? It is said that each element stands for the four types of Jews:
The etrog has a distinct taste and fragrance, symbolizing the Jews who study the Torah and also commit good deeds (mitzvot).
The palm branch has a taste but no fragrance, symbolizing those who have knowledge of the Torah but do not commit good deeds.
The myrtle branch has no taste but does have a distinct smell, representing Jews who do not study Torah but do commit good deeds.
Lastly, the willow branch has no taste nor smell, representing Jews who neither study Torah nor commit good deeds.
These 4 elements are brought together and shaken to stand for the body of the Jewish people. No matter how much Jewish education we have or how much time we commit to performing mitzvot, we are Jews nonetheless and belong in one community.
