VOLUME 107 NUMBER 11
Tishrei 14, 5784
September 29, 2023
SPECIAL SUCCOS EDITION
Candlelighting Time 6:27 PM
Man is made of different shades. Certain actions we enjoy doing while others run against our grain. The Torah in its all-encompassing manner addresses the entire gamut of our being. Meshech Chochmah explains that certain mitzvos although aligned with our basic pattern of behavior further assist us in enhancing our conduct and elevating us to a higher plateau in serving Hashem. However, Hashem in His ultimate wisdom and kindness also endowed us with mitzvos which run counter to that which we favor, thereby enriching our totality and providing us with the ability to strive further in our dedication to Hashem and the Torah.
The mitzvah of Succah is that type of mitzvah which challenges us to perform. After an entire year of neck-breaking work in the field to produce a spectacular yield a person feels entitled to relax in the comfort of his home. After all, he has worked many long hours in the heat of the sun fighting the elements, tending to his fields and irrigating them so that they will develop into a tremendous bounty. However, the Torah expects that individual who is craving for his creature comforts to leave his comfortable and secure living quarters and venture into a small, perhaps cramped and rickety hovel for eight days. This is not the concluding episode that this person was anticipating. However, this is the mandate that the Torah imposes upon us for our benefit. The intent of the mitzvah is to distance of from the influence of our natural predispositions. When we accomplish that goal, we are more capable of fulling the mitzvos with absolute passion and fervor. Therefore, in reference to the succah, the Torah states that the ‘Name of Heaven’ is instilled in the succah. In other words, the succah is made for the sake of Heaven, inculcating in us a level of holiness that we would not access and imbibe into our very being if not for this mitzvah. Indeed, just as an offering is made for Hashem in order to imbue within us a proximity to Hashem, so to the succah is akin in scope.
On the other end of the spectrum are those mitzvos which harness our innate desires. The four types of produce that we take on Succos exemplify this. It is quite typical for someone who has raised many crops and harvested them to utilize them in order to celebrate his success. Perhaps he will decorate his home or use them for a special meal. Whatever the case, enjoying one’s bumper crop is very acceptable in these situations. Therefore, we are commanded to use four types of crops that will bring much joy and happiness to us because they exhibit our instinctive want to experience the fruits of our labor. Since we are inclined to use these items in this manner, therefore the Torah does not mention that the ‘Name of Heaven’ is infused into these items because the theme of these mitzvos doesn’t challenge our inherent mode of behavior, rather they strengthen that which we truly appreciate doing anyway. After we have merited atonement for the past because of Yom Kippur, we can move forward and continue to elevate ourselves with the wonderful mitzvos of Succos.
A BYTE FOR SHABBOS AND YOM TOV
Succos follows on the heels of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. It is termed the days of simcha in the Torah. Since we have exerted ourselves in our service to Hashem in the previous days of Tishrei, we then can truly realize a level of simcha that will be ongoing and enduring.
K’SAV SOFER
GOOD SHABBOS AND GOOD YOM TOV
