The holiday of Sukkot has been blessed with many beautiful laws and customs, but the most basic mitzvah is that of dwelling in a sukkah.
But why do we sit in the sukkah? The Torah gives two reasons: one agricultural and one historical.
The agricultural reason is found, for example, in Exodus (23:16): “… and the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in the results of your work from the field.” According to this verse, Sukkot is a holiday of thanksgiving for the harvest.
The historical reason is found in Leviticus (23:42-43): “You shall live in booths seven days… In order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt…” Thus, according to Leviticus, we sit in the sukkah in order to remember all that God did for us when we left Egypt.
These are the simple reasons given by the Torah for observing this holiday; later rabbis and philosophers added more reasons.
Gratitude
Philo was a Hellenistic-Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria in the 1st century CE. In his many works, written in Greek, he gave allegorical interpretations to the Bible. In his book On the Special Laws (2:204, 206-211), he adds a number of reasons to those mentioned above. He says that it’s a pleasure for a prosperous person to remember the “bad old days” by sitting in a makeshift dwelling. He goes a step further, saying that sitting in the sukkah reminds us of how far we have come, and leads us to praise and thank God for all the kindness He has bestowed upon us.
Humility
The Rashbam, one of Rashi’s famous grandsons, lived in France in the 12th century. In his commentary on the verse from Leviticus quoted above (23:43), he gives another reason for sitting in the sukkah. The sukkah is a lesson in humility; it comes to protect us from egotism and conceit. God commanded us to sit in the sukkah precisely at the harvest season, when we are congratulating ourselves for our successful harvest and our fancy homes. The humble sukkah reminds us: Everything you eat and everything you own comes from God.
Faith
Rabbi Yitzhak Aboab lived in Spain around 100 years before the expulsion. In his classic on Jewish ethics, Menorat Hamaor, he gives a further explanation for sitting in the sukkah.
He proposes that the main point of living in the sukkah for seven days is to increase our faith in God. When we live in a sturdy house, we are protected from the elements. As a result, we begin to have faith in our homes, not in God.
Likewise, we tend to place all our trust in men, especially influential rulers and leaders. By living in a flimsy sukkah for seven days, exposed once again to the elements, we realize that ultimately, we must put our trust in God, who rules over our houses, the elements, and all human rulers.
Peace
Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch was the leader of German neo-Orthodoxy in the 19th century. In his book Horeb, he writes that the sukkah is a symbol of universal peace and brotherhood, since on Shabbat and festivals we recite, “Spread over us Your sukkah of peace” in the evening service. The term “sukkah” is used in this prayer to symbolize peace and brotherhood based not on economic and political interests but on a joint belief in the one God.
Sharing
Another reason for sitting in the sukkah is my own: By sitting in a flimsy sukkah, exposed to the elements, we are reminded of those less fortunate than ourselves. Precisely at harvest time, when we thank God for the bounty He has given us, we must remember to share it with the poor and the hungry.
Relevant today
All these explanations were relevant before October 7, 2023. Are they still relevant today?
After October 7, many Israelis have felt as if they were living in a sukkah all year long.
Many of those massacred on October 7 were attacked in their homes. At the beginning of the war, 330,000 Israelis had to evacuate their homes. Many Israelis feel unsafe in their homes as a result of the tens of thousands of missiles and drones that have been shot at Israel from Gaza, Iran, Yemen, and Lebanon.
Four of the above reasons are still very relevant today.
We need to learn humility in light of October 7. We were haughty and overconfident. The sukkah reminds us that we are not so powerful. We must be humble and remember that everything we eat, everything we own, and our military successes all depend on God.
As in any democracy, we need to rely on the brave soldiers and commanders in the IDF and on our elected officials, but human beings sometimes make huge mistakes. By living in a flimsy sukkah for seven days, exposed to the elements, we realize that ultimately, we must put our trust in God, who rules over our houses, the elements, and all human rulers.
Universal peace and brotherhood seem very far away at the moment, but the prayer “Spread over us Your sukkah of peace” is as important an aspiration as it always was throughout Jewish history.
Finally, the number of poor people in Israel has risen considerably as a result of the war. Thus, the flimsy sukkah reminds us to redouble our efforts to help those less fortunate than ourselves.
Precisely at harvest time, when we thank God for the bounty He has given us, we must remember to share it with the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who have been adversely affected by the war.
The writer, a rabbi and professor, is the president emeritus of the Schechter Institutes in Jerusalem. His latest book is Responsa in a Moment, Vol. VI.