When Adam, the first man, was created, God placed him in the Garden of Eden; but when he sinned, he was expelled from it. Each year, we are able to feel glimmers of the Garden of Eden when we dwell in the sukka sheltered by God, and are able to rejoice on Sukkot.

Sukkot is called “our time of rejoicing,” in the festival prayers, because God granted us the merit of dwelling in His shadow [that is, His shelter, the sukka]. This is somewhat like the Garden of Eden, as it is written: “He placed there the man” (Genesis 2:8). The main idea of Creation was that man’s dwelling place would be there [that is, in the Garden of Eden], and that was where joy was found, as it is written in the wedding blessings: “As You gave joy to Your creations in the Garden of Eden,” but it is also written: “He banished the man” (Genesis 3:24). Nevertheless, there are times when a little of the illumination from the Garden of Eden glimmers; God brings us into this dwelling [that is, the sukka] that bears the name of Heaven [as it has the status of an article used in the performance of a mitzva]…therefore, this dwelling brings joy. (Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib Alter, Sefat Emet, Sukkot 5643)

Sukka and Lulav

Sukka and lulav for the chosen nation; together they sing and express appreciation.

God delivered us from the land of Egypt, and made heard to us His sacred words.

He surrounded us with clouds of glory,

on all four sides, above and below.

He told us of His pleasant ways,

and appeared to us in His light and splendor.

Knowledge is expressed from day to day;

knowledge is uttered night by night.

Israel will rejoice in the shade of His sukka,

taking shelter under His wing.

His ineffable name as written and read,

carries the value of sukka.

How great are the secrets of the four species,

their lessons are so precious to me.

Praised is the purehearted, who focuses his gaze

on the secrets of this mitzva, so elevated.

Within the lulav lies the name that has four;

the addition of the letter heh adds to the count.

The spine of the lulav is surrounded,

encircled by its species.

The myrtle hints to our patriarchs three;

Moses and Aaron – branches of the willow tree;

Joseph the lulav desired by all;

David – the citron – like a bride at her wedding.

Provide a deed of release to Your children,

a gift to the nation that is Yours,

who await and hope for Your salvation.

May Your name be sanctified in our words, sela.

Rabbi Mikhel of Zloczow owned a pair of very valuable tefillin that he had inherited from his saintly father. More than once, people had offered him large sums of money for them. Rabbi Mikhel was desperately poor and lived in dire need, and his wife had tried to convince him to sell the tefillin so that they would be able to provide for their household, but he refused to hear of it.

One year, the festival of Sukkot was approaching, and there was no citron to be found in Zloczow. Just as the festival was about to start, a Jewish man entered the town with a most beautiful citron. He was asking a high price for it. Rabbi Mikhel immediately went and sold his tefillin, and bought the citron.

When he brought it home, his wife realized that it was worth a fortune, and she began to question her husband about where he had obtained the money to buy it. He had no choice but to tell her the truth, that he had sold the tefillin. When she heard this, his wife was furious, and in her anger she picked up the citron and broke off the wood-like protuberance at its end, disqualifying it for use for the mitzva.

When the saintly man saw this, he lifted up his eyes and said: “Master of the Universe, I have no tefillin; I have no citron. Should I become angry too, and lose my World to Come? No; I will not become angry.”

This is why God gave us the mitzva of sukka; it protects [us] from the might of the nations. It alludes to this by protecting us from the sun, which signifies the might of the nations….That is why this festival is called Sukkot. (Rabbi Shmuel Bornsztain, Shem MiShmuel, Sukkot 5677)

On Sukkot the strength and love of the generation of the wilderness is awakened…this is the sukka, which recalls the clouds of glory in which God protected the Israelites in the wilderness. “And his banner upon me is love” (Song of Songs 2:4); the lulav is the banner. (Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib Alter, Sefat Emet, Sukkot 5662)

The greatest joy on this festival comes from the illumination of the soul that the Jewish people merit after they were purified on Yom Kippur…and wherever there is a revelation of the soul’s illumination, there is joy. (Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib Alter, Sefat Emet, Sukkot 5662)

Further reading: For more on the special joy of Sukkot, see A Concise Guide to the Sages, p. 292.

Further reading: For more on Hanukkah, see A Concise Guide to the Sages, p. 295; A Concise Guide to Halakha, p. 244.