What is a Sukkah ?

A Sukkah is a temporary dwelling that was used for shelter, rest, and eating by the Hebrews after the Exodus from Egypt and during their subsequent wanderings in the wilderness, that is, in the Sinai Desert, for a little over forty years.

What does the word Sukkah mean ?

The word "Sukkah" means either "booth" or "hut" in Hebrew. The plural form of "Sukkah" is "Sukkot", meaning "booths" or "huts".

Is Sukkah only transliterated as Sukkah ?

Well, nope. Sukkah can also be transliterated from Hebrew into English as Succah.

Why build a Sukkah ?

Building and dwelling in a Sukkah is a commandment from G-d, that is, it is an obligation or a mitzvah ("commandment" in Hebrew, as in a commandment from G-d). The purpose of building and dwelling in a Sukkah is so that the Hebrews/Jews are reminded of G-ds' protection in the form of the Sukkah that was offered to the Hebrews during their sojourns in the wilderness, that is, in the Sinai Desert. Where is G-ds' command to the Hebrews to build a Sukkah? G-ds' command to the Hebrews to build a Sukkah is contained in the following verses from the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible: "You shall sit in Sukkot (or Succot) for seven days, all citizens of Israel will sit in Sukkot (or Succot). In order that your generations shall know that I enabled the children of Israel to dwell in Sukkot (or Succot) when I brought them out of Egypt, I am the L-rd your G-d" (Vayikra 23:42-43, or in English, Leviticus 23:42-43).

What is used to build the Sukkah ?

When building a Sukkah according to Halakhah, or Jewish religious law, one must know exactly what is meant by a Sukkah. The Torah does not define the exact meaning of a Sukkah; it only says that we need to live in a Sukkah for the prescribed seven days. Therefore, the meaning of a Sukkah and how to build it was left many centuries later, after the development of the rabbinical institutions of learning and the title of rabbi, for the rabbis who filled in the gaps. The rabbis qualified and quantified what a Sukkah or Succah is and the minimum and maximum dimensions for its construction.

The rabbis defined a Sukkah as follows: "A Sukkah (or Succah) is a temporary dwelling that is constructed outside one's house under the stars with a roof made of natural plants that are no longer attached to the tree or to the ground. This botanical covering must be thick enough to provide more shade than sun, but it cannot be too thick. One must be able to see the stars through the roof (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 631:1 and 3)".

The roof is called "s'chach", meaning "covering" in Hebrew, and this gives the building its name of Sukkah or Succah. The s'chach is fragile and gives the entire structure its temporary nature.

In addition to the s'chach, the Succah or Sukkah must also have walls of the appropriate standard. The first Mishnah of the Tractate of Succah or Tractate of Sukkah opens with the words: "A Succah or Sukkah that is taller than twenty amot (or amos) is disqualified" (Babylonian Talmud, Mishnah, Tractate Succah 1:1). The maximum height for the succah is 20 amot or amos ("amot" or "amos" means "cubits" in Hebrew), where an amah or ama (singular form of "amot" or "amos") is the distance between the elbow and the tips of the fingers, approximately 40 to 50 centimeters (technically speaking, an amah or ama ranges from either 21.7 inches or 55.11 centimeters to 23.5 inches or 59.7 centimeters). Therefore, a Succah or Sukkah that is taller than 10 metres is not kosher.

The Gemara explains why this is the case: "up till 20 amot one constructs a temporary building, but higher than 20 amot one does not construct a temporary building, but a permanent building" (Babylonian Talmud, Mishnah, Tractate Succah 2a).

Building such a tall Sukkah or Succah would require the laying of the foundations and the erection of a permanent structure. This is disqualified as the nature of the Sukkah or Succah is to be temporary, fragile and frail.

There is another law concerning the walls that proves just how impermanent the Sukkah or Succah can and should be. The Mishnah states that the Sukkah or Succah needs to have three walls (Babylonian Talmud, Mishnah, Tractate Succah 1:1). However, the Gemara qualifies this statement "two have to be full walls, but the third can be even a tefach, a handbreadth" (Babylonian Talmud, Gemara, Tractate Succah 6b).

Jewish religious law, known as "Halachah" or "Halakhah" in Hebrew, follows the Gemara. If one were to build a Sukkah or Succah with two walls and a third that is only 10 centimeters, then that Sukkah or Succah would be kosher. Such a building, if we can call it such, barely keeps out the wind or the sun but yet it is a kosher Sukkah or Succah. One can build the Sukkah or Succah with four or more walls, but the minimum requirement is two and a bit walls. Again, we see that the Sukkah or Succah should be temporary.

How should we decorate the Sukkah or Succah ?

There are Halakhic laws or Jewish religious laws that stipulate how a Sukkah or Succah should be decorated, and, along with the aforementioned Halakhic laws concerning how to build a Sukkah or Succah, reflect a specific message that these laws seek to convey regarding the Sukkah or Succah.

So where is the source which tells us how to decorate the Sukkah or Succah? The answer is that the Gemara of the Talmud tells us how to decorate the Sukkah or Succah. The Gemara tells us that one should decorate their Sukkah or Succah with "decorated cloths, and hang nuts, almonds, peaches, pomegranates, grapes, wheat, wine, and oil" (Babylonian Talmud, Gemara, Succah 10a). Furthermore, it is appropriate to decorate the Sukkah or Succah in the same way that we decorate and beautify all of our mitzvot ("commandments" in Hebrew, as in commandments from G-d, which means that the commandments are an obligation for the Hebrews/Jews to fulfill). In the words of the Gemara, "'This is my G-d and I will beautify Him' (Shemot 15:2, or in English, Exodus 15:2), make the mitzvot beautiful: make a nice Sukkah or Succah, a nice lulav, a nice shofar, nice tzitzit, a nice Sefer Torah" (Babylonian Talmud, Gemara, Tractate Shabbat 133b).

Halakhah or Jewish religious law places a special emphasis and uniqueness concerning the decorations for the Sukkah or Succah. The Halachah or Jewish religious law regarding the decorations of the Sukkah or Succah does not just say that beautifying the Sukkah or Succah is commendable; it goes much further than that. The law is that the Sukkah or Succah decorations become reserved for that specific mitzvah ("commandment" in Hebrew, as in a commandment from G-d, meaning that the Hebrews/Jews must fulfill it) and cannot be used for any other purpose. "Throughout the entire festival (of Sukkot or Succoth) it is forbidden to make any use of the food and drink that were hung in the Sukkah or Succah for decoration, even if they fell down. On Shabbat ("Sabbath" in Hebrew) and the festival (of Sukkot or Succoth), they cannot be moved as they are reserved (for the purpose of decorating the Sukkah or Succah)" (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 638:2).

The decorations become an integral part of the structure of the Sukkah or Succah and cannot be used for any other use. They are muktzah ("Muktzah" means "put aside" in Hebrew, meaning not to be touched), reserved for a specific purpose only. Any other use would degrade them (Babylonian Talmud, Mishnah Berurah; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 638:2, note 12) and so for the days of Sukkot or Succot they remain as part of the decorations. Even if they fall down, they cannot be used for anything else.

What are the messages of the Sukkah, and what do they teach us?

We see that the decorations are not just a pleasant addition to the Sukkah or Succah, they are an indivisible part of the Sukkah or Succah. This Halakhah or Halachah or Jewish religious law regarding the decorations for the Sukkah or Succah will enable us to understand the essence of the Sukkah or Succah itself. In the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible, as well as in rabbinic literature, the Sukkah is viewed and presented as a symbol of protection and, more specifically, of divine protection. So how does the Sukkah or Succah as a symbol of protection apply to us today as it did for the Hebrews after the Exodus from Egypt? While we devise ways to keep ourselves protected from harm, there are always new schemes being created to penetrate our defenses by those who are bent on evil. The only way for us to be protected is by the Divine word, the hand of G-d. Only when G-d protects us are we shielded from harm. No bombs or thieves can attack us unless G-d allows them to. For seven days, G-d instructs us to eat, invite guests in, and sleep in what is an essentially frail structure known as the Sukkah or Succah. However, looks can be deceiving: while the Sukkah or Succah is essentially a frail structure, the Sukkah or Succah is actually the ultimate in protection because G-d told us to live in the Sukkah or Succah for seven days. Therefore, the message is clear concerning the purpose of the Sukkah or Succah: G-d protects us, and G-d can protect us just as well in a frail shed in the garden such as the Sukkah or Succah as G-d can in the strongest and most fortified castle. The Sukkah or Succah thus represents the word of G-d, the one element that we can rely on for our safety. If we recognize G-d and the protection of G-d, and are willing to leave our "secure" homes and dwell in the Sukkah the way that the Hebrews placed themselves in the hands of G-d and dwelt in their Sukkahs or Succahs after they left Egypt, then we will truly feel secure. Therefore, by fulfilling the obligation to dwell, sit, sleep, and eat and generally conduct our lives in the Sukkah or Succah for the seven days or one week of the festival of Sukkot, we are fulfilling the primary message of the Sukkah or Succah in that for those seven days or one week, we are proving our faith in G-d by placing ourselves in the hands of G-d. Furthermore, the lesson that this teaches us should remain with us for the entire year.

Where is a Sukkah located?

If the Sukkah is just for a family, then the Sukkah is built on one's property, usually in the backyard, or on one's balcony. If the Sukkah is a communal Sukkah, then it is usually built at a synagogue or at a community center. Note that if there is no place for a family to build a Sukkah, then the communal Sukkah takes the place of the family Sukkah.

Who can dwell or sit in a Sukkah?

According to the Torah, male adults and boys who are past the age of bar mitzvah are required to "lesheiv" ("dwell" or "sit" in Hebrew) in a Sukkah for the prescribed seven day period [a "bar mitzvah" is a point in time when a Jewish person comes of age and is henceforth responsible for their actions which previously, were the responsibility of their parents. For boys, this age in Halakhah, or Jewish religious law is 13 years old while for girls, this age is 12 years old. A ceremony is usually held to mark this point in time for the boy and girl. The term "Bar Mitzvah", meaning "one (masculine) to whom the commandments apply" in Hebrew, for boys and the term "Bat Mitzvah", meaning "one (feminine) to whom the commandments apply" in Hebrew, for girls, actually refer to the boy and girl respectively, and not to the ceremony itself which is usually and mistakenly mentioned as the name for the ceremony to mark the transition to adulthood. The transition to adulthood is automatic by virtue of age, rather than as a rite of passage when a Jewish boy or Jewish girl "becomes" an adult, as is often mistakenly said].

Women and girls are exempt from the mitzvah or commandment to dwell or sit in a Sukkah, although if they prefer to eat or sleep in a Sukkah, they are certainly permitted to do so.

In Conservative Judaism, all Jews, both male and female, over the age of B'nai Mitzvah [the plural form term for people of obligation is "B'nai Mitzvah" (or "B'not Mitzvah" if all the people are female)], are required to "lesheiv", or dwell or sit in a Sukkah for the prescribed seven-day period.

There is a certain religiously prescribed method of constructing a Sukkah, including the s'chach ("roofing" in Hebrew; it also refers to the material used as a roof for a Sukkah). Once the Sukkah has been constructed in accordance with the religiously prescribed methods, and prior to eating any bread or cake in the Sukkah, both Ashkenazi Jews (Jews whose ancestors came from either Central, Northwestern, and/or Eastern Europe) and Moroccan-Jews will recite the prescribed blessing: "Blessed are You, L-rd our G-d, King of the Universe, Who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to dwell in the Sukkah".

What is done in a Sukkah?

Due to the time of the year when Sukkot is held, meaning in autumn, when temperatures are warmer in some parts of the world and colder in other parts of the world, it depends on where one lives in the world. In Israel as well as in mild climates, Jews will eat, study, and sleep in a Sukkah for the entire seven-day period. In fact, there are many Jewish people who will not eat anything except fruit and only drink water when outside the Sukkah during the seven-day period of Sukkot. In Israel, during the time of the festival of Sukkot, it is common to see a Sukkah at snack shops, hotels, restaurants, and outdoor tourist attractions (for instance, the zoo) which serves as a place for eating for the guests. However, the Chabad-Lubavitch Chassidim, a branch of Chassidic Orthodox Judaism, on the order of their chief rebbe (the Chassidic term for "rabbi"), will not sleep in a Sukkah due to its intrinsic holiness. In colder climates such as in the northern and eastern United States, in Canada, and the United Kingdom, it is almost impossible to completely observe the mitzvah of dwelling or sitting in a Sukkah for the entire seven-day period, and so the activities in a Sukkah are limited to eating and relaxing in the Sukkah while in the evening, one will go inside one's household to sleep. Oh, yes, and if it is raining, then it is not mandatory to eat or sleep in the Sukkah, although Chabad-Lubavitch Chassidic Jews will nonetheless still eat in the Sukkah.

More Sukkot Information

What is Sukkot ?
When is Sukkot ?
Sukkot E-Cards
Customs of Sukkot
Sukkah or Succah
Sukkot Readings From Scripture
Hol HaMoed Sukkot

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