A Temportary Dwelling Place

The most solemn day of the Jewish Year, Yom Kippur, ended with a light meal to break the twenty-six hour fast. Then, within minutes, as if in a synchronized dance, the Country of Israel slid from its state of national reflection and prayers into a state of celebration. Sukkot had arrived! Overnight Jerusalem transformed into Sukkot and it isn’t just a feeling. It’s a very tangible transformation because it requires that each household build a temporary dwelling place called a Sukkah (in layman’s terms: a hut) outside of their home. The edifice must conform to certain standards in order to be considered a kosher sukkah, if you are interested and happen to be a mathematical genius; I can direct you to the Mishna that outlines the requirements. If not, you’ll have to be content with my explanation: a sukkah must have 2.5 walls that can be made out of almost any material. The important part is the ceiling,
called the Sko’ch. The sko’ch must be made out of organic material that is detached from the ground (palms or bamboo shoots are commonly used materials) and the sko’ch must allow the moon and stars to shine through. Got it?

Growing up, the holiday of Sukkot never meant very much to me. It wasn’t important like the Jewish New Year, I didn’t get presents, and it was not an excused absence from class. However in Israel, celebrating the seven day festival of Sukkot is a very serious matter. You must be serious about enjoying yourself otherwise you are not properly observing the holiday. In other words, it is a commandment, a mitzvot, that you celebrate Sukkot and anything that contributes to the joy…food, drink, music, and dancing (within reason of course) must be indulged in. Additionally, for these seven days it is proper that you do everything in a sukkah, eat all your meals, entertain guests, study, chill, party, and even sleep in your sukkah. As you can imagine, it creates quite a social environment, everyone is just hanging out, busy in their commemorating. It is traditional to invite anyone you can into your sukkah, the more guests; the better. It is said that during Sukkot, we have access to the wellsprings of joy that will sustain us for the upcoming year. The more we enjoy Sukkot the better our year will be..another marvelous concept!!!!

My Sukkot, as ordained to be, was beyond enjoyable... I am trying to think of a more powerful term to encapsulate my experience, how about exuberant? It all began when a close friend of mine invited me to Sfat to meet her fiancé and to do some hiking. We were only meant to go for a day, but as I packed for the day trip a divine inspiration came over me and I packed a week worth of clothing. I was anxious to see Sfat, it is a very spiritual town, the birthplace of Kabbala, and is situated on the top of a beautiful mountain. I had been told by many people that if I loved Ithaca, Sfat was the town for me. I needed to investigate the scene, see what the lore was all about.

The mystical tradition of Sfat began during the 15th century Spanish reconquista, forcing many prominent Spanish Jews, such as the Arizal, to leave and seek refuge in this mountaintop town. Another migration to Sfat occurred in the early 21st century when a bunch fed-up progressive, Jewish renewal liberals from California moved to Sfat as well, creating a vibrant neighborhood set in an ancient town. Nature, art, and spirituality swirl together like the purple clouds at sunset. It’s a place where the sky and the earth seem to meet. A place where ancient mysticism meld with forward-thinking hippies. A place where macrobiotics, water conservation, and recycling are valued as much as the preservation of mystic traditions founded there. Yes, it was like Ithaca, only a Jewish version. Needless to say, I didn’t leave Sfat after a day. In fact, I moved in for a while. I laid my bag, my head, and my heart and took the deepest breath I had taken since watching my last Ithaca sunset on top of my favorite lookout. There are four holy cities designated in Israel and they correspond to the natural elements. Jerusalem is fire, Tiberius is water, Hebron is earth, and Sfat is air. I didn’t realize how desperately I need that breath of air until my lungs were about to burst open from that inhalation atop the mountain of Sfat.

I was put in touch with an incredible couple, the Goldfarbs, who were kind enough to take me in during my sojourn in Sfat. They were very much my speed; their sukkah’s walls were made from tapestries. They gave me the keys to their Kabbala cave and introduced me to musicians, healers, artists and writers galore. It was nice to meet so many well rounded Jews, rooted in their traditions but hands dirty from participation in the world.

Sfat was magical and musical. There were concerts every night to celebrate the festival of Sukkot…the best evening concert I saw was the Kabbala Reggae band ;) But what took the cake was the musical performance I was fortunate enough to take part in each morning. During the week of Sukkot it is traditional to recite special prayers during the morning services, called Hallel. Usually Hallel is said quickly and isn’t very exciting. However, in a tiny synagogue named Beirav hidden in the alleys in Sfat something very special happened each morning at about 7:30 am. The Rabbi would indicate it was time for Hallel and everyone around would reach into their bags and suddenly guitars, tambourines, drums, flutes, violins, and instruments I have never even seem before appeared. At my Bat-Mitzvah I read a psalm about praising G-d with music but during these mornings, I actually praised G-d with music.

Then came Shabbos in Sfat spent with four close friends of mine. HaShem must have conspired to bring us together since the group, whose travels were all independently motivated, ended up breaking bread inside a sukkah which was lent to us by the local pizzeria in Sfat. The sukkah, situated at the very top of the mountain, overlooked the valley and endless mountain range. Since it was on the main road we had random guests wander past our sukkah and curiously peak in. Of course we invited them to sit, drink some wine, and join us in song. Over the course of Shabbos we were visited by many, most notably the 14th generational Sfatian and the minister of Tourism in Northern Israel who said he’d donate us land to begin a Kibbutz. As the sun began its departure, we walked up to the tippy-top of the mountain which had been transformed into a well-maintained public park. At the foot of the final ascent we noticed the opening to a cave. Of course we went in and after stumbling around in the pitch black we found a huge dome shaped room with the craziest acoustics. A finger snap would echo for minutes. And so we did what anyone in our situation would do; we chanted and sang. We fell out of the cave, the alternative universe we were fortunate enough to enter for a while just in time to watch the most magnificent sun set I have ever seen. We sat, silent and breath-taken, stolen by the city of air.

Sunday morning came and I thought I would head back to Jerusalem. After being in Sfat for five days, my friends at school were getting worried and calling me. Unfortunately for them, my phone had died. As I packed my bag, my hosts informed me they were heading to the Modi’im Moshav to attend the yearly Sukkot Fair. She the founder of T’ai Chi of the Hebrew Letter Alphabet (http://www.otiyot.com/index.htm), He a writer and poet, were heading to the fair to sell their goods at the craft booths. Visiting the Modiim was something I really wanted to do and suddenly the perfect opportunity presented itself. So I put off my return a little longer and jumped in the car. (The Modiim Moshav is a religious communal settlement that was founded in the 60’s by Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, a revolutionary who created his own Jewish movement combining the love found in Hassidus and music…if you are interested, I suggest you read more, or better yet, seek out a Carlebach-inspired synagogue near you) The festival was awesome and I met even more wonderful people and heard awesome music.

Monday I went back to Jerusalem just in time. It was the last day of Sukkot. My crazy adventure was only the prelude to the ultimate culmination, Simchas Torah. Simchas Torah marks the end of the reading cycle of the Torah and the beginning of the new. It is on this holiday that we celebrate having the Torah in our life and so for forty-eight hours it is imperative to not stop dancing and singing…with the Torah. Swirling skirts, shaking floors, voices singing at the top of their lungs. Sheer rejoicing. I have never seen such happiness. It was so beautiful to be a part of it. Spending the month of Tishrei in Israel is a truly poignant and unique experience, moving through the breadth of the human experience from awe, fear, joy, love and inspiration.

My final thoughts on Sukkot as I sadly watch everyone disassemble theirs and return to their houses:
I think it is absolutely brilliant, as children, most of us spent hours (at least me and my sister did) building forts and tents out of dining rooms chairs, couches, and all the extra comforters laying about. We played inside them until our parents begged up to dismantle it so they could sit at the table for dinner. Now here, we have a holiday that caters to the inner child in everyone, requiring us to leave our home and build a tent, to play in it. However, this explanation for the holiday is too whimsical. There are many reasons we celebrate Sukkot, and these reasons aren’t solely because G-d wants us to play. The most beautiful explanation I heard is as follows: The sukkot is an analogy for our soul. Our soul’s home is in heaven but they are sent down to earth to reside within our bodies temporarily. At the end of our lives, our soul must return to its permanent home, our bodies are merely a sukkah. What we learn from this holiday is how our souls are meant to spend their short-termed residence in this world…they are meant to enjoy every second of it. To celebrate, dance, and revel in the Festival of Life.