As we get ready for the Yom Tov of Succot, I would like to share a Rambam from Moreh Nevuchim, where he beautifully connects the mitzva of sitting in the Succah with that of the Arba Minim. He says that many mitzvot give us lessons in both Hashkafa and middot.
The Mitzvah of Succah gives us the knowledge to remember, and keep alive for future generations, the miracles of the desert. We should never forget G-d’s Clouds of Glory, that took us though the desert. We have to remember these miracles, because they continue with us, although in hidden fashion. So that’s the hashkafa.
The Middah/character trait that we are to learn, is that we are supposed to remember the bad days when we have good days.
We were once in the desert. Those were the bad days. We were unsettled nomads, without wealth. Remembering where you came from causes you to increase your gratitude to Hashem. That, in turn, will teach you the middah of humility, which is extremely important.
So- Be humble. That’s a teshuva takeaway, and its also Succot (which is a continuation of Kippur) lesson. Be humble. Remember where you used to live, when your parents reached these shores. Their home was definitely from smaller beginnings. The community lived in Bensonhurst, and before that on the Lower East Side, in apartment buildings or tenements. Now many people have one or two homes. Summer and winter...
Remember where you came from. Tell your grandchildren. Tell them about your humble beginnings.
That’s the lesson of Succot.
And as we sit in the succah, we should take our families back to the old two-bedroom apartment of our grandparents. We should show the what it used to be like. And now look where we are!
It’s all because of Hashem’s great kindness to us. Not because we deserved it, but rather as a Hessed of G-d, because He promised our forefathers. Everything we have is Zechut Avot/ due to the merit of our forefathers. That’s another important lesson of Succot: We came from the desert, and we are now in a better position, and it is all in the merit of Abraham, Yitzhak, Yaakov and our personal forefathers as well. The
Rambam says that the whole Torah depends on this principle: We have to know that every good that Hashem gave us, and will give us, is b’Zechut Avot. That’s the message of the Succah.
To recap,
1-We have to remember the miracles of the desert. That’s a hashkafa
2- We have to teach ourselves the middah of humility, which we can do by remembering where we came from, especially while we are currently successful, and realize the success is not there because of our own merits.
This connects to the Lulav and the minim in that, we left the desert, a place where there was no planting or water, and G-d took us into a beautiful land- Eretz Yisrael, with beautiful fruit. So, G-d said to take the choicest fruit, with the most beautiful smell, and the most beautiful leaves. G-d chose these Arba minim, when they were in Eretz Yisrael, where these four minims were common, beautiful and able to last for seven days.
That’s the simple reason that these fruits were chosen.
But again, it’s a thank-you item. We are supposed to pick up the fruit and say, “Thank you for the harvest, for the wonderful land.”
It would be comparable, in today’s world, to a man who sold shoes being told to come to shul with his bestselling shoe, whereas another man, who sold sweatpants, would bring his best-selling sweatpants to shul, to say thank you. We don’t do that today.
But they were farmers then.
Of course, the Torah has deeper reasons for these things, but the Rambam is giving a simple, surface-level reason- of appreciation, and gratitude. We can apply these reasons to our whole lives.
In the season of Zman Simchatenu, (Time of happiness) this is the secret of how to get to the simcha. We get there by remembering that we don’t deserve anything, by remembering where we came from, and by appreciating where we are now.
Look at your produce and say Baruch HaShem.
Share those feelings of humility with your children and grandchildren. What a beautiful lesson from the Rambam on Succot.
BeEzrat Hashem, we will internalize it.