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Dear  Naaleh  Friend,

This week we share with you our special Succot newsletter edition! As a featured class this week we've chosen the Naaleh class Succot: Unity Underscored from the Succot series Succot: Time of Our Joy. In this Torah shiur, Mrs. Shira Smiles examines the connection between Succot and the previous holidays of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. Mrs. Smiles also speaks about the idea that Succot is the time of our rejoicing. 

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The Succot Edition Torat Imecha Newsletter   is available on our Newsletter page.  Click here for the printer friendly version, to share in Succah! Be sure to visit the homepage as well, for many more inspiring Torah classes!
 
Shabbat Shalom!

-Ashley Klapper and the Naaleh Crew
 
Succot- Service of the Heart
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Hershel Reichman
 
 
In Shir Hashirim, King Shlomo movingly depicts Hashem's profound love for the Jewish people. " B'tzilo chimaditi v'yashavti. I desired his shade and I have dwelt there, his fruits are sweet to my palate." According to the Midrash, this refers to the mitzvot of sukka and lulav , which are our central methods of connection to Hashem on Sukkot. Why did Hashem give us two mitzvot on this holiday ? Why was one not adequate?
The Shem MiShmuel explains that man is a dual combination of mind and heart. This is reflected in the ten sefirot , which are expressed on both intellectual and emotional levels. Moshe, the paragon of intellect, and Aharon, the embodiment of emotion, were the founding fathers of the Jewish nation. Moshe's role was primarily moach, intellect, bringing Torah to Jewry, Aharon's purpose was lev, emotion, achieving harmony between man and Hashem. His prayers and service in the M ishkan were the focal point of Yom Kippur. Additionally, he pursued peace and mended troubled relationships between people.

The Torah emphasizes, " Hu Aharon U'Moshe ," the role of Aharon was equal to Moshe's. The Shem Mishmuel notes that perfection of intellect is intertwined with perfection of emotion. Both are needed to attain sheleimut . Indeed, when we examine the lives of our Torah giants we see this combination of wisdom of mind and heart.
The Gemara writes that the mitzva of sukkah serves as a remembrance to the Clouds of Glory, which were given in the merit of Aharon. The sukkah signifies the life and essence of Aharon. Aharon personified peace, fulfillment, humility, and total subservience to Hashem. This is the sukkah - modesty, harmony and completion. The lulav represents the teachings of Moshe. It is a straight line that corresponds to the direct intellectual logic of Torah. Both mitzvot help us tap into the dual essence of the holiday.

Rosh Hashana is the head of the year. It signifies a new beginning and corresponds to the soul of Moshe, who personified intellect. It is a day to think about our past deeds, make a personal reckoning, and plan for the future. Yom Kippur is lev, emotion. It symbolizes Aharon Hakohein. The Torah writes, " B'zot yavo Aharon el hakodesh ." It links Aharon specifically with the service in the Mishkan. Rav Soloveitchik notes that the essence of Yom Kippur was the avodah of Aharon, who was the paragon of ahavat Hashem and ahavat Yisrael.

On Rosh Hashana we rededicate our intellect to Hashem. On Yom Kippur we reignite our souls to ahavat Hashem. All this culminates with Sukkot - the pinnacle of joy and completion as we celebrate the melding of intellectual, emotional, and spiritual purification.

 
Succot- Time of Joy- Cycle of Teshuva  
Based on Naaleh.com shiur by Dayan Shlomo Cohen 

The Torah tells us, "B'Sukkot teishvu shivat yamim." You shall sit in the sukkah seven days. The Tiferet Shlomo explains that teishvu can also be read as tashuvu, repent. On Sukkot a Jew must engage in the process of repentance. After going through a forty day process of teshuva, what is there left to do?

On Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur we repented out of fear but on Sukkot we do teshuva out of love and joy. We turn our sins into mitzvot. Rav Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev taught that on Rosh Hashana we throw our sins in the water at Tashlich and on Sukkot we draw them out as mitzvot with the Nisuch Hamayim (water libation ceremony).

The sukkah teaches us that our existence is not dependent on anything except for the grace of Hashem. Just as the Jews were sustained in the desert for 40 years, we too live only through His kindness. Reb Tzadok taught that wherever a person's mind is that's where he can be found. If we can put ourselves in the mindset of the Jews in the desert we will realize that every moment of our life depends on Him.

The work of teshuva begins on Rosh Hashana and climaxes on Shemini Atzeret when we proclaim,"Hashem hu Elokim." Rav Pincus notes that each day of Aseret Yemei Teshuva is a building block which adds up to ten. This is the difference between fear and love. Fear is divided into components. Each sin must be dealt with separately. But ahavat Hashem is all-encompassing. Therefore, Sukkot is related to the number seven, the concept of entirety. Elul, Rosh Hashana, and Yom Kippur are about searching for Hashem. On Sukkot we find Him and don't let go. The ultimate teshuva is gaining such closeness to Hashem.

The Siftei Chaim writes that atzeret means to gather in. We must take all of the spiritual treasures we've collected throughout these awesome weeks and make them ours. On Rosh Hashana we focus on Hashem on an intellectual level. Our avodat Hashem becomes transformed as we enter the rarefied atmosphere of the sukkah. On Hoshana Rabbah we circle the bima seven times, reminiscent of the war against Yericho. After all our inner work, the walls between us and the Creator come crashing down with an intensity of love. Then we can enter Shemini Atzeret, where we unite as one with our betrothed.

The Shvilei Pinchas quotes the Arizal that the sukkah is like the ohr makif, an all-encompassing light, a guarded tent where no outside influences can enter. On Sukkot we start a new accounting and the satan tries to knock us down again. Therefore, Hashem gives us the light of the sukkah to protect us. The acronym of sukkah is somech v'ozer kol hanoflim. He supports and aids the fallen. Sukkot is connected to Yaakov, who personified the attribute of truth. The voice that says you can't pick yourself up is false. Even if we have fallen to the lowest levels, Hashem will uplift us from the depths.


Kohelet Perek 1
Based on Naaleh.com shiur by Mrs. Shira Smiles

" Divrei Kohelet ben David melech Yerushalayim . These are the words of Kohelet, the son of David the king of Yerushalayim." While the term amirah is conceptual and refers to the bigger picture, dibur is incisive and focuses on limits. It's usually understood as a harsh form of speech but the Zohar says it is really sweet. We usually rebuke someone when we feel connected to him. Daat (knowledge) and dibur (speech) are linked together. Hence the first time we find daat mentioned in the Torah is when Adam knew his wife Chavah. He felt connected to her. It follows that all spoken reproof is really a form of connection.

Kohelet means to gather. Shlomo Hamelech calls himself Kohelet because one of the primary functions of the Jewish king was to gather the people together in Yerushalayim and read from the Torah. A king is meant to impose law and order, but he is also expected to manifest the collective purpose of his nation. A good ruler must articulate what his people are and aspire to it. For a Jewish king this meant assembling the people together and reading from the Torah, which is our national essence. A king is both the heart and the lawgiver of his people, and because of this he will sometimes speak harshly to them. One of the 613 mitzvot is to rebuke a sinner. This is mentioned together with the mitzvah to love another Jew because reproof is meant to be a statement of love and connection. You sincerely identify with this person and from that perspective whatever they're doing wrong is limiting and harming them and you don't want that for them. Kohelet is King Shlomo's book of rebuke

" Hevel havalim hakol hevel. Vanity of vanity, it is all vanity." Targum notes that King Shlomo saw prophetically that nothing in this world is meant to last very long. He saw the splitting of his kingdom that he had spent his whole life developing, the destruction of the mikdash he had built, and the exile of the Jewish people. King Shlomo uses the word hevel seven times. This symbolizes the physical world which has six sides: the four directions, up, and down, signifying the six days of creation. The seventh inner core is Shabbat. This world is meant for us to attain connection to Hashem by bringing light to a dark place. Its inner core, which is malchut, is making Hashem our ruler. Although external materialism may be vanity, its internal essence endures. The mikdash may have been physically destroyed but its purpose, that it united us and gave us access to Hashem, remained. King Shlomo's kingdom may have been lost but Malchut Yisrael-  making Hashem the core of our lives and following His laws, lived on. Almost everything we have of the oral Torah comes from Rabbi Akiva who lost 24,000 students. This doesn't mean all his teachings were in vain. Physical reality may be destroyed, but any spiritual attempt lives on for eternity.

The first time the word hevel is mentioned in the Torah is in relation to Adam's son. Hevel viewed everything physical as having no value. But he made a mistake. This world is a medium to achieve eternity. Without money one cannot give tzedakah , without leather one cannot make tefilin . Still if one looks at the world as an end in itself, it is in fact all hevel . No physical achievement is lasting or meaningful unless it is connected to spirituality

" Dor holech v'dor ba v'haretz l'olam omedet . A generation comes and goes and the land always endures." Dor comes from the same root word as dira, apartment. This world is like a temporary rental apartment. We come down to live here for a short time and then new people move in. Every generation praises Hashem in their unique way by confronting their specific challenges. We're all here for a limited amount of time and we have to make something of ourselves. Every generation has its tzadikim who match the nature of their times.

The Rambam says every person can be a tzaddik as great as Moshe. There are two way of looking at this. The Michtav M'Eliyahu writes that being a tzaddik means filling up your choice box. Hashem's not expecting you to split the sea or take the people out of Egypt or speak to Him face to face. He does expect you to make Shabbos without screaming at your kids and stay honest in business. Your box is where your challenges lie. Everyone's brand of tzidkut is different. Another view is that since all Jewish souls are connected there's a spark of Moshe in everyone. Moshe was an absolute anav (humble person). He was able to move beyond self to know Hashem. We too can become great by rising above our innate desires and transcending our challenges.
 
Featured Classes
Elul, Rosh Hashana, and Yom Kippur for Children
Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller
The Chillul Hashem of Lashon Hara
Rabbi Beinish Ginsburg
Yaakov and Esav, Both Chosen at Birth
Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller
Please visit our Refua Shleima Page for a current list of Cholim.
E-mail [email protected] to add a name to our Tehillim list.