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RABBI ARTHUR SEGAL:TALMUD+SUKKOTH:LULUV FIGHTS:DIAPHANOUS WATER LIBATION FEST
''How did people use the lulav? If the first day of the holiday fell on Shabbat,
(Talmud Bavli Tractate Sukkah 4:4).
As it happened on one day of the Succoth holiday Rav Chisdah and Rabba
bar Rav Huna came to pay their respects to the Exalarch, the leader of the
Jewish communities in Babylonia. Rav Nachman was the official Rabbi in
the Exalarch's court and everything was done according to his rulings.
When Rav Chisdah and Rabba bar Rav Huna came to visit they were
given a succah in which to rest; a succah that was built according to
the opinion of Rav Nachman and against their own opinion. There were
decorative sheets hanging more than four tefachim below the scach.
According to Rav Chisdah and Rabba bar Rav Huna this was not a fit
Succoth to use during the Succoth holidays.
When Rav Nachman saw that these two rabbis who disagreed with
him on this point resting in that succah, he asked them if they had
changed their minds in regard to the halachic ruling. They replied no,
they had not retracted from their opinion, but rather since they were
performing a mitzvah of visiting the Exalarch and therefore the principle
of being occupied with one mitzvah exempts them from another performing
another mitzvah, they were exempt from performing the mitzvah of Succoth,
therefore there was no reason that they could not rest in a succah such
as the one that was provided for them.
Now the question arises that since Rav Nachman was aware that Rav
Chisdah and Rabba bar Rav Huna said that a succah with such
decorative sheets was not a proper succah and that they were of the
belief that one did not fulfill there obligation in such a succah, why
did he bring them into this type of succah? Would it not been more
considerate of him to have hosted them in a succah that met
their halachic perspective?
What would you have done in a similar case when you do not eat
some food, and your host knowingly brought you food of this type?
Would you not consider your host grossly inconsiderate? If so,
how could Rav Nachman, who was one of the greatest rabbis
of his time, have been so inconsiderate of his guests?
The answer is that as long as your guests can see clearly that
the product does not meet their personal criterion, there is no
inconsideration on the part of the host. It is only when the host
knowingly gives them food which he knows they do not eat and
that they can not easily determine the status of this food, only
then has the host's behavior exceeded proper bounds.
In our case, both Rav Chisdah and Rabba bar Rav Huna could
easily determine that the succah did not meet their specifications
and could have gone elsewhere. Therefore there was no impropriety
on the part of Rav Nachman.
Succah is the time for inviting guests and visiting old friends. Our sages
are teaching us what are the limits of being a good host, and just as
important, to know how to be a good guest. Showing us how leaving
a luluv, which tend to all look alike, in the Temple, for people, to grab
for their own, allowing human nature to set in and cause fights, our
sages are teaching us, that we must go out of our way, to pursue peace,
rodef shalom, and not leave things for the chance occurrence that we
could cause someone to fight.
This is based on the mitzvah of "do not put a stumbling block before
the blind....'lifnei iveir lo titein michshol,' By leaving your luluv, you may
cause someone to assume it is his, and get into a ownership fight,
hence causing one to sin. One's luluv therefore can be a stumbling block.
One needs to understand what Succoth was like at the Temple. It was not
a simple sit down dinner in a 'booth.' It was a pretty big party, with lots of
wine, and lots of water, making some clothes, diaphanous. It was called the
'Festival of the Water Libation.'
Please note what part of the Temple it took place, the Women's Court.
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| One of the main aspects of the holiday of Succoth is the Biblical commandment, "And you shall be glad on your holiday, and you shall be only joyful" (Deut. 16:14). Indeed, the pilgrims who arrived in Jerusalem at the Temple's courtyard came to rejoice. The focus of this rejoicing was the ceremony surrounding the commandment to pour water on the altar - the water libation. During this event, which mainly took place in the Women's Court, the Levites and played on many musical instruments. The sages of Israel testify to the celebrations of the water libation from the days of the Second Temple, describing the great joy of the ceremony:
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| "Whoever has not seen the celebration of the water libation has never experienced the feeling of true joy - great lamps of gold were hoisted, with four golden bowls at the top of each lamp. Four young priests-in-training would climb to the top, carrying immense oil jugs with which they would fill the bowls. Once lighted, there was not a courtyard in all of Jerusalem that did not glow with the light that emanated from the celebration in the Temple courtyard. As the people sang, the righteous and pious men would dance before them while juggling flaming torches. The Levites, standing on the fifteen steps that descend from the Court of Israel to the Women's Court, played on lyres, harps, trumpets and many other instruments. Two priests who blew silver trumpets stood at the top of the stairs on either side of the entrance to the great gate of the Court. All this was done to honor the commandment of the water libation." (Talmud Bavli Tractate Sukkoth, Chapter 5)
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| There were so many precious commandments to be fulfilled in the Holy Temple during the holiday of Succoth, and they were so time-consuming, the Talmud notes that there was practically no time left for sleeping! "Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chanina said: During the days of the water libation ceremony, we barely got to sleep at all. The first hour of the day saw us attending to the daily offering; following this we were engaged in prayer - afterwards, the additional offering. Then we ate, and it already became time to attend to the afternoon service. And this was followed by the celebration of the festival of the water libation, which lasted the entire night, and we would begin again" (Jerusalem Talmud Tractate Sukkoth 5). Men, women and children participated in the immense joy of the water libation - some directly, while others stood and watched. Special elevated balconies were constructed to enable the righteous women of Israel to watch the wise men of the Sanhedrin as they danced. At dawn, the assembly proceeded with melody and song to the spring of Shiloach, at the foot of the walls of Jerusalem. One priest carried with him a special golden decanter and filled it with the sparkling spring water. Then the congregation ascended again to the Temple, led by the priest who bore the golden vessel. Arriving at the Temple, he brought the decanter up to the altar, and poured the water into the silver cup at its corner. This ceremony is connected to the rainfall of the coming year, and it was accompanied by yearning and prayers for blessing on the earth and its produce. On a deeper level, it was also directly connected to the reception of prophetic inspiration. The sages actually ask us to pray as we leave the Succah:
The Talmud teaches that when the messiah comes, the righteous will come to Jerusalem and the Leviathan (a giant sea creature created on the fifth day) will be slain. Its skin will be used to make the walls of a giant succah, and the righteous will dine on the flesh of the Leviathan in that sukkah. Thus, the essence of this farewell prayer is the hope that the messiah will come within the next year. | |||||
Shalom,
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