בַּסֻּכֹּת תֵּשְׁבוּ שִׁבְעַת יָמִים כָּל־הָאֶזְרָח בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל יֵשְׁבוּ בַּסֻּכֹּת׃ לְמַעַן יֵדְעוּ דֹרֹתֵיכֶם כִּי בַסֻּכּוֹת הוֹשַׁבְתִּי אֶת־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּהוֹצִיאִי אוֹתָם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם אֲנִי ה אֱ-לֹהֵיכֶם׃

You shall live in Sukkot for seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths,in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in sukkot when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I the LORD your God. (Leviticus 23:42-43)

The Talmud (Sukkah 11b) cites an argument as to what were the sukkot mentioned in the verse above.

כי בסוכות הושבתי את בני ישראל ענני כבוד היו דברי ר' אליעזר ר"ע אומר סוכות ממש עשו להם

“I made the children of Israel to reside in sukkot”; these were clouds of glory. This is the statement of Rabbi Eliezer. Rabbi Akiva says: "They established for themselves actual sukkot (booths).”

According to Rabbi Eliezer we sit in the Sukkah to remember the miracle of the Clouds of Glory that protected the Jewish people as they traveled through the desert.

According to Rabbi Akiva we are remembering the booths that they lived in. Why is it so important to remember that?

An answer offered starts with another question. Before leaving Egypt the Jewish people asked their Egyptian neighbors for their gold and silver. The Egyptians readily fulfilled their request. Thus, the Jewish people left Egypt as wealthy people. Why then did Hashem have them live in sukkot, which are simple huts. Why not have them leave Egypt with something sturdier and more comfortable to live in as befitting people of wealth?

An answer given is that Hashem had a very important lesson to impart to this brand new nation. Your priorities should not be your material holdings even if you have been blessed with them. Live simply. Live according to what you need and keep your focus on matters of serving Hashem. As is explained in Chovot HaLevavot (Duties of the Heart), a person preoccupied with physicality cannot focus on his soul’s innate closeness to Hashem.

That was the message of the sukkot to them and that is a lesson that all future generations of the Jewish people need to internalize as they sit in Sukkot.

The story is told of a great Chassidic Rebbe who walked into his study and felt that there was something different about it. He soon realized that the old rickety table in the middle of the room had been replaced with a new one. When he inquired about the change, his daughter explained that she felt that the old table was unbefitting for him. So she dropped a hint that the Rebbeneeded a new table and his Chassidim eagerly collected seven reinish (worth about three dollars then) and purchased the new table.

In a voice choked with tears he responded, "How did it happen that I should live to see in my home a table worth seven reinish! How many people could have been fed with that money!" With that he burst into tears.

Years later the Rebbe’s son commented that he saw that new table and he can testify that most of us would be embarrassed to have such a table in our home.

We may not be on that level, but the lesson is clear. It’s the lesson of Sukkot. Keep your focus on what is truly important in life.

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach,
Yitzchak