Rabbi Yehoshua Alt
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Rabbi Alt merited to learn under the tutelage of R’ Mordechai Friedlander Ztz”l for close to five years. He received Semicha from R’ Zalman Nechemia Goldberg. Rabbi Alt has written on numerous topics for various websites and publications and is the author of the Sefer, Fascinating Insights: Torah Perspectives On Unique Topics. His writings inspire people across the spectrum of Jewish observance to live with the vibrancy and beauty of Torah. He lives with his wife and family in a suburb of Yerushalayim where he studies, writes and teaches. The author is passionate about teaching Jews of all levels of observance.
A Heartfelt Hug
There was a rabbi who would visit prisons that had Jewish inmates in order to cheer them up and encourage them. The rabbi’s love spilled over that he would even inspire the non-Jewish prisoners, giving them hugs just as he did to the Jewish inmates. However, in one of the prisons he visited, there was a certain inmate that was exceptionally scary-looking— muscular, very tall, covered in tattoos—whom he avoided due to fear. As he was leaving this prison, he heard someone call out from behind him, “rabbi, no hug for me?” It was this scary-looking inmate. The rabbi then gave him a hug. Then the inmate told the rabbi he needs another hug, to which the rabbi conceded.[1] The inmate then began to cry saying those were the first hugs he had ever received in his life.[2]
In one of the Nazi death camps that were liberated by an American soldier’s platoon, there were many starving children. The American soldiers set up a huge pot of soup to feed these children, and the children lined up, eager to receive their share of food. One particular soldier made eye contact with a boy at the end of the line. Since the American soldier couldn’t speak the boy’s native language, he communicated by offering the boy a hug. After they finished hugging, the soldier looked up and noticed that the children who were previously lined up for soup had postponed their chance to eat and instead formed a line behind the soldier to receive their hugs as well.
The four walls of the Succa and the Schach covering overhead is compared to a child that is totally embraced in a full body-surrounding hug. It is a Divine hug to us, His children (as we are called בנים אתם לה’, you are children to Hashem[3]).
Of course four complete walls are preferable, but the Succa can be made with a minimum of two complete walls and a section of a third wall. Even a child who is older appreciates a “smaller hug”—an affectionate arm around the shoulder. That is like the minimum Succa—a Succa of two walls and a bit. The Arizal points out three sections—the arm itself from the shoulder to the elbow, the forearm from the elbow to the wrist and from the wrist to the edge of the fingers. This parallels the Succa where the first wall represents a Divine embrace from the “shoulder” to the “elbow”; the second wall reflects the embrace of the “forearm” and the third small wall symbolizes the palm embrace. This is what is referred to in וימינו תחבקני, His right arm embraces me.[4]
The Succa is Hashem’s hug to each of us. We must be conscious of His Hug when we enter the Succa and feel His divine, eternal, and unconditional love for us.
[1] About 100 years ago, a Rav in Eretz Yisrael that was questioned why he loved Jews that were far removed from an observant Torah lifestyle answered, “Better that I err on the side of baseless love than to err on the side of baseless hatred.”
[2] Obviously, if he had some hugs in his life prior to this, he would have been a different person.
[3] Devarim 14:22.
[4] Shir Hashirim 2:6. See Pri Eitz Chaim, Shaar Chag HaSuccos, chapter 4 and Likutei Torah, Derushim L’Succos, pp. 78-79, 82d, 84a-b, 87a.
