Hoshana Rabbah 2023: Date, History, Facts about Sukkah

Hoshana Rabbah, the seventh day of the Jewish festival of Sukkot, occurs on the 21st day of the Hebrew month of Tishrei. Thanksgiving has its origins in the commemoration of a bountiful harvest. Always the seventh day of Sukkot, it reminds observant Jews that, just as more than 2,000 years ago when they wandered in the wilderness, God is their source of protection and determines what the new year will bring.

The background of Hoshana Rabbah

Sukkot, which is Hebrew for “booths” or “huts”, is a seven-day Jewish festival of thanksgiving. During this time, observant Jews build a temporary structure known as a “sukkah” in their yards or on their terraces, if they have access to the outdoors, to represent how the ancient Hebrews lived during the 40 years Moses led them through the desert before entering the Promised Land. They dine, host parties, and even sleep in the sukkah if the climate permits.

There are certain customs to follow. Every day except for the Sabbath, the Four Kinds must be consumed. A citron, also known as a “etrog,” a date palm limb, two willow branches, and three myrtle branches. The bundled branches constitute the “lulav.” On the Jewish holiday of Hoshana Rabbah, a third willow branch is attached.

The tradition of the Four Kinds consists of facing the north, south, east, and west while shaking or wafting the lulav in one hand and the etrog in the other, up and down, and reciting specific prayers. The positions of the hands on the lulav are prescribed, and after each wave, the observer must return the lulav to his bosom over his heart.

According to the Midrash, the corpus of Biblical exegesis produced by generations of rabbinical scholars, the Four Kinds represent four types of Jews distinguished by their Torah knowledge and good deeds. When the additional willow branch, representing someone who is ignorant of the Torah and does not perform virtuous deeds, is added on Hoshana Rabbah, Jews are reminded that they are intrinsically linked to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

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5 SUKKAH FACTS THAT WILL BLOW YOUR MIND

The sukkah must have two-and-a-half walls, and its roof, or “schach,” must be open to the sky, though it may be covered with branches, fronds, or anything that grows from the earth.

If you don’t want to build your own ritual backyard or balcony house, you can order a kit for $60 to several thousand dollars that can accommodate six to two hundred people and has Kosher-certified components.

After constructing a partial canopy, fruit and other foods representing a bountiful harvest are hung from it.

The sukkah symbolizes the temporary, primitive shelters the Jews lived in during their 40-year journey in pursuit of the Promised Land.

The sukkah’s roof cannot have an overhang greater than four feet, as the mitzvah requires sitting under the uncovered portion of the roof.

HOSHANA RABBAH DATES