Happy Sukkot!

[narnee]

It is the Jewish holiday of Sukkot from sunset 17 October 2005 to sunset 25 October 2005 (sunset 24 October for those in Israel). This is one of my top three favourite Jewish holidays[1]. It is a festival of pilgrimage where one is supposed to trek to Israel in order to commemorate the forty years Jews were wandering in the desert as well as a

Comments

[redcountess]

I for one, find these posts very interesting :-) I guess Sukkot is one of the festivals children would especially love, along with Purim and Chanukah?

[narnee]

I guess Sukkot is one of the festivals children would especially love, along with Purim and Chanukah?

Yes, but adults as well. Sukkot, Purim, and Chanukah are the most joyous and celebratory of the Jewish holidays; all three commemorate overcoming persecution and the survival of the Jewish people.

[greylock]

A blessing is recited and the four species are waved in all six directions (east, south, west, north, up and down)

How terribly pagan.

(Which incidentally is the exact same thought I had when I was nine and first went to an Anglican Church, with all the smoke and incence and stuff.)

[wendolen]

Religion's religion, despite what the dominant ones would have you think. :)

[greylock]

That was sort of my point.

[just_becky]

Fascintating stuff. Great reading. Living a sheltered life here in Wales it is sad to say you are probably only the second Jewish person I have met. The first being my creepy stalker from a few years back is probably best forgotten anyway :-D

The Sukkah sounds Fab. The most you get to make in Christianity is Nativity scenes and people get all funny when you use Star Wars figures. Ok so the baby Jesus probably didn't look a heck of a lot like Yoda and the bible doesn't metion if any of the three wise men had light sabres but hey I put a lot of work into that scene damn it! :-D

[winsey]

Could you build/construct a sukkah out of sheets, almost like a tent, in a small apartment? I think it would be great to eat all of your meals in a sort of fort and it would retain all the childlike wonder that seems to be a big draw to religious traditions.

When our mattress was fucked, my partner and I constructed a fort out of sheets between the back of the couch and the radiator. It was warm and cozy and it was almost (almost) a disappointment when we got a new mattress.

[narnee]

Could you build/construct a sukkah out of sheets, almost like a tent, in a small apartment?

Not if I wanted it to be legitimate -- the sukkah has to be constructed with particular dimensions and materials and I wouldn't be able to hang anything from it. I also don't have enough room.

Nice idea, though!

[wendolen]

Hey! I just learned what an etrog was last night!

I wonder if Buddha's Hands are in stores right now because they're an etrog relative, and it's that time of year. (I'm used to seeing them show up in January, so I was surprised when Colleen posted the picture in the first place.)

Is Sukkot one day shorter in Israel because of the pilgrimage aspect?

[narnee]

I wonder if Buddha's Hands are in stores right now because they're an etrog relative, and it's that time of year.

Perhaps, but I doubt it; they couldn't be used ceremoniously in place of an etrog.

Is Sukkot one day shorter in Israel because of the pilgrimage aspect?

Nope. I may be getting this slightly wrong, but it's because in the olden days the holiday was always celebrated at the same time as it was in Israel, and with time zone changes it was better to be safe than sorry and just extend it.

[wendolen]

Perhaps, but I doubt it; they couldn't be used ceremoniously in place of an etrog.

I'll bet somebody somewhere disagrees with you. They're the same species, after all. :)

[narnee]

If they did, they would be wrong.

It doesn't matter that Buddha's Hands are in the citron family. It has to be an actual Etrog. Even if it didn't, it would still have to be round and able to be eaten with a pleasant taste; according to the journal post you linked, neither is true.