GOOD MORNING! This upcoming Friday night, September 29, begins the seven-day holiday of Sukkot (though outside of the Land of Israel an extra day is added). This holiday is unique in many ways, not the least of which is that it is known as “zman simchateinu – the time of our joy.” Although the word “joy” is sometimes used interchangeably with the word “happy” they actually have very different meanings.

Everyone wants to be happy. In fact, many people mistakenly believe that a person’s life goal should be “to be happy.” I have even seen the Dalai Lama quoted as saying that “the purpose of our lives is to be happy.” While I have no idea in what context this was said (or if it was even said at all), it is an absolutely incorrect attitude. Being happy is a description of a momentary state of being. At any particular moment a person may be happy, sad, angry, jealous, etc. These emotions are generally outcomes caused by a specific event or occurrence. Such transitory feelings cannot be the “purpose” of our lives.

The following story (which has been incorrectly attributed to King Solomon), really brings home the point of how fleeting happiness can be and highlights the futility of trying to achieve it. There are many versions of this story and they all follow the same basic theme.

A wise king once wanted to test his most trusted advisor, so he gave him the following challenging task: “I will give you six months to devise a ring that will sadden me if I am happy and will cheer me up if I am sad.” The minister set out to accomplish this seemingly impossible task. He spoke to other advisors, wise men, and many jewelers but no one knew how to devise this “magic ring” that the king desired. As the deadline drew near he had made no progress and he was getting desperate.

One day while wandering in the poorer section of the city he came across an old jeweler and asked about obtaining this “magic ring.” The old man took out a gold ring and carved something on it. The advisor saw what was written and a smile spread across his face. He hurried off to the palace and presented it to the king. When the king saw it he too smiled in satisfaction. On the ring was carved: “THIS TOO SHALL PASS!”

Exactly 164 years ago, on September 30, 1859, Abraham Lincoln used a version of this very same story when he addressed the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society. He then commented, “How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction!”

Still, everyone seems to have something to say about happiness. A friend of mine is fond of saying, “My wife and I had no idea what happiness meant until we had kids, and then it was too late.”

I am reminded of a story about a person who is desperately searching for happiness – he treks to the Himalayan mountains to seek out a guru and asks him, “Guru, what’s the secret of happiness?” Guru: “Don’t argue with stupid people.” He replied, “Really? For that I traveled thousands of miles? That’s total nonsense!” Guru: “You are absolutely right.”

However, happiness is fleeting. Joy, on the other hand, is a state of mind that comes from a certain sense of self-satisfaction; feeling accomplished, having lasting relationships, achieving meaningful goals, and living with a set of values and ideals. A person who has a fulfilling life, one full of meaning and a certain sense of achievement, is able to reach a general sense of satisfaction with who they are. This leads to a sense of calm and peace of mind.

People who manage to achieve this will, of course, experience some things in life that will bring them momentary happiness and some things that will bring them passing sadness. But if their core identity is one of self-satisfaction then they are better able to weather the passing gales and whirlwinds of momentary emotions. Obviously, this is easier said than done. What are the steps one can take to get themselves to that state of self-satisfaction?

That is what this holiday is all about. As mentioned above, the Torah designates the Sukkot holiday as “our time of joy” (Leviticus 23:39-43). This begins with the fact that it takes place at the time of year when agrarian societies celebrated the rewards that came from the hard labor of farming. Thus, this holiday is also referred to in the Torah as the Harvest Festival (ibid.). This is the time of year when everyone reveled in the fruition of all their hard work.

Similarly, we are commanded to bring the four species; “On the first day you must take a fruit of the citron tree, a palm frond, myrtle branches, and willow branches that grow near a brook” (ibid.). The number four is very significant – it always represents the disparate member of a unified whole – e.g. the four directions or the four elements of creation fire, earth, wind, and water, or the four different types of sons of the Passover Haggadah, etc. Likewise, here the sages explain that the four species; etrog, lulav, hadas, and aravah represent the four types of Jews.

If a person is missing one of the four species the other three do not count toward the mitzvah – positive commandment. The message of this holiday is that all Jews must come together in unison because we complete each other. This is the element of having the need to build meaningful relationships with all types of Jews. (I have written about this concept in prior editions; if interested you can find it here).

This is also why the Torah commands us to move from our permanent homes to the temporary dwelling of outdoor booths (i.e. sukkah) for the entirety of the holiday. It brings home the message that everything that we have in this world, even our very homes, is temporal. We cannot find a true and lasting happiness in anything physical – its only what we achieve and the relationships that we build that will bring us real joy.

There is one more extremely important behavior that we must incorporate into our lives that will genuinely bring us joy, and not coincidentally we are taught this behavior in the very laws of this holiday.

Maimonides, the great codifier of Jewish law, mentions a rather surprising custom related to the taking of the four species. He writes, “The following custom was observed in Jerusalem: A person would leave his house in the morning [carrying the fours species] in his hand. He would enter the synagogue with it in his hand; pray while it was in his hand; go to visit the sick and comfort the mourners with it in his hand. When he entered the House of Study, he would send it home with his son or servant” (Laws of Sukkah and Lulav 7:24).

This is very odd. Maimonides wasn’t just mentioning the daily schedule of those that resided in Jerusalem – he was trying to show what the appropriate behavior was on the holiday. So what does he mean when he writes that they used to go and visit the sick and comfort the mourners while carrying the four species? It is doubly strange considering there is no law of mourning on the holiday – all laws of shiva and mourning are absolutely abrogated by the holiday! So what does he mean they used to go and comfort the mourners?

While it is true that an individual is not permitted any overt acts of mourning and there is no official shiva, mourners are still sad. Maimonides is teaching us that part of the obligation of being joyful on this holiday is cheering those who are sad from a recent loss or depressed from an illness. In other words, one of the ways a person can become truly joyful is by helping others through their hardships. Thus it becomes an obligation on this holiday to go and cheer the sick and comfort those who have suffered a recent loss. A person brings the four species along with him because both the four species and helping others are all elements of the holiday.

This is why the holiday of Sukkot is one where we focus on helping others, specifically by inviting guests. In fact, according to the ancient book of Kabbalah known as the Zohar, our forefather Abraham welcomed the three angels into his home during the holiday of Sukkot; “Sirs, if you would, do not go on without stopping by me. Let some water be brought to wash your feet. Rest under the tree, I will get you some bred to refresh yourselves” (Genesis 18:3-5). According to the Zohar, when Abraham said to “rest under the tree” he was referring them to his sukkah.

This is also why the holiday of Sukkot is when we specifically have the custom to invite our seven supernal guests (the famous seven leaders and spiritual heads of the Jewish people: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Aaron, Moses, and David) known in Aramaic as ushpizin – because this is the holiday of inviting others in to our homes.

It is well-known (and well researched) that the most joyful people are those who focus on bringing happiness and joy to others. That is why the holiday of Sukkot requires us to do for others, because in doing so we will truly experience the holiday and fulfill it as a “a time of joy.”