The Tremendous Joy of Drawing Water - The Reasons for the Joy of Sukkos, Simchas Beis Hashoeivah, and Simchas Torah

00:00 The Frierdiker Rebbe relates that when he was a small child, he once fell asleep in the sukkah during a farbrengen. It was a little cold; in Russia, winter is already beginning by then. His mother came and wanted to take him to bed, but the Rebbe Rashab said to let him sleep there, at the farbrengen. His mother said, “But he’s cold, poor thing.” She said, “Doesn’t it say, ‘As a father has compassion for his children’? A father has compassion for his son. Where is the ‘compassion for his children’?” And the Rebbe Rashab said, “Yes, yes, this is the ‘compassion for his children.’ This is true compassion.” True compassion is not just taking him to bed and covering him with a good blanket; true compassion, true love, is letting him sleep there at the farbrengen. That will keep him warm, and that warmth will stay with him as chassidic warmth throughout his life. The Frierdiker Rebbe relates something else: On the first night of Sukkos, his father entered the sukkah to make Kiddush, wished him “Gut Yom Tov,” and said to him, “Today is ‘the season of our rejoicing.’ ‘Our rejoicing’ is plural, and it is a double joy. It is joy on both sides: both are happy, and each one’s joy is doubled.” What exactly was the wording? The Frierdiker Rebbe relates that at the time he was only

03:00 a seven-year-old boy, and he did not understand what his father had said. In his childish thinking, he supposed that joy on both sides probably meant his own joy and his mother’s joy: they were both happy, he and his mother. That was what he thought. When they left the sukkah, his father held his hand because the ground was slippery. It had already rained; winter had arrived, and it was muddy. His father held him so he would not slip. He told his father that he wanted to ask about the double joy he had spoken of: joy on both sides, doubled for each of them? His father told him that “the season of our rejoicing” is plural because a Jew rejoices with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and Hakadosh Boruch Hu rejoices with a Jew. “Let Israel rejoice in its Maker”; “May Hashem rejoice in His works.” That is the double joy: a Jew rejoices with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and Hakadosh Boruch Hu rejoices with a Jew, and each one’s joy is doubled. In other words, a Jew has his own joy, which he feels; but he also knows that Hakadosh Boruch Hu rejoices in him, and he is happy about that. And conversely, Hakadosh Boruch Hu has His own joy, and He also rejoices in the Jew’s joy. So there is joy on both sides.

04:33 And for each of them, there are two sides to the joy. That is the meaning of “the season of our rejoicing,” in the plural. As is well known, the Midrash says that Sukkos in particular is the true “season of our rejoicing.” That is how we describe the festivals in our prayers: Pesach is “the season of our freedom,” Shavuos is “the season of the giving of our Torah,” and Sukkos is “the season of our rejoicing”—specifically Sukkos and Simchas Torah. This is despite the fact that all the festivals are occasions for rejoicing. It says, “You shall rejoice on your festival,” and that applies to all the festivals, since they are occasions for rejoicing. There is joy at the three meals as well: “There is no rejoicing except with meat and wine,” together with all the detailed laws governing rejoicing on the festivals. But when is the main “season of our rejoicing”? On Sukkos. The Midrash says that when you look in the Chumash, you see that the word “rejoicing” does not appear in connection with Pesach. That is, in the passages about the festivals, in Parshas Re’eh and Parshas Emor, the word “rejoicing” does not appear in relation to Pesach. This does not mean that [unclear] “You shall rejoice on your festival”; that applies to all the festivals. But the word “rejoicing” does not appear explicitly for Pesach. For Shavuos, the word “rejoicing” appears once, in Parshas Re’eh, and for Sukkos it appears three times. Our Sages speak of a threefold joy: the word “rejoicing” appears three times in relation to Sukkos. From this we see that the main joy is specifically on Sukkos. The Midrash itself asks: Why?

06:04 What is the reason? The Midrash explains that on Pesach, because the grain is only beginning to grow, there is no joy yet. A person has not gathered everything in, and he still does not know what will happen. On Shavuos, which is already harvest time, there is joy. But there is still only the grain, and not yet the fruit of the trees of praise. When Sukkos arrives, a person has already received an acquittal, in the words of the Midrash: he received forgiveness, pardon, and atonement on Yom Kippur. In addition, not only the grain but also the fruit of the trees of praise has been gathered in. So the joy is doubled and redoubled, and that is why the word “rejoicing” appears three times. That is what the Midrash says. According to this Midrash, we need to understand: On the face of it, the joy is indeed connected with the grain. In material terms, it is straightforward. All the passages imply that the festivals are also connected with the physical harvest: the Festival of Spring, the Festival of the Harvest, and the Festival of Ingathering—all are connected with the physical harvest. The joy comes from Hakadosh Boruch Hu giving us all these things, and a Jew thanking Him for them: “You shall rejoice in all the good.” But seemingly, these things also relate to spiritual matters. In spiritual terms, too, Pesach has an aspect of the Festival of Spring, when the joy is not yet complete. That is why we have to derive it from the verses, rather than finding it stated explicitly.

07:32 On Shavuos there is already joy, but it is still not complete joy, not yet the fullness of joy. And the true joy, doubled and redoubled, is specifically on Sukkos. In this connection, we also need to understand how the Midrash links this to receiving an acquittal—to the forgiveness, pardon, and atonement of Yom Kippur. Then it says that this is also connected with the “fruit of the trees of praise.” So all these things are connected. What is the difference between the joy of Pesach, the joy of Shavuos, and the joy of Sukkos? And why is Sukkos specifically the true joy? We also need to understand how this relates to Simchas Beis Hashoeivah. After all, on Sukkos, besides the joy of “the season of our rejoicing,” about which the Torah says, “You shall rejoice on your festival,” there is another joy that is not written explicitly in the Torah. This joy is a law given to Moshe at Sinai. The Gemara in Tractate Sukkah says, “Whoever did not see the rejoicing of Simchas Beis Hashoeivah never saw rejoicing in his life.” This is called Simchas Beis Hashoeivah. What are they rejoicing over? The water libation—water—what is the great joy in that? And then comes a third joy, because even that is not enough: the joy of Simchas Torah. It is not even written in the Gemara. It is a Jewish custom that adds a halachah, that a celebration should be held, and the Rema cites it. Simchas Torah is bound up with joy. And so the Jewish custom in every place, in every generation and at every time, is that Simchas Torah in particular is called a time of rejoicing. What are the other kinds of joy we are

09:07 talking about? The joy of Sukkos, the joy of Simchas Beis Hashoeivah, the joy of Simchas Torah—and all of this also follows from the themes of Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukkos. But in general, the joy is that a Jew rejoices in what Hakadosh Boruch Hu has given the Jewish people, in what Jews receive from Hakadosh Boruch Hu. And the true joy of Jews is not only in what they receive materially. What truly matters to a Jew is that he can serve Hakadosh Boruch Hu. “Serve Hashem with joy; come before Him with song.” A Jew knows that he can serve Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and that itself is called joy. And there is the verse, “Because you did not serve Hashem your G-d with joy and gladness of heart.” The Rambam writes in the Laws of Lulav, after describing the rejoicing that took place in the Beis Hamikdash and citing the verse “You shall rejoice before Hashem your G-d for seven days,” and the additional rejoicing of Simchas Beis Hashoeivah. At the end of the Laws of Lulav, the Rambam writes: “The joy a person feels in performing a mitzvah and in loving the G-d Who commanded it is a great form of service.” He cites the verse that says “with joy and gladness of heart,” and brings various other verses, including ones about King David. That is called joy in serving Hashem. A Jew rejoices that he can be a servant of Hakadosh Boruch Hu and receive Torah and mitzvos. There are several kinds of joy, which in general fall into two broad categories. There is joy connected with one’s work. When a person understands that he has attained something good, something pleasurable, and senses how good and enjoyable it is, he becomes happy because of it. That is joy that comes from the work itself, the ordinary kind of joy. But joy that bursts forth, joy that lifts a person above all bounds and limitations, comes specifically from the concept of the World to Come. When there is the concept of the World to Come, this too is understood, this too is [unclear]. And therefore, along with this [unclear],

11:20 A person does not remain in the same state. He overcomes this world of Torah, and has more strength, greater firmness in his connection, and he does not remain in this world. And because he overcomes it, this arouses a joy that is doubled and redoubled. When things are revealed, there is joy. It is ordinary joy, like the joy of a father with his son and a son with his father. When the son sits and behaves well, behaves as he should, the father is happy with the son, and the son is happy with the father. But there are also times of distance, when they go through a period of distance, when the father distances himself from the son and the son distances himself from the father. Then there is bitterness, a broken heart. At first, amid all the concealment, when there is distance, the son understands that this is a test, and it prompts him to search. He sees that there is some distance here, but he knows that the distance is only external, and he remains firm in his connection with his father and searches—“A wise son searches for his father”—he searches for his father. He knows his father is with him. Although, according to reason and understanding, he sees no reason to rejoice, in his simple, wholehearted faith he knows that there truly is joy. And this later arouses in him a joy that is doubled and redoubled; on the contrary, it is an immense joy. This is a joy entirely beyond knowledge and comprehension, beyond reason and understanding, arising from the son’s essential bond with his father, which is beyond all

13:03 explanations. In general, this is the difference between Pesach and the season of Tishrei. Pesach was when the Jewish people were born as a nation. There was joy that Hakadosh Boruch Hu had taken the Jews out of Egypt, and there were all the miracles, and the Jews became a nation, like a child just born, and received all these good things from Hakadosh Boruch Hu with great joy. That was the joy of Pesach. In general, as explained in Chassidus, Pesach is the service of tzaddikim. And since this was only the beginning of the Jewish people, on Pesach the Jews had only faith—“In the merit of faith, our forefathers left Egypt”—and the service of Torah and mitzvos was still lacking. So it could not yet be called joy. There had not yet been actual service about which one could speak of joy; there was only simple faith. That is why the joy has to be learned from the verses; the matter of joy is not stated explicitly. This is what the Midrash says: there is not yet any grain, not yet Torah and mitzvos, no “fruit of a tree of praise”—tzaddikim and good deeds. After the days of the Counting of the Omer had passed, during which the Jews did their work of counting the Omer, as brought in the Midrashim, and the Jews prepared for the Giving of the Torah and received several mitzvos at Marah, as the Midrash says, then naturally

14:31 they reached the Giving of the Torah. Hakadosh Boruch Hu gave the Ten Commandments, and on Shavuos the matter of joy had already begun. But what kind of joy? The joy of the service of tzaddikim. As the Gemara and the Midrash say, at the Giving of the Torah their impurity ceased: the Jewish people stood as complete tzaddikim, received the Ten Commandments, received the Torah, and received it with joy and gladness of heart. But this is the joy of tzaddikim, and all of this belongs to the category of grain. The difference between grain and the fruit of a tree of praise is that grain is something easy: you sow it, before long it grows, you harvest it, and that is that. Then you can sow again. But the fruit of a tree of praise demands a great deal of toil; it does not come easily. You have to sow and plant, protect the tree so it does not rot, and make sure it has water. It is a whole process of labor, over years, with many difficulties, until at long last the tree grows and bears fruit, until you can enjoy the fruit, with everything involved in that. It is prolonged work that demands great toil. And this, in general, is the difference between the service of tzaddikim and the service of baalei teshuvah. Shavuos is associated with wheat and the harvest, which are the service of tzaddikim. There is already joy, there is already work, but it is only one kind of joy. Then comes the matter of baalei teshuvah, after the Jewish people went through

15:55 the entire lengthy process following the sin of the Golden Calf, with atonement for that sin. Moshe Rabbeinu broke the Tablets and went again to pray, and again there were the forty days from Rosh Chodesh Elul until Yom Kippur, when he came down with the second Tablets. And then—“I have forgiven, as you have said.” This is what the Midrash says: “They received a pardon.” There had been a situation of, G-d forbid, may Hashem protect us, [unclear]. Nevertheless, Moshe Rabbeinu secured forgiveness and pardon from Hakadosh Boruch Hu. Only then did the second Tablets arrive. Through the work, the work of teshuvah, pardon, forgiveness and atonement were revealed from Hakadosh Boruch Hu. And this is Yom Kippur, [unclear]. This is the idea of the fruit of the tree. Why is the greatest toil specifically for the fruit of the tree, and not for grain? Specifically the fruit of the tree. And this is the joy that is doubled and redoubled, and the joy that specifically [unclear]. This is what the Midrash says: “They received a pardon.” Yom Kippur was a time of forgiveness and pardon, because through teshuvah, pardon, forgiveness and atonement were revealed in the very bond between the Jewish people and Hakadosh Boruch Hu. And this is Yom Kippur, [unclear]. This is the idea of the fruit of the tree. Why is the greatest toil specifically for the fruit of the tree, and not for grain? Specifically the fruit of the tree. And this is the joy that is doubled and redoubled, and—

17:11 the joy that specifically [unclear]. This is what is meant by “You shall draw water with joy from the springs of salvation.” Wine—throughout the year there was wine in [unclear], the wine libation. And the Levites sang, but there was not such great joy. That is a limited joy. Joy—wine is sweet, it has a taste, and people drink wine. It brings joy; it is a joy one can understand. This is the joy [unclear]. When a Jew contemplates the greatness of Hashem, and also the virtue of Torah and mitzvos, especially a mitzvah, and the fact that he is a servant of Hashem—he rejoices. But this is a joy that has a reason. There is a certain limitation to it, and so the joy is limited too. But plain water, without taste—it is specifically in water that “the springs of salvation” are revealed, the spring in the verse “A garden spring, a well of living water.” For every Jew, this is the essence of his soul, his bond with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, a bond that nothing can sever. And the joy is revealed after one goes through the toil, the search, Elul, Rosh Hashanah, the Ten Days of Teshuvah, the days of Selichos, Yom Kippur—all the work. Here, love is revealed twofold. And the joy is doubled and redoubled. “You shall draw water with joy”—the Simchas Beis Hashoeivah; “One who has not seen the joy of the Simchas Beis Hashoeivah has never seen joy in his life.” From there came ruach hakodesh, the true spirit, true holiness, the holiness a Jew receives

18:41 for the entire year. And when even that is still not enough, only then comes Simchas Torah. The joy of the Simchas Beis Hashoeivah is an exceedingly great joy: “You shall draw water with joy.” But it is a joy that still involves something of a reckoning. As the Mishnah says in Sukkah, some danced and some watched. There was still [unclear] in it. For ultimately, the joy of Sukkos is connected with mitzvos, with the lulav and esrog, the aravos and hadassim. And the Midrash says that there are Jews who have Torah and good deeds, there are Jews who have good deeds and Torah, there are Jews who have Torah and good deeds, and there are Jews who have neither—like the aravah. Each one, too, has a bond with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and all must form a single bundle. But even so, a certain difference between one person and another remains. So there is still some limitation to the joy. Specifically on Simchas Torah, there is a joy that breaks through every barrier. On Simchas Torah, the essential bond is revealed, as it says in the Zohar: “On the eighth day, an assembly—Israel and the King alone.” A Jew with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and nothing more; a Jew and Hakadosh Boruch Hu alone together. And there is no difference there between “your heads, your tribes,” [unclear]; rather, all Jews together become one single entity. And therefore, on—

20:02 In the offerings of Shemini Atzeres, there was one bull and one ram, corresponding to one unique nation. “Let them be yours alone, with no strangers sharing them with you.” There a Jew stands alone with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and nothing can hold him back. That is joy, and joy breaks through every limitation; there, the Jew and Hakadosh Boruch Hu are one. That is why true joy is specifically on Simchas Torah, from which we draw true joy for the entire year. The joy of Simchas Torah is not an easy joy. [unclear] When a person reflects on what the Jewish people went through on Simchas Torah last year, and on the fact that we still have not come out of it. But when we know what the Torah tells us, what the Zohar tells us, what the Bnei Yissaschar says, Bnei Gad, about the day of Shemini Atzeres, we must be confident. We must have simple faith and absolute trust that this revelation will certainly come, and that we will surely see it with our own eyes. And not just wait: a Jew must already put himself in that frame of mind, in that joy, as we learn from “Hashem is your shadow”—a Jew must act first, and Hakadosh Boruch Hu is like a shadow that follows a person. We must come to Simchas Torah, to this Yom Tov, with genuine joy, with the greatest joy, over the—

21:22 connection with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and over this whole matter of a Jew being connected with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, as mentioned earlier. And through that joy itself—out of that joy—we will emerge from all the troubles and limitations [unclear] that still remain. And surely we will see with our own eyes, this year, in the season of our rejoicing, how all these verses we read in the haftarah of this day, about the war of Gog and Magog, are fulfilled: “I will be magnified and sanctified before the eyes of all the nations,” and so on, together with all the verses we study. Above all, may we see it here, openly, when “Hashem will be King over all the earth,” with our own eyes, so that “all the ends of the earth will see,” and everyone will see that Hakadosh Boruch Hu is together with the Jews, that the Jews rejoice with Hakadosh Boruch Hu, and that Hakadosh Boruch Hu rejoices with the Jews. The true season of our rejoicing, when the Jews make [unclear], and the love becomes even more mutual and immeasurably greater: Israel’s rejoicing in Hashem, Hashem’s rejoicing in Israel, the greatest joy, the joy of the true and complete Geulah, “with everlasting joy upon their heads.”