Erev Succos, and the Importance of Chessed
The Shaarei Teshuvah (625) writes, "It is proper to give a lot of tzedakah on Erev Succos. Reb Chaim Vital would distribute the entire tzedakah pushka to the poor on this day." Rebbe Chaim of Sanz zt'l would give a lot of tzedakah on erev succos. He would say that there is no nicer נוי סוכה succah decoration, than the tzedakah one gives on erev Succos.1
1 The Tzanzer Rav was renowned for his extraordinary tzedakah and generosity, but he would say that he wasn't born that way. He worked on himself until he changed his nature and transformed himself into a giver. He added that once he had reshaped his middos, if he met a poor person whom he couldn't help, he felt as though his skin was being torn from him. That is how deeply it pained him when he was unable to assist another Yid.
Yesod VeShoresh HaAvodah writes, "Erev Succos is a special day to give tzedakah. It is also the day to find proper guests, poor b'nei Torah, for all the days of the Yom Tov."
The importance of having guests on Succos is discussed in the Zohar. The Zohar teaches that the seven ushpizin: Avraham,2 Yitzchok, Yaakov, Moshe, Aharon, Yosef, and Dovid, come to our succos to celebrate with us. When they arrive, they check to see if there are guests at the seudah. If guests are present, they remain in the succah and they bless everyone. But if there are no guests, they leave.3
"My brothers and friends, holy to Hashem, friends of the Above, and loved ones of my soul, think about your greatness when you perform this mitzvah [of having guests on Succos]. In this merit, you earn redemption and freedom for your children, in all future generations. Hashem's honor resides on you all day long... and the avos hakedoshim dwell with you in the succah. They are happy with you because you gave your bread to very poor talmidei chachamim, and you brought them into your home. The needy eat the portion of the ushpizin. You will receive seven brachos from the ushpizin. How could a person not be inspired and excited to perform this mitzvah?!"4
The Shlah Hakadosh (Succah, Ner Mitzvah 8) writes, "One should invite the ushpizin with his mouth, and then he should give the portion of the Ushpizin to the poor who sit around his table. If they aren't around his table, he should send food to their homes..."5
2 On the first day of succos, Rebbe Eliezer of Dzikov zt'l was especially careful to have guests, since it is the ushpizen of Avraham Avinu, who excelled in hachnasas orchim. One year, he had no guests, so he asked his son, the Imrei Noam zt'l, to go outside and find someone who needed a meal. His son walked through the streets until he found a homeless man and invited him into his father's succah.
The Dzikover Rebbe was very pleased. He said, “Avraham Avinu's guests weren't any better. Avraham cared so deeply for people that he was eager to bring anyone who desired a meal into his home. At least on this day, we should emulate the ways of Avraham Avinu."
A similar story is told about Reb Chaim Ozer zt'l. Someone came to his home on succos, and Reb Chaim invited him to eat in the succah. Reb Chaim excused himself, saying, “I won't be eating in the succah. It is very cold outside, and I caught a cold. Chazal (Succah 25b) say, mitzta'er patur min hasuccah one who experiences tzaar is exempt from the mitzvah of succah. But you can go up and eat there.”
Shortly after the guest entered the succah, Reb Chaim joined him. He explained, “Chazal say that one who has tzaar is exempt from succah, but they didn't say he is exempt from the mitzvah of hachnasas orchim."
The Beis Yisrael zt'l would often repeat this story, and he added (b'derech tzachus) that perhaps this is why tzaddikim remained in the succah even when it rained. They had guests the holy Ushpizin. Rain exempts a person from succah, but not from hachnasas orchim.
The practical lesson is clear: when it comes to middos, a person cannot excuse himself by saying he has tzaar. Perhaps he isn't feeling well, but that does not exempt him from being kind to another Yid.
3 The Gemara (Avodah Zorah 3) teaches that in the future, when Hakadosh Baruch Hu rewards the Jewish nation, the nations of the world will come forward and demand reward as well. They will claim that they, too, want another chance to keep the Torah. Hakadosh Baruch Hu will reply, "Fools! It is too late to perform mitzvos now. You had your opportunity, and you rejected the Torah and its mitzvos. Nevertheless, I have a simple mitzvah the mitzvah of succah. Keep this mitzvah, and you will receive reward."
The Gemara relates that immediately the nations will climb onto their rooftops and build succos there. Hakadosh Baruch Hu will then cause the sun to blaze intensely, making the heat unbearable. They will kick their succos and walk away. The Gemara explains that although Yidden also leave the succah when the heat becomes too great for the halachah is mitzta'er patur min ha'succah, one who is in distress is exempt a Yid would never kick the succah in contempt. The nations of the world will kick the succah, showing disdain, and therefore they do not deserve reward.
B'derech tzachus, we can understand why the Gemara says the goyim will build their succos on the roof. They choose the rooftop intentionally – they don't want anyone knocking on their door asking to be invited in. Yidden, by contrast, seek guests for succos; they look for opportunities to bring others into their succah.
We can also explain this Chazal more deeply. The burning sun represents the hardships of life, and the succah represents shelter, trust, and belief in Hashem. Non Jews may have emunah as long as life is comfortable. But when the sun beats down when life becomes difficult they kick the succah; they abandon their belief. The Jewish nation, however, believes and trusts in Hashem under all circumstances. Even when it is metaphorically very hot and uncomfortable, the Jewish nation continues to rely on Hashem.
4 One of the tzaddikim of our generation, shlita, asked, "How do we invite the ushpizin to our homes? How can we say אזמין לסעודי אושפיזין קדישין, 'I invite to my meal the holy ushpizin?' Who are we to invite these holy guests? However, on Yom Tov Succos, in the beis HaMikdash, we offered seventy korbanos corresponding to the seventy nations of the world. These korbanos brought goodness and bounty to all the nations of the world. This means that, on Succos, we do kindness even for goyim, even for those who don't deserve it. Therefore, we can ask the holy ushpizin that they should extend kindness to us, even if we don't deserve it - certainly when we have the merit to be in the company of poor guests. The holy ushpizin will be happy to join us in the succah.
5 During World War One, the Chofetz Chaim was in exile in Sanubask, Russia. They were unable to locate a fresh esrog, but someone managed to find an esrog from the previous year, and the Chofetz Chaim made a brachah on it in the morning, before going to beis medresh. However, he didn't take it to beis medresh for נענעים the shaking of the lulav. He explained that the other congregants will be jealous of him because he has an esrog and not them. Shaking the lulav is a holy custom, but it doesn't permit one to cause pain (ח"ח חייו ופועליו חלק ג' עמ' תתכ"ד) and distress to others.
The following story happened in Yerushalayim. A family put up their succah, but one of their neighbors complained that the succah was exactly where he usually parks his car. He asked that they take down the succah and build it elsewhere. The owner of the succah explained that it is hard for him to move the succah, and he should please allow him to use the area for eight days, but the neighbor refused to give in.
Having no other choice, the owner of the succah asked his children to take down the succah and to rebuild it nearby. The children were very upset about this. They said, "The place where the succah stood before doesn't belong exclusively to the neighbor. The area belongs to all residents of the building." They encouraged their father not to give in and to leave the succah right where it was.
The father replied, "If you want me to use this succah this year, you must move it. I will not sit in a succah if the neighbor is upset about it." The children obliged and moved the succah.
On the first night of Succos, some heavy stones came crashing down from the building onto the neighbor's car, which was parked in “his" parking spot. Had the succah still been there, the stones would have fallen on them. They were saved in the merit of being mevater.
In Bnei Brak, someone lived on the fourth floor and wanted to build a porch so he could put up a succah there. The neighbors from the floors below told him that he couldn't do so, because it would make their succahs pasul. His other option was to build the succah in the courtyard below. That would mean that every time he forgot a spoon or needed something from home, he would have to go up and down four flights of stairs. But what choice did he have?
But then the neighbor from the first floor told him that he allowed him to build over the area where he generally has his succah. He said, "I am mevater, and I will build my succah on another porch, which is on the other side of the building."
This vitur saved his life. There were powerful winds that Succos (תשע"ח), and a roof of a porch from the third floor fell onto the porch on the first floor, where he previously built his succah. The first-floor neighbor thought he was helping his neighbor, but he was saving himself. Due to his vitur, he wasn't there, and his life, and the lives of his family members, were saved.
6 Many people in Yerushalayim would come annually to show their four minim to Reb Shimon Aharon Polonski zt'l, the Tepliker Rav, and he would tell them whether the minim were kosher and mehudar, or if they should buy something else. After paskening, the Tepliker Rav would then ask them to give a donation for the poor of Yerushalayim.
Once a person told him, "I can't give money to the poor. I need the money to buy the four minim."
The Tepliker Rav disagreed. He said, "You can borrow the four minim from a friend. You aren't obligated to buy your own set. However, if a poor family is sad on Yom Tov because they couldn't afford a meal, and they shed just one tear, that creates a kitrug in heaven, which is very hard to silence."
One year, on the first day of Succos, the Tepliker Rav asked someone to lend him his esrog since he didn't have his own. How did it happen that he didn't have his own esrog? This is the story: On Erev Succos, the Tepliker Rav heard shouts coming from his neighbor's home. He knew this family. Their father had passed away; there were young orphans at home. The mother had remarried, but things weren't going so smoothly there.
The shouts continued, so the Tepliker Rav knocked at their door and asked whether he could help. The family told him that one of the children had broken the pitom of the stepfather's esrog. "The stepfather is now in the mikvah, but we are scared of how he will react when he finds out."
The Tepliker Rav told them, "I will give you another esrog. You don't have to tell him what happened. Just say that I asked to see his esrog and ruled it was pasul, so I gave you another one." The Tepliker Rav gave them his own esrog. He could borrow an esrog in beis medresh, but now he had to help this family.
Esrogim used to be very expensive, and Rebbe Mordechai of Neshchiz zt'l would put aside money throughout the year to have enough funds to buy the four minim. One year, as he was walking with his package of money to buy an esrog, he encountered a simple Yid, who was crying bitterly. He asked him what happened.
The man told him that his horse had died, and he couldn't afford to buy another one. This man needed a horse for his parnassah. Rebbe Mordechai of Neshchiz handed him his money bag and told him to buy a horse. With the leftover money, Rebbe Mordechai purchased an esrog. It was a kosher esrog but not a mehudar. When he came home, he told his family, "This Yom Tov, everyone will make a brachah on a beautiful esrog. We will make a brachah on a beautiful horse..."
That Succos, Rebbe Mordechai davened in the beis medresh of Rebbe Elimelech of Lizensk zt'l. Rebbe Elimelech said, "I smell the scent of Gan Eden coming from your esrog." Rebbe Mordechai told him how he was moser nefesh to help another Jew. That merit brought a scent of Gan Eden on his otherwise simple esrog.
7 Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 1:1) writes: "The way a person sits, moves about, and acts when he is alone in his home is different than how he sits, moves about, and acts when he is in the presence of a great king. [Also], the way he speaks freely with his family is different from how he will speak in the presence of a king." We must never forget that we stand before Hashem, and that will help us act and speak with yiras Shamayim at all times. This mindset is especially appropriate when we sit in the succah. We are sitting before Hashem, and we should act accordingly.
Halachah states that the walls and the schach have kedushah. Therefore, we are forbidden to derive pleasure from them all seven days of Succos (see Shulchan Aruch 638:1). Furthermore, Chazal (Succah 9a) say, כשם שחל שם שמים על החגיגה כך חל שם שמים על הסוכה, "Just as Hashem's name is on the korban chagigah, Hashem's name is on the succah". There are all expresses of the kedushah of the succah.