Hoshana Rabbah
Hoshana Rabba is called in Chazal ערבה the day of aravah, because the kohanim went around the mizbeiach with long aravos, and they would place the aravos near the mizbeiach.
The Zohar (vol.3, 32a) states, "The aravah looks like lips. It is certainly so, because this day is dependent on one's lips." This means that the success of Hoshana Rabba is dependent on the tefillos of Bnei Yisrael.31
The Rokeach (Hilchos Succos, 221) writes that in the past, when beis din would determine when rosh chodesh is, they were cautious that Hoshana Rabba should never fall on a Shabbos. The Rokeach explains, כי היו בוכים ומתחננים על המים לכך ולא יתכן בשבת this is because, they would cry and pray for rain. Therefore, this day can't be on Shabbos."
When we think about this lesson from the Rokeach, we are astounded by the importance of tefillah on this day. Rosh Hashanah can be on Shabbos, although we aren't able to blow shofar. Yom Kippur can also be on Shabbos, but Hoshana Rabba can't be on Shabbos because we need the tefillos of Bnei Yisrael on this day.
The Sifsei Tzaddik (Hoshana Rabba 32) writes, quoting his grandfather, the Chiddushei HaRim zt'l, that the Torah gives a punishment to the נערה המאורסה because (Devarim 22:24) עַל דְּבַר אֲשֶׁר לֹא צָעֲקָה בָעִיר, "because she did not shout [even though she was] in the city..." We see that when a person can shout and pray, and he doesn't do so, he is held responsible for what occurred. Therefore, we should shout out to Hashem on Hoshana Rabba. If we don't, it is like we agree to the harsh decrees, if they will occur. Furthermore, it seems that if we shout out to Hashem, salvation will certainly come. Everyone should shout out to Hashem, even if he doesn't know what he needs and what he lacks. Nevertheless, he should shout out הושענא that Hashem should save him.32
Hoshana means "save" and Rabba means "great." What does Hoshana Rabba mean? The Divrei Chaim of Sanz zt'l said that
32. A group of yungerleit came to Reb Elyah Roth zt'l (from the tzaddikim of Yerushalayim, and the gabbai of Rebbe Shlomke of Zvhil zt'l) on Hoshana Rabba night, and they asked him to tell them some words of chizuk. He replied, "Now isn't the right time for such conversation. Quickly, grab a Tehillim, and begin davening. We have to take full advantage of this time."
It is told about Reb Shlomo Zalman Aurbach zt'l (Halichos Shlomo, Succos, p.241) that "from the beginning of Hoshana Rabba night, Rabbeinu was very afraid, as he was during the Yomim Noraim (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur). He spent most of the night of Hoshana Rabba saying Tehillim with hislahavus. Even when he was old, he would get out of bed several times during the night to continue saying Tehillim. He also encouraged his family members to say a lot of Tehillim on Hoshana Rabba. He didn't appreciate it when people visited him on the night of Hoshana Rabba. If someone came, he would speak with him briefly, and as soon as the conversation was over, he returned to his Tehillim. For many years, he davened Shacharis כותקין.
In the tefillos of Hoshana Rabba we say אנא הושיעה נא. Then we say it more lengthily אנא א"ל נא הושע נא והושיעה נא, and in the end, we say אנא א"ל נא הושע נא והושיעה נא אבינו אתה. The Divrei Shmuel explains this with a mashal:
A king banished his son from his palace, and with the passage of time, the prince's clothes tore and were ruined. He was now dressed in dirty, ripped rags. He wanted to return to the king, but he was embarrassed to tell the king that he was his son. How could he tell that to the king, appearing as he did? Therefore, he came to the king and asked for tzedakah. The king gave him the amount he generally gave to people who appeared that way. The king's son didn't accept this small amount. He asked for a larger donation. The king wanted to give him more, but the son didn't accept that either. The king asked him, "Why don't you accept what I give you?" The son replied, "I am related to the king, and therefore, I should receive what is generally given to a relative of the king." The king gave a larger gift, something appropriate for a relative of the king, but still the son refused to accept it. He explained that he is a very close relative of the king, and he deserves more. He shouldn't get the amount that is given to a distant relative. Then the son couldn't contain himself any longer, and he shouted from the depths of his heart, אבינו אתה you are my father.
Similarly, when we begin davening, since we are dirty and in rags (metaphorically) due to our sins, we are embarrassed to admit that we are the King's children. We begin asking for Hashem's salvation, and then we ask for more, and then finally we shout the truth אנא א"ל נא הושע נא והושיעה נא אבינו אתה we are Your children, and therefore, please give to us as the King gives to His children.
The Kedushas Yom Tov zy'a said the following mashal:
A king banished his wayward son from his palace. The son came to a city and told them that he is the king's son. However, they didn't treat him properly. They made him wear dirty clothes and caused him a lot of tzaar.
One day, they heard that the king planned to visit their city. The people of the city were afraid. What would happen to them when the king discovered how they had treated the king's son? They immediately began to treat the king's son well, and they dressed him in beautiful clothes.
When the king saw his son and how kindly he was being treated, he figured that it would be beneficial for his son to remain there. The people will train his son to act properly.
The son became very worried when he heard the king say this and took counsel from local wise people. They advised him to dress in the clothes he usually wears, and he should tell the king that this is what he wears all year long. He did that. The king was shocked to see his son in the dirty clothes. The son told the king that the people were nice to him only recently, when they heard that the king was coming, but they generally treat him cruelly, and they force him to wear these dirty clothes.
Hearing the truth, the king took his son back to the palace.
Hoshana Rabbah can be translated in three ways, and they are all correct. (a) הושענא רבה means "The great Hashem should save us." (b) הושענא רבה means Hashem should save the great Jewish nation.33 And (c) הושענא רבה means that Hashem should save us with a great salvation.34
Rebbe Dovid Moshe of Tchortkov zt'l (whose yahrtzeit is on Hoshana Rabbah) said that Hoshana Rabba means we will be saved because we say "Amen yehei shmei rabbah".35
There were tzaddikim who davened very lengthily on Hoshana Rabba. One year, on Hoshana Rabba, which was on Friday, in the beis medresh of the Divrei Yoel of Satmar zt'l, the Satmar Rebbe told the gabbaim to announce that the women should go home to light Shabbos lecht. They shouldn't wait until the tefillah was over, because it was almost Shabbos.
On that Hoshana Rabba, the Satmar Rebbe told the following mashal:
The people of a certain city committed a grave offense against the king, and they were all sentenced to death. They knew that the king annually visited a garden in this city. The elders of the city decided that they would go to the garden on that day and meet with the king and plead for his mercy and that he should forgive them.
The elders assembled in the garden, and they waited for the king, but the king didn't come! As the day was about to end, many of the elders wanted to go home. They said their plan had failed. One wise elder said that the king was certainly present, although they didn't see him. He said, "The king's custom is to visit the garden today, so he must be here. It is just that this time, he came disguised, appearing like a common citizen. Let's call out to the king and implore him to save us. We will shout out to the king, whom we can't see, but we know he is present, and he will surely hear us and forgive us!"
The nimshal is that throughout the year, the body incites the neshamah to do aveiros. Then, when Elul and the yomim noraim approach, the body is afraid of the King, and the body agrees to allow the person to do teshuvah. The King is pleased, and he wants this situation to continue. We say to Hashem, "This isn't how it generally is. We suffer immensely, and we are usually very distant from Hashem."
This is expressed on Hoshana Rabba. The rings that bind the lulav represent our connection with Hashem. We take off those rings on Hoshana Rabba, and we show Hashem how we appear all year long, distant from Hashem, and we ask Hashem to have compassion on us and to take us back to Him.
33. The Jewish people are called rabbah, great, as it states (Shemos 4:22) בני בכורי ישראל "My firstborn son, Yisrael." So, Yisrael is the firstborn, the greater and older son.
34. The Gemara (Shabbos 31a) tells us the questions that are presented to a person after his passing. One of the questions that the beis din of heaven will ask him is, צפית לישועה "Did you anticipate salvation?" Literally, this means, did you wait for Moshiach? The Imrei Emes zt'l explains that צפית לישועה can mean did you wait and look forward to הושענא רבה?
We should look forward to this day because Hashem bestows great salvation on Klal Yisrael on this day.
35. Chazal say, "Whoever answers Amen yehei shmei rabbah with all his might, his judgment is ripped up." Reb Yochanan says, "Even if one has the sin of avodah zorah, he will be forgiven" (Shabbos 119).
During World War II, the Yidden of Yerushalayim made a kabbalah to improve how they say Amen yehei shmei rabbah. They began saying it with all their might and with a lot of kavanah. When the Nazi general, Rommel ym's, was in Mitzrayim, intending to bring his army to Eretz Yisrael, Rebbe Shlomke Zvhiler zt'l told his gabai, "I sense that the resha'im won't be able to conquer Eretz Yisrael because the Yidden improved how they recite Amen yehei shmei rabbah." And indeed, the Yidden of Eretz Yisrael were miraculously spared.
The Satmar Rebbe cried, "We think the King is not here, but He is certainly present. If we cry out to Him, He will listen to our tefillos. Let's raise our voices together and cry out, "הושע נא והושיעה נא אבינו אתה".