Sukkah 45a — the Talmud in English

And is it to dry them

the lulavim

that he needs—therefore he spreads them out lying down on the roof of the platform? But a dry lulav is invalid!

Rather, say:

Rather, say:

they would arrange the lulavim

on top of the platform,

for they would lean them upright against the wall of the platform.

Rav Aḥa said in the name of Rabbi Yehuda: The Temple Mount—

it was a double colonnade.

It was built with rows of platforms, one inside the other,

a colonnade inside a colonnade.

Mishna:

1.

The mitzva of the willow—

how?

There was a place below Jerusalem, and it was called Motza.

They

would descend there and gather from there large branches

branches

of willow, and come and set them upright at the sides of the altar.

And their tops,

of the large branches, were

bent over the altar.

They sounded a tekia, a terua, and a tekia—

because of rejoicing.

Every day,

during the first six days of the festival, they

would circle the altar once, and say: Please, Hashem, save now; please, Hashem, grant success now.

Rabbi Yehuda says:

this is what they would say: “

I and He—

save now.”

For it is the numerical value of “Please, Hashem” [78], and likewise it is composed of two Names from among the seventy-two Names from which the Explicit Name is composed.

And on that day, the seventh, they would circle the altar seven times.

At the time of their departing,

their parting from the altar,

what

they

would say? “

Beauty to you, altar! Beauty to you, altar!”

For we perform this beauty for you because you atone for us [Rashi on page b].

Rabbi Elazar says:

this is what they would say: “Beauty

to Him, and to you, altar!”

Beauty

to Him, and to you, altar!”

And it will be explained in the Gemara.

2.

As was its performance

of the fulfillment of the mitzva of the willow

on a weekday—

so was its performance on Shabbat.

Except that they would gather them on the eve of

Shabbat,

and place them in golden basins

filled with water,

so that they would not wither,

so that the willows would not spoil.

3.

Rabbi Yohanan ben Beroka says:

On the seventh day, both on a weekday and on Shabbat—

palm branches,

branches,

of a date palm they would bring, and beat them on the ground at the sides of the altar.

And that day

was

called “the day of

beating the branches.”

4. Even after the fulfillment of the mitzva of etrog, lulav, and willow, the lulavim and etrogim were still “set aside for their mitzva” for the entire day.

And in order to rejoice immediately upon the completion of the fulfillment of these mitzvot, the adults would take the lulavim and etrogim of the minors, which had not been set aside for the mitzva.

And this is what they did:

From

the

hand

of the

minors—they

would snatch away their lulavim.

And

they

would eat

their

etrogim.

Gemara:

The tanna

in a beraita: Motza—

a place

called “

Kalanya”

was.

And we raised a difficulty concerning it:

And as for the tanna of our Mishna—

for what reason does he call it “

Motza”?

Since it was removed from the royal tax,

since this place was excluded from the obligation to pay the tax to the king,

he called it “

Motza.”

We learned in the Mishna:

And come and set them upright at the sides of

the altar.

The tanna:

Willows

many and long

were.

And eleven cubits high, so that they would lean,

bent branches,

over the altar,

to the measure of

a cubit.

Mareimar said in the name of Mar Zutra: Learn from it

that the feet of the willows—

on the foundation he placed them,

and not on the floor of the Temple courtyard beside the altar.

For if it enters your mind

that

on the ground

of the Temple courtyard

he placed them—

it is impossible that the tops of the willows would be “leaning,” in a downward inclination, a cubit over the altar.

For

since,

the height of the altar from the floor of the Temple courtyard to its top was nine cubits, as explained below:

The altar was built in the form of three cubes, one on top of the other.

a. The lower cube, called “the foundation of the altar,” was one cubit wider on every side than the middle cube above it, and was one cubit high.

b. The middle cube was one cubit narrower on every side than the lower one, and one cubit wider on every side than the upper cube.

On the surface of this one-cubit width was the “sovav,” intended for the priests’ walking, in order to place the blood of sin-offerings on the corners of the altar.

The height of this cube was five cubits.

c. The upper cube was three cubits high, and one cubit narrower on every side than the middle cube.

On the corners of the surface of the upper cube were four “horns,” one cubit by one cubit and one cubit high.

And thus we learned in Tractate Middot [3:1]:

a. Above the floor of the Temple courtyard, the height of the altar

rose

to the measure of

one cubit.

And it receded,

and there the width of the altar was reduced by the measure of

one cubit.

And

this is

the part of the altar called “the

foundation

of the altar.”

b. And afterward the height rose and

rose five

cubits.

And receded one cubit.

And the place of the recession of the cubit—

this is

the part of the altar called “

the sovav.”

c. And afterward

rose

the height another

three

cubits.

The surface above is the top of the altar, and at its four corners were the four horns, and the height of the horn was one cubit. And

this is “

the place of the horns.”

It follows that the height of the altar, from the floor to its top, was nine cubits.

And in order for the willows to be “leaning” [bent] one cubit over the altar, they had to be raised at least two cubits above it, because below this height it is impossible to incline them one cubit over the altar, but only to fold them over it.

And if so, that the willows should be

leaning [bent, when they are bent in a downward inclination, and not folded at a right angle]

over the altar—

how can you find it

if we set them on the floor of the Temple courtyard?

But since the height of the willows was eleven cubits, if they set their feet on the floor of the Temple courtyard, they would not have a height of two cubits remaining at their tops above the height of the altar, since there was a difference of two cubits between the place where they stood on the floor of the Temple courtyard and the top of the altar, due to the recession of the cubit of the foundation and the cubit of the sovav, and they would have to incline them diagonally from the place where they stood to the top of the altar.

And it follows that when they reached the top of the altar, while standing diagonally, there would not remain at their tops two cubits, so that it would be possible to incline them one cubit over the altar.

Rather, is it not learn from it: on the foundation,

on the floor of the foundation of the altar,

he placed them,

he placed the feet of the willows.

And it follows that the tops of the willows, [if they were upright], were thirteen cubits above the height of the altar, and thus they could incline them diagonally to the top of the altar, and there still remained two cubits in their height, which could be inclined one cubit over the altar.

And we conclude:

learn from it.

Rabbi Abbahu said: What is the verse

from which we learn that the willows must be higher than the height of the top of the altar?

As it is stated [Psalms 118]: “

Bind

surround the altar at the time of the

festival

of Sukkot,

with branches

with branches of trees, and those branches should reach

to the horns of the altar,

which are higher than the top of the altar.”

Rabbi Abbahu said that Rabbi Elazar said: Whoever takes a lulav in its binding, and a myrtle in its cluster—

the verse reckons it for him as though he built an altar and offered a sacrifice upon it.

As it is stated:

of trees, and let those branches reach

the horns of the altar,”

which are higher than the top of the altar.

Rabbi Abbahu said that Rabbi Elazar said: Anyone who takes a lulav in its binding and a myrtle in its cluster—

the verse ascribes it to him as though he built an altar and offered a sacrifice upon it.

As it is stated: