I will never forget Sukkot and Simchat Torah at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem, after my severe wounds in the canal battles, in the Yom Kippur War.
I really wanted to keep the mitzvah of sitting in the sukkah and dance happily with the Torah scroll, but I was unable, like most of my wounded friends in the hospitals and the fighters who were in the midst of heavy fighting in Sinai and the Golan Heights.
For two thousand years of exile the Jews lived in Sukkot all year round, even in their stone houses. Jewish existence was temporary and temporary. The Jews had no existential security, and many times they were forced to abandon the houses - the Sukkot - and wander. After a long exile the cost of human life was unbearable, we returned home to the historic homeland. To the Land of Israel promised by God to our ancestor Abraham. The exile is over, there is no need to wander anymore, there is permanence in the lives of the Jews. The arbor of the Land of Israel is stable, hope is realized every day, even though the Yom Kippur War taught me that it still needs the iron wall. Our near and far enemies find it difficult to come to terms with the return of Zion. Our hope is two thousand years old, and it will defeat the false and short-lived hope of those who try to rise up against us.
As the second generation of Holocaust survivors, I am full of joy for the right to live in the State of Israel, the beginning of the growth of our redemption. On Sukkot and Simchat Torah we are commanded to rejoice. These days are also called "our time of joy." In order for us to truly rejoice, two fundamental things are needed: faith and unity.
A belief that we belong to an ancient people, who against all odds continues to walk the earth as huge empires collapse; A people who received the Torah at Mount Sinai and gave their lives for walking in its paths, also to serve as a light to the Gentiles. Every Jew in the world has a Jewish point within him that connects him, even without feeling it, to the eternal doctrine of the people of Israel. The joy of the Torah is the joy of being the chosen people for a special, infinite mission to all of humanity.
Jewish joy is not private joy.
Jewish joy is the joy together of the tribes of Israel.
The mighty power of the people of Israel can only be realized in its unity.
The four species symbolize the need for unity, and we pray that one day all the Jews will be able to sit in one sukkah.
In order for us to truly rejoice, we must always remember that we are the sons of one Father.
Ancient family.
From a deep acquaintance with the members of Israeli society, Harini testifies that the winds of division and separation are present and intensified, more in the media than among the citizens.
We have more big tasks ahead of us, and without inner unity we will not be able to deal with them.
I have a deep conviction that we will soon see days of true joy, a great immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel, a strengthening of our hold on the land of our ancestors and the building of Jerusalem, which is the beating heart of the Jewish people.
Out of joy of heart, we will all be thankful for the great days we are privileged to live in.
Days when Jews prayed and wished for thousands of years.
It is a great mitzvah to be always happy, especially Simchat Torah.
