In Book of Zohar, “Amor,” Item 140: “The wholeness of the joy of Sukkot is one day, Shemini Atzeret”. How come that all of the seven days of Sukkot are summed up in one day, which isn’t even part of Sukkot ?

In the wisdom of Kabbalah, none of the holidays matter to us in their corporeal reality, but rather, only in their spiritual root – what spiritual state each holiday symbolizes within a degree that we have to correct.

A person sitting in a Sukkah symbolizes a desire. The measurements of the Sukkah symbolize the qualities of the human soul, and its roof symbolizes a Masach (screen). That is, I don’t want to receive Light for my own pleasure, so there must be more shade than light in a Sukkah. This symbolizes my readiness to be satisfied with the minimum necessities, with everything else being for bestowal.

The thatch is the shadow of faith, called “faith above reason.” This is opposite to reason, for reason brings him into waste, to barn, and to winery. [...] This in itself makes a shadow, and he sits under it. That is, he makes for himself a seat out of all those lowest and worst things, and through the waste observes the Mitzva (commandment) of Sukkah. Most importantly, he derives joy from this Mitzva because faith above reason is called “joy of Mitzva.”

RABASH, Letter No. 36

This is like the level of the Tzadik [Righteous], bestowal for the sake of bestowal. First of all, it is necessary to reach this to attain a beginning of resemblance and equivalence to the Creator.

It is written: “This day [seventh of Sukkot] is the completion of the encompassing of the days of the festival when we pleaded and prayed each day ‘Do Save.’” (Pri Tzadik, “The Festival of Sukkot,” Item 28). Meaning, on every day of Sukkot, we ask, “Do Save”. And on the last day – Hoshana Rabbah [Great Supplication] –, we should put together all the cries into one big cry, and to ask: “do save”. We asked and asked, and salvation is not still there, so we cry one last time, from the depth of our hearts, together and truthfully.

Because Hoshana indicates the cry of the heart — like someone who, God forbid, is in great distress and cannot utter any requests, pleas, or supplications, but only cries from the depth of the heart.

Likutei Halakhot, Laws of Hoshana Rabbah

And in this state, when we are in the lowest state possible, we receive the answer for our common pleas. We cry out and the Creator hears us, and He answers by giving us a screen, reflected Light, and by that we can already attain faith and receive the Upper Light.

This light gathers us, connects us, and we as a result of it, we feel that we become more and more connected and then to the measure of our connection we feel that we are becoming one united Kli. This results in “the eighth day of Sukkot”, Shemini Atzeret, after which there is nothing else to correct. The word “Atzeret” stems from the Hebrew word “to stop – Atsar,” which symbolizes the end of correction. This is the state in which my current degree is completely corrected.

Our whole intention on the day of Shmini Atzeret [Eight of the Assembly] is for the Creator to unite with the Assembly of Israel and extend all the upper lights to the kingdom of heaven. The unification is mainly through the Torah, and the Torah and the Creator and Israel are one.

Maor VaShemesh, “Intimations of Shmini Atzeret”

Thus, I stay within my correction since there is nothing more I can correct, and fully corrected, I enter the holiday of Simchat Torah [Joy of the Torah]. 

According to The Book of Zohar, the Torah is Light and a person who engages in the Torah receives the upper Light. The Light of the Torah is the force that reforms us from division to connection; it is the force that builds us as a nation, that fills us with love and warmth, that raises us to complete eternal life, and that guarantees joy.

Through the true and complete prayer – which Hoshana Rabbah symbolizes – we attain Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, which is the final correction. The connection between us is a source of life, and the good relations between us generate the rejoicing of the Torah. A real joy will stem from the connection with the source of the Light, with the Torah.

Joy is a “reflection” of good deeds. If the deeds are of Kedusha [holiness], hence joy appears. However, we must know that there is also a discernment of a Klipa [shell]. In order to know if it is Kedusha, the scrutiny is in the reason. In Kedusha, there is reason, and in the Sitra Achra [other side] there is no reason, since another god is sterile and does not bear fruit. Hence, when gladness comes to a person, he should delve in words of Torah in order to discover the mind of the Torah.

Baal HaSulam, Shamati, Article No. 58, "Joy Is a ‘Reflection’ of Good Deeds"

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Compiled From Dr. Michael Laitman’s words.

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