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Regarding the booths that Bnei Yisrael dwelt in while in the desert, the Gemara states,"So that your generations will know that I caused the Children of Israel to dwell in booths (sukkot) when I took them from the land of Egypt; I am Hashem, your God."
'I caused the Children of Israel to dwell in booths...' Rabbi Eliezer says this refers to the clouds of glory (ananei ha'kavod). Rabbi Akiva says that He made actual booths for them.
Rashbam writes that view of Rabbi Akiva is the simplest way of understanding the pasuk; presumably because the pasuk states that Hashem caused Bnei Yisrael to dwell in booths and makes no mention of the ananei ha'kavod.
Whichever approach we take, Sukkot serves as a remembrance of the time Bnei Yisrael spent in the desert and the kindness God showed them by protecting them from the elements. Accordingly, Hashem could have chosen any time of year for us to celebrate the holiday - why did He choose the 15th of Tishrei?
In answering this question Rashbam points out that the Torah goes out of its way to describe the season in which Sukkot occurs (Vayikra 23:39),
Whichever approach we take, Sukkot serves as a remembrance of the time Bnei Yisrael spent in the desert and the kindness God showed them by protecting them from the elements. Accordingly, Hashem could have chosen any time of year for us to celebrate the holiday - why did He choose the 15th of Tishrei?
In answering this question Rashbam points out that the Torah goes out of its way to describe the season in which Sukkot occurs (Vayikra 23:39),
אך בחמשה עשר יום לחדש השביעי באספכם את תבואת הארץ תחוגו את חג ה' שבעת ימים
But on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you gather in the crop of the Land, you shall celebrate Hashem's festival for a seven-day period
Sukkot is referred to as the חג האסיף, the Holiday of the Harvest, because it takes place immediately following the autumn harvest. Rashbam explains,
According to Rabbi Kagan, Sukkot should take place during Nissan because it is directly linked to the Exodus from Egypt; it was moved to Tishrei to show just how grateful we are for the kindness that God showed us in the desert - we are so appreciative that we eat in our Sukkot even though it might not be the most pleasant time of year to do so.
According to both Rashbam and the Mishna Berura, Sukkot is a time of thanksgiving in which we take a step back, or in this case out(side), in order to appreciate all that Hashem has done for us from the time He led us through the desert and sheltered us from the elements to the modern day when He is the sole source and provider of our material possessions.
למען תזכרו כי בסוכות הושבתי את בני ישראל במדבר ארבעים שנה בלא יישוב ובלא נחלה, ומתוך כך תתנו הודאה למי שנתן לכם נחלה ובתיכם מלאים כל טוב. ואל תאמרו בלבבכם: "כוחי ועוצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה" (דברים ח')... ולכך יוצאים מבתים מלאים כל טוב בזמן אסיפה ויושבין בסוכות לזכרון שלא היה להם נחלה במדבר ולא בתים לשבת. ומפני הטעם הזה קבע הקדוש ברוך הוא את חג הסוכות בזמן אסיפת גורן ויקב. לבלתי רום לבבם על בתיהם מלאים כל טוב פן יאמרו ידינו עשו לנו את החיל הזה
So that you shall remember that I caused Bnei Yisrael to dwell in booths for forty years in the desert away from civilization and without land and as a result you shall give thanks to the One who gave you land and homes filled with every good thing. And do not say to yourselves, 'My strength and the might of my hand made me all this wealth.'... Therefore we depart our homes, which are filled with everything good at the time of the harvest and sit in sukkot as a remembrance that we did not have land nor homes to dwell in while in the desert. And because of this reason Hashem established the holiday of Sukkot during the time of the harvest to prevent them from becoming haughty over their homes filled with everything good, lest they say that our hands created this strength.
According to Rashbam, Sukkot takes place during the fall season because it is a time when people rejoice over their material possessions. Leaving our homes, which are filled with our material possessions, for the sukkah serves as an acknowledgment that we would not have our material possessions if not for Hashem's kindness.
However, a different reason for celebrating Sukkot in Tishrei is given by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, quoting the Tur (Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher 1269-1343) in his Mishna Berurah (625:1)
However, a different reason for celebrating Sukkot in Tishrei is given by Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, quoting the Tur (Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher 1269-1343) in his Mishna Berurah (625:1)
And even though we left Egypt in the Month of Nissan, He did not command us to make sukkot during that time because it is during the days of summer and it is customary for people to make booths during those times for shade and it would not be recognizable that they were being made because of a commandment of God. Therefore He commanded us to make the holiday during the seventh month, which is the rainy season, when most people leave their booths for their houses, but we leave our houses to dwell in the sukkah; through this we show that we are doing so because it is a mitzvah from God.
According to both Rashbam and the Mishna Berura, Sukkot is a time of thanksgiving in which we take a step back, or in this case out(side), in order to appreciate all that Hashem has done for us from the time He led us through the desert and sheltered us from the elements to the modern day when He is the sole source and provider of our material possessions.
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