Living In The Clouds: The Sheltering Divine Protection of Sukkos

On the simplest level, the Sukkos/booths that we build and dwell in on the holiday of Sukkos represent the booths that our ancestors constructed and lived in throughout their 40 years in the desert after they left Egypt. Yet on a more mystical level, the Sages teach that the Sukkah represents the Clouds of Glory with which God surrounded the nation as they traveled through the treacherous wasteland landscape. As we enter our Sukkah tonight and throughout the next week, we are to be mindful of the Godliness that encompasses us, embraces us, and protects us constantly.

There is an expression used to describe someone who is somewhat flighty or unrealistic: “His/her head is in the clouds.” It is generally not a compliment, and one who is accused of being overly fanciful or capricious may even be told to “get your head out of the clouds.” A reasonable and respectable person may be described as someone who has her/his “feet on the ground,” and is considered to be firmly implanted in reality rather than being overly whimsical or illogical.

Yet on Sukkos, we proudly walk out of our solid, grounded structures and step confidently into the clouds. Not only is our head in the clouds, but we go there with our entire body and being. The statement we declare is that we are cloud people, not earthlings. We live on earth, but we dwell constantly in the clouds. Without the clouds, we would be instantly consumed by all of the threats of the treacherous landscape around us.

We have seen, in the past 12 months particularly, beginning at the very end of Sukkos last year, how easily the world turns against us. And we have witnessed the divine clouds of Glory that have protected us from constant attacks from every direction. It is only because we dwell in a sheltering cloud that we have survived throughout the millennia. And it is when we keep our head in the clouds – i.e our consciousness directed to the supra-rational reality of God’s infinite oneness – that we are able to transcend the natural laws of the jungle and transform this world into the place of light, peace and unity that is ultimately intended to be.

Don’t be afraid! Be confident and strong and constantly conscious of the clouds that encompass you! The Sukkah is only a visual reminder of our most fundamental reality. We dwell in the clouds for a week in order to internalize this mystical awareness, and then we go forth into the world with the certainty of the divine around us, within us, and throughout every iota of all that we encounter.

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