Sukkos: the war that brings peace

איתא בזוה"ק כי ד' מינים הם מאני קרבא.

It is brought in the Zohar HaKadosh that the four species (arba minim) are "manei krava" (weapons of war).

The Sefas Emes opens with the Zohar's striking image: the lulav, esrog, hadassim and aravos are not merely objects of beauty but spiritual weapons, tools of battle for Sukkos.

והנה זה החג הי' בחי' אהרן אוהב שלום ורודף שלום.

Now, this festival corresponds to the aspect of Aharon, "who loves shalom (peace) and pursues shalom."

Even though the four species are called weapons, the festival itself embodies Aharon's quality of peace — so the "war" of Sukkos is paradoxically a war whose goal is peace.

וכן הסוכה נקראת סוכת שלם.

And likewise the sukkah is called "sukkas shalem" (the booth of peace/wholeness).

The sukkah itself carries the name of shalom, reinforcing that the entire chag is bound up with peace and wholeness.

דכ' אני שלום וכי אדבר המה למלחמה.

As it is written: "I am peace, but when I speak, they are for war" (Tehillim 120:7).

Bnei Yisrael's essence is peace; conflict arises only when others force it. Even their "war" flows from a root of shalom.

וכ' במ"א כענין שכ' כי תקרב אל עיר כו' וקראת אלי' לשלום.

And it is written elsewhere, in the matter of "When you draw near to a city to wage war against it, you shall call out to it for peace" (Devarim 20:10).

Even the Torah's laws of warfare begin with an offer of peace — proof that the true aim of Bnei Yisrael's battles is reconciliation, not destruction.

כי אפילו מלחמת בנ"י היא בבחי' השלום שרוצין לקרב כל האומות ושיכניעו עצמן לכנוס תחת כנפי השכינה.

For even the war of Bnei Yisrael is in the aspect of peace, since they wish to draw near all the nations and that they subdue themselves to enter beneath the wings of the Shechinah.

The goal of Bnei Yisrael is never conquest for its own sake but to bring the whole world to recognize Hashem and shelter under the Shechinah. That is why their warfare is itself an act of peace.

ולכן בזה החג נותנין אחיזה לכל הבא להתקרב.

Therefore on this festival a hold (achizah) is given to everyone who comes to draw near.

Sukkos opens a doorway: anyone who wishes to come close to Hashem is given a foothold and welcomed in.

וכמ"ש שלעתיד יבואו כולם לחוג חג הסוכות.

As it is written, that in the future (l'asid lavo) all of them will come to celebrate the festival of Sukkos (Zechariah 14:16).

The prophecy that all nations will one day come to keep Sukkos shows that this chag is uniquely the festival of universal ingathering and peace.

ולכן מי שכופר בעיקר ממילא כי אדבר המה למלחמה.

Therefore, regarding one who denies the Ikar (the fundamental principle of faith), automatically "when I speak, they are for war."

The only true "war" is against those who deny Hashem outright. To such a one the open hand of peace cannot be extended, and the conflict named in the verse applies.

וכ' יעלזו חסידים בכבוד.

And it is written: "Let the chassidim (devoted ones) exult in glory" (Tehillim 149:5).

The Sefas Emes now turns to the chapter in Tehillim that joins the praise of Hashem with the "two-edged sword" — the very theme of weapons and peace on Sukkos.

וכי מה כבוד מבקשין חסידים רק הוא ענני כבוד.

And what "glory" (kavod) do the chassidim seek? It is none other than the Ananei HaKavod (the Clouds of Glory).

The "glory" in which the devoted ones rejoice refers to the Clouds of Glory of Sukkos — the divine embrace under which Bnei Yisrael dwell in the sukkah.

ירננו על משכבותם כי בסוכה אפילו בשינה מקיימים המצוה שאין כן בכל המצות.

"Let them sing for joy upon their beds" — for in the sukkah, even while sleeping one fulfills the mitzvah, which is not the case with all other mitzvos.

The verse "let them sing upon their beds" fits the sukkah precisely: it is the rare mitzvah performed even in sleep. A person's whole being, even at rest, is enveloped in the mitzvah.

וכמו כן היה בכהנים ולוים בשמירת המקדש.

And so too it was with the Kohanim and Leviim in the guarding (shemirah) of the Mikdash.

Like dwelling in the sukkah, the Kohanim and Leviim were credited with their avodah of guarding the Mikdash even as they slept at their posts — a continuous mitzvah surrounding the whole person.

רוממות אל בגרונם הוא ההלל והשמחה שמונה.

"The exaltations of Kel are in their throat" — this is the Hallel and the joy of the eight (the eight days of the festival).

The "exaltations in their throat" from the verse correspond to the Hallel and the simchah of the festival, the praise that bursts forth from the mouth across the days of Sukkos.

וחרב פיפיות בידם הוא הד' מאני קרבא:

"And a double-edged sword (cherev pifiyos) in their hand" — this is the four "manei krava" (the four species as weapons of war).

The Sefas Emes closes the circle: the "two-edged sword in their hand" from Tehillim is precisely the arba minim, the spiritual weapons of Sukkos with which Bnei Yisrael wage their war of peace.

Summary: Sukkos is a festival of peace embodied in Aharon and in the sukkah called "sukkas shalom," yet its four species are "weapons of war." The Sefas Emes resolves the paradox: Bnei Yisrael's only true war is to draw the world under the wings of the Shechinah, and even their warfare aims at peace. Reading Tehillim 149, he maps the chapter onto Sukkos — the "glory" is the Clouds of Glory, "singing upon their beds" is the mitzvah of the sukkah fulfilled even in sleep, the "exaltations in the throat" are the Hallel and joy, and the "two-edged sword" is the four species, the holy weapons of this festival of peace.