Internal Pesach, External Sukkot

There is a puzzling distinction between Pesach and Sukkot. Pesach has a very clear reason for celebration, it commemorates the time we left Mitzrayim. Sukkot, while the Torah does provide a reason, the timing is not particularly clear. And yet, Pesach seems to be, externally at least, a much more mellow holiday. Driving through the streets people cannot appreciate anything different about our homes, on Sukkot, they will immediately be struck by the weird huts. During the time of the Beit HaMikdash, on Sukkot each day was a unique karbon, on Pesach, each day we bring the same sacrifice over again.

Perhaps the reason is that Sukkot is a holiday meant to show off to the people of the world that we have what to offer. We are proud and we are here. Pesach, however, is a fundamentally different holiday. Pesach is a time to reflect internally and to focus on educating the next generation. Pesach we impress on our children the significance of the Torah in our daily lives. How miracles are rare occurrences but our religious is experienced in our day to day lives.

This is reflected in the Migglah we read on each holiday. The Netziv in his introduction to Shir HaShirim notes how while Kohelet was read when all the people of the world would make pilgrimage to the Beit HaMikdash, Shir HaShirim was read only to the Jewish people on Pesach. In Kohelet, Shlomo HaMelech shows off to the nations of the world his impressive understanding of philosophy and culture. On Pesach where we focus only on ourselves, Shlomo HaMelech reads Shir Hashirim, a Migglah focused exclusively on the intimate nature of Talmud Torah and the Jewish people. Here, on Pesach we focus on integrating our Torah into our lives.

This can be reflected as well in the Rambam’s formulation on the mitzvat Leil HaSeder. The Rambam includes a component of retelling the story of the Exodus not in their own category but as part of the description of recounting the story as part of saying Kriat Shema and Kiddush. This mitzva is not one that we appreciate only annually, it is an integral part of our daily and weekly experience. Here we must focus on the centrality of Talmud Torah in our lives.