629 - תרכט ממה צריך להיות הסכך ובו ל"ג סעיפים

Materials Suitable for S'chach

1. One may use for s'chach only something that:

• Grows from the ground,
• Has been detached from the earth, and
• Is not susceptible to ritual impurity.

But if it does not grow from the ground, even if it is not susceptible to impurity—such as animal hides that have not been processed, which do not become impure, or earth, or types of metal, even if they have not been fashioned into utensils and are not susceptible to impurity—these may not be used for s'chach.

Similarly, anything that is susceptible to impurity, even if it grows from the ground—such as all types of food, even if they have not been made susceptible [to impurity], and all types of utensils, even wooden ones, if they have a receptacle and are therefore susceptible to impurity—may not be used for s'chach.

As it is written: "The festival of Sukkos you shall make for yourself, when you gather in from your threshing floor and your winepress"—the verse refers to the waste from the threshing floor and winepress, meaning straw or stalks, and reeds that are gathered from the threshing floor and winepress. From these and similar items, which grow from the ground and are not susceptible to impurity, "you shall make" sukkos, but not from other materials.

2. Anything that was once susceptible to impurity, even if it later became pure and is no longer susceptible—for example, utensils that broke and whose fragments are no longer large enough to be susceptible to impurity, or rags that became worn out and no longer have a size of three fingerbreadths by three fingerbreadths and are therefore no longer susceptible, or the handle of a utensil that broke off from the utensil (while attached, it was susceptible to impurity like the utensil itself, but now it is not)—all these, since they were once susceptible to impurity, the Sages decreed that they may never be used for s'chach. If one used them, his sukkah is invalid, just as if he used s'chach that is invalid by Torah law.

3. The handle of arrows:

Some are made as "male" handles, meaning they have no hole, but the arrow itself is made with a cavity to insert the handle. Others are made as "female" handles, meaning a hole is made at the end of the handle, and the arrow is shaped like an awl and inserted into the hole.

The "male" handles are not susceptible to impurity, since they have no receptacle, and therefore may be used for s'chach, provided they were never attached to the arrow. But the "female" handles, since they have a receptacle—even though it is always filled by the arrow and never left empty—are still susceptible to impurity. Therefore, if one used them for s'chach, his sukkah is invalid.

4. Reeds that are naturally hollow—even though they have a cavity—are not susceptible to impurity, since they were not made to serve as a receptacle. Therefore, it is permitted to use them for s'chach. Similarly, it is permitted to use a pipe, since it was not made to serve as a receptacle.

5. If one used flax fibers from wood that have not been crushed in a mortar and not combed with a comb, the sukkah is valid, since it is still recognizable as wood. But if it was crushed in a mortar, even if it was not combed, it is invalid by rabbinic decree, since its form has changed and it is as if it no longer grows from the ground. The same applies to cotton or hemp that has been combed—these may not be used for s'chach. Similarly, tow from flax, which is the fine fiber separated from the flax, may not be used for s'chach.

6. One may use ropes made of bulrush or palm fiber for s'chach, since such ropes are not susceptible to impurity, as they have no receptacle. But ropes made of flax or hemp may not be used, since their form has changed and it is as if they do not grow from the ground.

7. A mat made of reeds, straw, bulrush, or rush—whether it is smooth and suitable for lying upon or not—if it is small, meaning only large enough for lying upon, its default use is for lying, and it is susceptible to impurity if a zav lies upon it. Therefore, it may not be used for s'chach, even if a zav has not yet lain upon it—unless it was made for s'chach, or purchased from the craftsman for use as s'chach, since the craftsman makes them for sale to whoever needs them, each according to his need. Therefore, one should follow the intent of the buyer at the time of purchase. If his intent was for s'chach, even if the mat has a rim and is thus suitable to serve as a receptacle, it is nevertheless not susceptible to impurity, and this receptacle is of no significance, since the mat was not made to serve as a receptacle.

8. But if the mat is larger than what is needed for lying upon, its default use is for s'chach, and even if a zav lies upon it, it is not susceptible to impurity, since it is not designated for lying. Therefore, it may be used for s'chach.

This applies when it does not have a rim all around. But if it has a rim on all four sides and is thus suitable to serve as a receptacle, it may not be used for s'chach, since its default use is also for other purposes, such as placing fruit upon it. (And even if its rim was removed, it may not be used for s'chach, just as one may not use fragments of utensils, as explained above.)

9. All this applies in a place where there is no established custom regarding the use of mats. But in a place where the custom of most people in the city is to use small mats for s'chach, it is permitted to use even a plain small mat for s'chach, unless it is known that it was made for lying upon. And in a place where the custom of most people is to use large mats for lying upon, as is the custom in these places, one may not use a large mat for s'chach. Even if it is known that this mat was made for s'chach, one should not use it because of the appearance [of impropriety], since not everyone knows this and may say it was made for lying upon, as is the custom of most people in the city.

10. Similarly, in a place where it is customary to fix mats on roofs as a kind of ceiling, one may not use them for s'chach, even if they were made for s'chach and are not susceptible to impurity. This is a decree lest one sit under a house ceiling made of mats and say, "What is the difference between these mats and those mats?" And mats used as a house ceiling are invalid by Torah law, since they were placed there for the purpose of dwelling, not for shade.

11. There is doubt regarding a ladder—whether it is susceptible to impurity, since it has no receptacle and is like other simple wooden objects that are not susceptible to impurity, or perhaps the holes into which the rungs are inserted are considered a receptacle. Therefore, one should not use it for s'chach.

Ideally, one should be careful not to place the s'chach on top of a roof in order to then put the s'chach on it. Likewise, one should not place something on top of the s'chach to hold it down so that the wind does not scatter it. The same applies: one may not support or uphold the s'chach initially with anything that is susceptible to ritual impurity, such as a chair or a bench. This is a decree lest one come to use them as s'chach.

12. When does this apply? When the s'chach itself is placed directly on something that is susceptible to impurity, or when something susceptible to impurity is placed directly on the s'chach itself to support it. But if the s'chach is placed on poles or pegs, and those are placed on something susceptible to impurity, there is no issue, and it is permitted to do so initially. Even though the thing supporting and holding up the s'chach is itself resting on something invalid for s'chach, there is no problem, for every sukkah in the world has its supports for the s'chach resting on the ground, which itself is invalid for s'chach.

13. All of this is for the initial arrangement. But after the fact, if one already placed the s'chach itself on something susceptible to impurity, it is permitted to sit in the sukkah from the outset. Even initially, it is permitted to place the s'chach itself on the walls, even if they are made from something invalid for s'chach, such as a stone wall. For there is no concern that one might come to use stones as s'chach, since everyone knows that stones are invalid for s'chach, for such a structure is not a sukkah at all, but rather like a permanent house. Similarly, it is permitted from the outset to attach the poles of the sukkah, upon which the s'chach rests, to the walls of the sukkah with iron nails, or to tie them with pieces of cloth that are susceptible to impurity, since the s'chach itself rests on poles that are not susceptible to impurity and are valid for s'chach.

14. All simple wooden utensils that are somewhat wide and suitable for placing things on them, such as a table, a rake, or a baker's peel, the Sages decreed that they are susceptible to impurity, since they resemble a receptacle. Therefore, one may not use them as s'chach. Likewise, one may not place them on top of the s'chach to support it, even if they are broken, since they were once fit to become susceptible to impurity, the Sages decreed upon them.

15. All handles of food, such as the stalks of grain, grapevines, and palm branches, are susceptible to impurity while they are attached to the food. As it is written, "It is impure for you," and the Sages expounded: "for you"—for anything that serves your needs with this food, meaning handles, which are susceptible to impurity like the food itself. A handle is only called such up to three handbreadths for the stalks of types of grain that are harvested with a sickle. (But for types of grain that are not usually harvested with a sickle, but are uprooted by hand, there is no limit to the length of their handles—even if they are very long, they are susceptible to impurity as handles.) For palm branches, the measure is four handbreadths. For grapevines, the measure is two handbreadths, meaning one handbreadth to the right of the cluster hanging from the vine, and one handbreadth to its left. But if they are longer than this measure, only the part adjacent to the food, up to this measure, is susceptible to impurity.

16. Therefore, if one covers his sukkah with stalks of grain, grapevines with clusters, or palm branches with dates, if the stalks, grapevines, or palm branches are not long enough to be the majority compared to the food and its handle, the sukkah is invalid. When does this apply? When he harvested or picked them for eating, for then the connection of the handle to the food is needed to grasp the food. But if he harvested or picked them for s'chach, then he does not want the handle to be attached to the food, since the food itself invalidates the sukkah, and therefore the handle is not susceptible to impurity. For a handle is only susceptible to impurity because it is subordinate to and serves the food, and is considered like the food itself. But in this case, the food is not needed at all for the s'chach, for which he harvested it, and the handle is not subordinate to it. Therefore, the handle joins with the rest of the length of the stalks or grapevines to nullify the food by being the majority.

17. If at first he harvested or picked them for eating, and then changed his mind to use them for s'chach, mere intention does not remove the handles from their status of susceptibility to impurity until he performs an action that makes it clear, at the time of harvesting or picking, that he wants them for s'chach and not for eating, such as threshing them with a stick or with the feet of an animal.

18. Anything that is animal food, and people only eat it for medicinal purposes, such as "pinogi," called in Arabic "shomer," may be used for s'chach from the outset.

19. If one used vegetables that dry out quickly within seven days and their leaves will fall off, leaving open space, they are considered as if they fell off immediately, even though they have not yet dried. They invalidate the sukkah, even from the side, if there are three handbreadths of space, as with open air, as will be explained in siman 632. And even though they are susceptible to impurity, their law is not like invalid s'chach, which only invalidates with four handbreadths in the middle of the s'chach. Since they will ultimately dry out and fall during the festival, they are not considered s'chach at all, as if they do not exist.

20. Anything attached to the ground may not be used for s'chach, since it is not similar to the waste of the threshing floor and winepress, which are detached from the ground. If one used attached material for s'chach and then cut it, it is invalid, as it is written, "The festival of Sukkos you shall make..."—"you shall make," and not from something already made in an invalid way. The initial act, which was done in an invalid manner, is not considered an act at all, as if nothing was done. Making it valid afterwards by cutting the tree is not considered a new act, since he does not do anything new to the s'chach itself, i.e., he does not dismantle it at all. Therefore, there is no remedy unless he lifts all the invalid s'chach that he cut, i.e., he raises it a bit and then places it down again. At the moment he lifts it, the initial act done in an invalid way is nullified, and when he places it down, he performs a new act on the sukkah itself.

21. There are things that the Sages forbade to use as s'chach from the outset. These are types of grasses that have a bad odor, even though they are not fit for eating and are not susceptible to impurity. Likewise, types of thornbushes whose leaves always fall off, even when there is no wind. For we are concerned that, because of their bad smell or because their leaves fall off, one might leave the sukkah.

If one transgressed and used them for s'chach, the sukkah is valid.

And it is permitted to sit in it from the outset.

22. Bundles of straw and bundles of wood may not be used for s'chach when they are tied together. This is because sometimes a person comes from the field in the evening during the summer, carrying his bundle on his shoulder, and places it on his sukkah—which he has for his livestock throughout the summer—in order to dry it out, and not for the sake of s'chach. When the festival arrives, he changes his mind and decides to use it for s'chach.

But the Torah says, "You shall make"—and not from something already made in a disqualified manner.

This bundle, which was placed there not for the sake of s'chach, even if for shade, but only to dry, does not have the status of s'chach. Thus, the making of this sukkah is in a disqualified manner.

Therefore, the Sages decreed not to use bundles for s'chach, even if one places them on the sukkah for the sake of the mitzvah of the festival sukkah.

This is a decree because of the bundles used throughout the summer.

23. And since they only prohibited it because of this decree, they only needed to prohibit a bundle that is typically dried out—meaning, one that contains no fewer than twenty-five reeds.

But a bundle that does not contain twenty-five reeds may be used for s'chach.

24. If twenty-five reeds or more grow from a single stalk, and they are separated at their other end, and one ties them together there—even so, since their base is one, it is not like a bundle that is typically dried out. Therefore, it is permitted to use them for s'chach.

But if one ties together with them a reed that is not joined to them at the base, and with this reed the bundle contains twenty-five reeds, it is called a bundle, and may not be used for s'chach.

25. Reeds that are bundled together in bundles for sale in the market by number, and when the buyer purchases them, he immediately unties the bundle—these may be used for s'chach, and there is no concern of the decree regarding bundles used throughout the summer.

This is because such a bundle is not typically stored while tied, and one who buys it to dry it out unties the bundle immediately.

26. Bundles made in the West, whose thick ends are on one side and thin ends on the other, and are customarily tied at both ends—once the knot at the thick end is untied, it is permitted to use them for s'chach.

This is because the knot at the other end is not strong enough to hold if the bundle is moved. And any binding that is not made to move the bundle by its binding is not considered a binding at all.

27. But if one tied the bundle only in the middle, it may not be used for s'chach, because it can be moved by that binding.

28. If one transgressed and used a bundle for s'chach, he may untie the binding, and it is valid.

And even though the initial making of this sukkah was in a disqualified manner, it is not invalid because of "You shall make"—and not from something already made in a disqualified manner—since its invalidity was only due to a rabbinic decree, as explained.

But a bundle that was placed there to dry out, and when the festival arrived he changed his mind and decided to use it for s'chach—this is invalid by Torah law, since it was not placed there for shade. In this case, untying the bundle does not render it valid, since its invalidity was not only because of the binding, but because it was placed not for the sake of shade, which causes it to be invalid by Torah law.

Therefore, one must perform a new act in placing it—meaning, he must lift it up a little and put it back down for the sake of shade. And he must also untie the binding, since one may not use a bundle for s'chach, as a decree because of bundles used throughout the summer, as explained.

29. Boards that are four tefachim wide may not be used for s'chach, because most house roofs are made from such boards, and there is concern that one might sit under the roof of his house and say, "What difference is there between using these boards for s'chach and sitting under my house roof? That too is made of boards!"

And the roof of a house is invalid by Torah law, for the reason explained in siman 626.

30. Even if one did not place the width of the boards over the sukkah, but rather turned them on their sides, which is less than four tefachim—even so, it is invalid. Since there is a disqualification regarding them, they are like metal spits, which are invalid for s'chach in every manner, even if turned on their sides.

31. But it is permitted to use boards that are not four tefachim wide for s'chach, even if they are planed and resemble utensils. And even though they are fit for sitting, and also fit to be used for placing fruits and loaves on them, since they are somewhat wide—even so, they do not become susceptible to tumah, if they are not designated for sitting or for any use, but are intended for building or demolition.

32. And nowadays, when people roof their houses with boards that are less than three tefachim wide, a sukkah roofed even with boards less than three tefachim wide should be invalid, as a decree lest one sit under the roof of his house made from such boards.

But it is permitted to use very short boards, called "latish" or "shindlin," since it is not customary to make house roofs from such short boards.

Nevertheless, one must be careful to make the s'chach temporary and light, so that rain can fall through it, as will be explained in siman 671.

Therefore, the common custom is not to use them at all, lest one err and make a permanent s'chach through which rain cannot fall.

33. In a pressing situation, when there is nothing else with which to make s'chach, one may use boards even if they are four tefachim wide, if it is not possible otherwise.

The same applies to anything prohibited because of a decree.