Tuesday, July 13, 2021

Sukkah 11 - What is s'chach?

Sukkah means a hut, and it is covered by a covering called "s'chach." However, until now, we had no definition of what valid s'chach is. We will give it soon, but first, let's look at some additional rules.

If one adds a sheet to his s'chach, the sukkah is invalid. He may have put the sheet above the s'chach to protect from excessive sun. Or, he may have put the sheet beneath the s'chach because of the falling leaves. The sukkah is invalid because now the sheet serves as a covering; the s'chach serves no purpose - and is considered non-existent.

If he smartly used the grapevine or ivy and, without cutting the branches, lifted that and added them to his s'chach, it is invalid - because the sukkah should be made from the "leftover of the threshing floor and winepress." He can cut the branches now, and it will be valid.

The rule: s'chach should be made of material that cannot become ritually impure. Therefore, it cannot be made of food, utensils, or clothing. The s'chach material must also grow from the soil.

Art: Cottage with Peasant Coming Home by Van Gogh

2 comments:

Unknown said...

It's not just the lack of psolet goren vyekev. There is also a problem of taaseh vlo min headuy. The schach has to be made as schach up front taaseh. If you detach that which is already up it is asuy pre made. You would have to at least move the newly cut schach around or shake it up.

Mark Kerzner said...

I would say that cutting them off constitutes an action. You seem to say that we need additional action. You might be right, but do you have a source for your opinion?