Delving into the Daf

What Bracha Do You Make on the Sukkah?

By Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow

Boruch: Shimshon, do you want to study the daf with me?

Shimshon: I’m sorry, I’m studying for a test on the laws of Shehechiyanu on Sukkos.

Boruch: A test on the bracha of Shehechiyanu on Sukkos?!? What’s there to study? You recite the bracha on the first night of Sukkos at kiddush. End of story.

Shimshon: Well, when is the earliest time to recite the bracha?

Boruch: Hmm. I’m not sure. I guess when yom tov starts, either at sunset or maybe at nightfall.

Shimshon: What about after building the sukkah?

Boruch: That’s just preparation for the mitzvah of sukkah. There is no way you can recite Shehechiyanu then.

Shimshon: For starters, there is a Yerushalmi that states that building a sukkah is its own mitzvah and warrants its very own bracha: “la’asos sukkah” (quoted in Tosfos 46a D”H H’oseh). Although the Bavli disagrees, the Aruch L’ner (Makkos 8a) opines that Rashi still holds that building a sukkah is its own mitzvah. Therefore, one should try to build his own sukkah. However, even according to the Chasam Sofer (YD 271) who holds that building a sukkah is just a hechsher mitzvah, still one can recite Shehechiyanu when building a sukkah (Sukkah 46a).

Boruch: That’s interesting but misleading. Just because you recited Shehechiyanu on the sukkah, you would still need to recite Shehechiyanu again on the night of Sukkos. We always recite Shehechiyanu at kiddush on the night of a new holiday such as on Shavuos or Shemini Atzeres.

Shimshon: You are right, that is the opinion of the Rambam. But Tosfos (46a D”H Nichnas) says that the Shehechiyanu recited at the time of the building of the sukkah exempts the yom tov as well. The Bikkurei Yaakov concludes that one should be concerned with the opinion of Tosfos and not say Shehechiyanu again at kiddush and risk a bracha uttered in vain.

Boruch: OK, you got me. But I’m sure there’s nothing else complicated about Shehechiyanu on Sukkos.

Shimshon: Well, what if it was raining on the first night of Sukkos and one recited kiddush in his house with Shehechiyanu, does he recite Shehechiyanu again when he actually eats in the sukkah?

Boruch: I would have said yes, but you told me that Tosfos holds that the bracha of Shehechiyanu covers both the yom tov and the sukkah. So, I guess the answer is no.

Shimshon: Actually, the answer is yes! While it is true that the Shehechiyanu recited on building the sukkah exempts the Shehechiyanu on yom tov as well, according to Tosfos, the reverse is not true. The Shehechiyanu on yom tov does not exempt the sukkah. (MB 639:36) Binyamin Pretter explained that to fulfill the mitzvah of sukkah, one has to utilize it on the holiday of Sukkos. Therefore, by definition, the Shehechiyanu on the sukkah includes the holiday as well. However, one can still celebrate the holiday of Sukkos without eating in a sukkah. A sick person, for example, is exempt from sitting in a sukkah but still celebrates the holiday of Sukkos. Therefore, the Shehechiyanu recited indoors does not cover the sukkah. When one eventually eats in the sukkah, he would recite Shehechiyanu again.

Boruch: Nice.

Shimshon: What would be the halacha if one recited kiddush with Shehechiyanu on the first night of Sukkos, while sitting in the sukkah during heavy rain?

Boruch: I’m not sure. I guess he may have to say the Shehechiyanu again. After all, according to many poskim, he’s not really fulfilling the mitzvah of sukkah if he’s sitting in uncomfortable rain.

Shimshon: While he may not be fulfilling the mitzvah of sukkah, he does not need to recite Shehechiyanu again on the sukkah. The Shehechiyanu he recited is not any worse than one recited while building the sukkah. Since he recited Shehechiyanu while actually in the sukkah, even though it was raining, he does not recite Shehechiyanu again. (MB 639:36)

Boruch: Wow, I didn’t realize how complicated these laws can be.

Shimshon: On the first night during Kiddush, what bracha does one recite first: Shehechiyanu or Leishev Ba’sukkah?

Boruch: Shehechiyanu, because of the dictum that the more common bracha takes precedence. (Tadir V’sheino Tadir, Tadir Kodem) The bracha of Shehechiyanu, which is recited many times during the year, is more common than the bracha on sitting in the sukkah.

Shimshon: Your logic is correct according to Rabba Bar Bar Channah. However, the halacha follows Rav that first we recite Leishev Ba’sukkah and then Shehechiyanu. (Sukkah 56a). The reason is that since the bracha of Shehechiyanu is going on the mitzvah of sukkah as well, besides the yom tov, it is appropriate to recite the bracha over the sukkah first.

Boruch, what would you say about the order of brachos on the second night of yom tov?

Boruch: Ah, trick question, but I know that our custom is that we recite Shehechiyanu on the mitzvah of

shofar on both days of Rosh Hashana. Similarly, we should recite Shehechiyanu on the first two days of Sukkos on the sukkah, so the order would be the same.

Shimshon: Actually, when it comes to sukkah, we only recite Shehechiyanu once a year over that mitzvah. Similarly, we recite Shehechiyanu once a year on the mitzvah of lulav. The reason is, as I noted before, is that really one can recite Shehechiyanu when building the sukkah. Likewise, one can recite Shehechiyanu when binding the lulav. So whenever one recites Shehechiyanu, it covers the entire season. One cannot recite Shehechiyanu when fashioning a shofar because generally it lasts for many years and is not a one-season item. Therefore, on the second night of Sukkos, we reverse the order in kiddush and say Shehechiyanu over the new (second-day) yom tov, followed by Leishev Ba’sukkah. However, some have the custom of keeping the order the same as the first night. The Mishna Berura says that one can follow this custom. He cautions, though, that several families sharing one sukkah should all follow the same custom.

Shimshon: Last question for you. Let’s say that someone recited kiddush sukkah. Is it too late or may he still recite Shehechiyanu?

Boruch: I got this one! The Mishna Berura says that one can only recite Shehechiyanu the first time he eats a new fruit, not the second. (255:13)

Similarly, since one ate in the sukkah without Shehechiyanu, he can no longer recite it.

Shimshon: Excellent! The Bikkurei Yaakov suggests that the Pri Megadim was thinking along the same lines and therefore was unsure about this halacha. However, the Bikkurei Yaakov himself concludes that one can recite Shehechiyanu even on Hoshana Rabba. (See MB Dirshu edition 662, sidenote 2) The Mishna Berura does not discuss this exact halacha. He says that one can still recite Shehechiyanu on the Arba Minim even on Hoshana Raba if he didn’t say it before (644:3). Likewise, one can recite Shehechiyanu on lighting Chanukah candles on a later night, if he didn’t recite it the first few nights. (676:2) (However, sukkah may be different since the mitzvah applies 24/7. See Shaar Hatziyon (662:4)

Boruch: I think you should recite Shehechiyanu when you finish studying these halachos!

What would be the halacha if one recited kiddush with Shehechiyanu on the first night of Sukkos, while sitting in the sukkah during heavy rain?

on the first two nights of Sukkos indoors. He was supposed to recite Shehechiyanu the first time he ate in the sukkah, but forgot to do so. He finally remembered to say Shehechiyanu for the mitzvah of sukkah on Hoshana Raba while eating his kreplach in the

Rabbi Avrohom Sebrow is a rebbe at Yeshiva Ateres Shimon in Far Rockaway. In addition, Rabbi Sebrow leads a daf yomi chaburah at Eitz Chayim of Dogwood Park in West Hempstead, NY. He can be contacted at ASebrow@gmail.com.

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