Reducing the Height of a Sukka Higher than Twenty Amot
TALMUDIC METHODOLOGY
By Rav Moshe
Taragin
Lecture #13: Reducing
the Height of a Sukka Higher than Twenty
Amot
Having disqualified
a sukka whose height is above twenty amot in the first
mishna of sukka, the gemara (3b-4a) considers the efficacy
of filling in the bottom of the sukka with filler, thereby reducing the
height to a permissible level of below twenty amot.
The gemara
cites a machloket between Rabbi Yosi and the Rabanan in massekhet
Ohalot regarding a similar situation. A dead body not only conveys tuma
through physical contact; it also causes tuma to "permeate" any item
under the same shared structure (tumat ohel). Although the tuma permeates the
entire sheltered airspace, it does not extend above the roof or below the floor
or convey tuma to items located on the exterior of the sheltered
area. However, if the tuma
becomes "retzutza," contracted lacking a surrounding envelope of a
tefach of airspace - it can pass even though solid ceilings and floors
and deliver tuma to items above or below the exterior of the
ohel.
The mishna in
Ohalot (15:7) addresses a situation in which an envelope of a
tefach exists, but the space was filled in with material such as dirt,
pebbles or straw. Although there
are some differences depending upon the material, the Rabanan generally ignore
the presence of the filler, unless one has been "mevatel," - actively
disowned any interest in further use of the said materials; without
bittul, we ignore the "filler," the tefach envelope remains, and
tuma does not extend beyond the ceiling or floor. The filler is only considered a
significant presence if one has been mevatel it. In contrast, Rabbi Yosi
believes that as long as the owner has no pending plans to utilize the
materials, their presence reduces the airspace and creates contracted
tuma capable of spreading even through ceilings and floors.
The gemara in
Sukka assumes that the identical machloket would pertain to the
scenario of filling the floor of a sukka to reduce its height. According to the Rabanan, only by being
mevatel the materials can the owner effectively reduce the floor by
adding filler, whereas Rabbi Yosi would recognize the reduction of space even if
the material was placed there without pending designs for
removal.
The Meiri raises a
seminal question that could drastically affect the way we understand the
mechanics of this height reduction.
The gemara (2a) suggests various reasons that a sukka
higher than twenty amot would be pasul. Some ascribe the disqualification to the
distance separating the person from the sekhakh. Rabba, for example, demands that a
person visually see the sekhakh, and a distance greater than twenty
amot precludes this. Rabbi
Zeira mandates sitting under the shade of sekhakh, and sitting more than
twenty amot beneath the sekhakh makes this impossible. These opinions would clearly endorse
height reduction through fillers; by reducing the distance separating the man
from the sekhakh, the sukka can be validated. Of course, placing transitory elements
to reduce the height would be meaningless, just as attempting to fulfill the
mitzva by constantly jumping to reduce the height disparity would be
absurd. The reduction must be
permanent and sturdy; Rabbi Yosi and the Rabanan debate (as they do in
Ohalot) whether active bittul is required to make the filler
permanent or whether mere deposit without intent to remove suffices. Either way, the filling must be serious
and permanent.
A third suggestion
was offered to explain why a sukka higher than twenty amot is
invalid. Rava suggests that a building higher than twenty amot is too
permanent a structure to serve as a sukka, which is meant to be a
temporary dwelling, a dirat ara'i. In fact, we typically rule in
accordance with Rava, and most Rishonim are inclined to adopt his
position in this instance as well.
How can Ravas position be reconciled with the option of height
reduction? If one adds filler to the bottom of a sukka, the walls are
still too high and the structure is still too permanent. Height reduction can close the gap
between a PERSON and the SEKHAKH, but can it render structural changes to
the sukka itself, transforming a twenty amot permanent structure
into a shorter temporary dwelling? It was precisely this question that inspired
some Rishonim to uncharacteristically rule against Rava and attribute the
disqualification of a higher than twenty amot sukka to
non-structural reasons (as Rabba and Rabbi Zeira did). In his comments to the
The Meiri offers a
groundbreaking response, explaining how the machloket still makes sense
according to Rava's approach. By
adding these fillers, a person effectively raises the level of the actual
ground and lowers the height of the
architectural structure. By
remapping the landscape, a person can redefine the structural dimensions of the
sukka. Even if a
sukka higher than twenty amot is structurally invalid, adding
material can reduce its actual height.
Filling in material does not merely REDUCE the distance between a person
and the sekhakh; it ADDS to the LAND or ground, and the walls are thereby
reduced in height.
The two models of
understanding the purpose and effectiveness of fillers may influence several
secondary questions. For example,
when performing bittul, must the person disengage from these materials
forever or merely for the seven days during which he plans to sit in this
sukka? Rashi (3b and 4a)
claims that a seven day bittul suffices, whereas the Ritva and Rabenu
Chananel demand an absolute and everlasting bittul. Quite possibly, the term of the
bittul would reflect the purpose and effect of bittul. If bittul merely seeks to reduce
space, perhaps a seven day bittul would be sufficient; as long as the
filler is semi-permanent, the space has been reduced. If, however, the bittul seeks to
add to the ground, raising its level and thereby reducing the height of the
walls, perhaps an interminable bittul is required; otherwise, the filler
cannot be deemed an integral part of the land.
Another question
regarding bittul is whether it must be verbally articulated or if it is
sufficient for the person to internally commit to bittul. Again, Rashi and the Ritva debate this
issue, with the former demanding verbal articulation while the latter allows
internal decision. The Ritva
questions why bittul should require spoken words; bittul is a
personal act that can be executed internally. Perhaps the proponents of verbal
bittul see its role as redefining the ground and raising its level. A landfill can only be created if the
filler has been objectively designated; it must be declared as such, and the
public announcement conveys the new status to this material.
In summary, the
questions of the term and method of bittul may revolve around the issue
introduced by the Me'iri. If bittul is intended to merely reduce space in
a semi-permanent manner, it may be sufficient to cognitively delegate the filler
for the necessary period (seven days in the case of a Sukka). If, however, the land is being
redesigned, perhaps verbal articulation is necessary and the filler must be
designated forever.
Although this
assertion of the associated logic of the two questions is appealing, it seems as
though Rashi and the Ritva did not accept the linkage between these
questions. Rashi demands verbal
bittul but only for seven days, whereas the Ritva allows mental
bittul but requires an interminable one. Perhaps they did not believe that both
questions were determined by the same logic. Alternatively, they each may have viewed
bittul as REMAPPING the land, but each believed that one, AND ONLY ONE,
factor was necessary and sufficient to confer this status. According to Rashi, if the bittul
is articulated, the land can be redefined even if the bittul is
term-limited. According to the
Ritva, the more important and decisive factor is whether the bittul is
endless. If so, the land can be
redefined even if the bittul has not been verbalized.
Having discerned
these two models for bittul in the debates between Rashi and the Ritva,
we may be able to better understand the primary machloket between Rabbi
Yosi and the Rabanan. Perhaps the
tana'im debate this very issue and reach different conclusions about the
necessity of bittul. Rabbi
Yosi only demands SPACE REDUCTION; in the situations of reducing the envelope of
tuma as well as lowering the height of sekhakh, merely eliminating
space in a semi-permanent manner is sufficient. As such, no formal bittul is
required; as long as the material is placed without intent to remove or
otherwise utilize, the space has been eliminated. The person is now more proximate to the
sekhakh and the tuma does not enjoy the tefach
envelope. The Rabanan, however,
believe that merely eliminating space is insufficient. The actual ground of the sukka
must be RAISED and the architecture of the house must be ALTERED. To achieve these structural changes,
actual bittul must occur and not mere placement of materials without
intent to remove.
Of course, if we
view the machloket in this manner and assert that the Rabanan - by
requiring bittul - demand structural re-engineering, it would be logical
to expect them to require verbal bittul and/or interminable
bittul. This would coincide
with their view of bittul as raising the land mass or reshaping the
home. Those Rishonim who do
not require both conditions, and certainly those who dont require either, would
probably interpret the debate between Rabbi Yosi and the Rabanan in a different
manner. They might not want to
suggest that the Rabanan believe that bittul must alter the land mass; if
that were the case, a more potent form of bittul would be necessary.
Viewing the Rabanan
this way and interpreting the stringencies of bittul (verbalization and
interminability) as stemming from bittuls role in changing the actual
STRUCTURE of ground and buildings may help explain the ABSENCE of such
stringencies in a third scenario of space reduction through material
filling. The mishna in
Eiruvin (78b) describes the mitzva of eiruv chatzerot,
which demands unifying all the tributary homes that feed a courtyard to allow
carrying from home to chatzer or from chatzer to home on
Shabbat. Typically, distinct
chatzerot cannot be unified within one eiruv, but rather must be
allocated independent eiruvin.
The mishna speaks of two chatzerot separated by a deep
furrow as being separate courtyards.
However, if the furrow is filled with material and passage between the
two chatzerot is enabled, they can join in a common eiruv. The ensuing gemara validates dirt
and stones as a filler, since they are muktzeh and won't be removed for
the duration of Shabbat.
This gemara suggests that bittul can be TEMPORARY, since
the prohibition of muktzeh will expire after 24 hours, effectively
terminating the bittul, leading many to rule that only temporary
bittul is necessary, as in the aforementioned comments of Rashi. The Rambam, however (at least according
to the Maggid Mishnas view in Hilkhot Sukka 4:13), requires
permanent bittul in the case of putting filling in a sukka, but in
his comments in Hilkhot Shabbat 3:12 endorses the filling of the
furrow with dirt because it would not be removed for the duration of
Shabbat. How could the Rambam allow
temporary bittul for Shabbat if he requires permanent
bittul for sukka?
Perhaps the Rambam
distinguishes between filling a sukka and filling a channel that divides
two chatzerot. In the former
instance, the land has to be raised and the landscape structurally altered; only
interminable bittul can accomplish this. However, to connect two chatzerot
and allow a common eiruv, merely enabling ACCESS is sufficient. As long as PASSAGE between the two
courtyards is possible, the two can share a common eiruv. To accomplish this goal, temporary
bittul, for the duration of Shabbat, suffices. The stringency of permanent
bittul was only stated in the cases of sukka and tuma,
where actual structural changes were necessary. Instances of mere space filling or
reduction do not require such intense forms of bittul. See Even Ha'azel in his comments to the
Rambam who draws this very distinction.