A few days ago on Yom Kippur, we beat our hearts while saying Confession for the sins we committed last year. If a person looks closely at the sins listed, he will find that 25% of them deal with sins regarding our speech. How can we fix these terrible sins and improve ourselves this coming year? Well, Hashem has been extremely kind and gave us Sukkos immediately after Yom Kippur. If we think about some of the lessons of Sukkos, it will help us in avoiding improper speech.

On Sukkos, we take the Arbeh Minim (four species) which are the Lulav, Esrog, Hassadim, and Aravos. Out of these four species, the one that requires the most care is the Aravos. The Aravos need to be wrapped in a towel and kept moist. Anyone who thinks he does not need to care so much about his Aravos will find the leaves falling off by the second day. None of the other species need this type of care. Our Sages of blessed memory tell us that each of the species represents a part of our body. The Lulav is the backbone, the Esrog is the heart, the Hassadim are our eyes, and the Aravos is our mouth. I think, in my humble opinion, this is why the Aravos need constant care during Sukkos. It is to remind us that we need to constantly care for our mouth – we need to watch what we say.

Another lesson is that Sukkos is the holiday of water. According to the Gemara Rosh HaShana, on Sukkos, the world is judged for how much water there will be during this year. Also, when the Beis HaMikdash (Temple) stood in Jerusalem, instead of bringing the normal daily wine libations, water libations were brought during Sukkos. Our Sages state water is compared to Torah. Therefore, besides the literal meaning of Sukkos being the holiday of water, it can also mean it is the holiday of Torah. The Chofetz Chaim tells us that the best way to avoid speaking Lashon Hara is to learn Torah. Just as speaking Lashon Hara is equal to all of the sins, learning Torah is equal to all of the mitzvos. Also, a person uses his mouth to learn Torah and if he is using it to learn, then he cannot speak Lashon Hara at the same time.

If we think about these lessons of Sukkos, we will begin our New Year in the right way by avoiding forbidden speech.

Good Shabbos & Chag Sameach!
-yes
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