A Sukkah Made from the Skin of the Leviathan
During Sukkot, water takes center stage — hence its deep connection to the Leviathan
In Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel), this moment occurs at the end of the seventh day of Sukkot — Hoshana Rabba — and in Chutz La’aretz (the diaspora) on the eighth day, Shemini Chag Ha’Atzeret. The custom varies: among the Ost-Jidden, it is done in the morning after Kiddush in the sukkah, while others do it at the very end of Shemini Chag Ha’Atzeret, upon formally leaving the sukkah.
The entire family enters the sukkah once more to partake of something small — but not a full meal. In doing so, they fulfill for the last time that year the commandment of Basukkot teishvu — to dwell in the sukkah.
Before leaving, the family recites together the prayer Yehi Ratzon — “May it be Your will” — a supplication and heartfelt wish:
“May it be Your will, Eternal One, our G’d and G’d of our ancestors, that just as we were privileged this year to dwell in the sukkah, so may we in the coming year be privileged to dwell in the sukkah made from the skin of the Leviathan.”
Then they say or sing: L’shanah haba’ah biYerushalayim — “Next year in Jerusalem!”
The Messianic Promise
Our Sages — Chazal — taught that at the end of days, HaKadosh Baruch Hu, the Holy One, blessed be He, will build a sukkah in which the entire Jewish people will dwell together. This sukkah will be made from the skin of the Leviathan, while its flesh will serve as a meal for the tzaddikim — the righteous.
Afterward, the family takes all the beautiful carpets, decorations, and utensils from the sukkah back into the house, thereby bringing additional joy and splendor to Shemini Chag Ha’Atzeret.
(Source: Sefer HaToda’ah, Rabbi Eliyahu Kitov)
Summary of the Following Kabbalistic Section
Luminous Tents for the Righteous
The phrase Or ha-Leviathan — “the skin of the Leviathan” — carries profound Biblical, Talmudic, and Kabbalistic meanings. The Leviathan (לויתן), a mythical sea creature, is described in Tanach and Talmud as a being that G’d will ultimately defeat at the end of days. Its flesh will be served at the Se’udat Leviathan — the Feast of the Leviathan — for the righteous, while its radiant skin will form luminous tents for them or adorn the new Yerushalayim — symbols of redemption and divine illumination.
Primordial Forces of Creation
In Kabbalah, the skin of the Leviathan bears mystical and theological significance. “Skin” (or, עור) and “light” (or, אור) are homonyms in Hebrew, expressing the relationship between the concealed and the revealed Divine radiance. The skin is the outer garment that veils the Or Ein Sof — the Infinite Light — as it clothes itself in creation to become perceivable. The Leviathan symbolizes the primal forces of creation: the male and female Leviathan represent Chochmah (Wisdom) and Binah (Understanding), whose complete union will only be realized in the Messianic future.
The Material Garment of Pure Divine Light
The Or ha-Leviathan thus represents “enclothed light” — the material manifestation of pure, hidden illumination (Or ha-Ganuz). In the world to come, the righteous will dwell in “tents of skin” — spiritual spaces woven from this light. According to Chassidic interpretation, the skin of the Leviathan is the transparent garment through which the soul experiences Divine consciousness.
The First Creative Impulse — From Infinite Potential to Reality
The formula Yehi Ratzon (“May it be Your will”) expresses in Kabbalah the very first creative impulse — the transition from infinite potential to actual existence. Yehi Ratzon represents Divine Will itself, while the Leviathan symbolizes the primordial, chaotic potential.
Their relationship reveals the mystical dynamic of creation: Will summons the Depth to order. Together they embody the eternal dialogue between light and water, spirit and matter — the very heart of the mystery of creation.
Or ha-Leviathan — “The Skin of the Leviathan”
A Shiur on the Theme of the Leviathan – by J.J. Rosenfeld
1. The Leviathan in Jewish Tradition
The Leviathan (לויתן) is a gigantic, mythical sea creature mentioned several times in Tanach.
- In Iyov (Job) 41 it is depicted as an untamable sea beast.
- Tehillim (Psalms) 74:14 and Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 27:1 describe how Hashem will “slay” the Leviathan at the end of days.
The Talmud and Midrash elaborate further:
Hashem created two Leviathanim — one male and one female — but slew the female lest they reproduce and destroy the world.
The flesh of the Leviathan will be served at the Messianic banquet (Se’udat Leviathan) for the righteous.
2. The Skin of the Leviathan
According to Talmudic and Midrashic sources (e.g., Bava Batra 74b), the skin of the Leviathan will, in the Messianic age, be used to:
- build tents or shelters for the righteous,
- radiate light of its own,
- or adorn the new Yerushalayim.
This symbolizes Divine illumination, purity, and the eternal reward of the righteous.
Thus, the Leviathan and its skin stand for redemption, spiritual insight, and the manifestation of Divine grace.
3. Mystical Interpretations in Kabbalah
In Kabbalah and later Jewish mysticism, the “skin of the Leviathan” is a metaphor for Divine Light — Or Ein Sof — clothed in material form: a sacred veil concealing and protecting the Infinite.
The Or ha-Leviathan thus becomes a symbol of the relationship between the Divine and creation — between hidden radiance and revealed reality.
a. The Leviathan as a Cosmic Symbol
In the Zohar, the Leviathan is not a monster but a cosmic principle — an expression of the primal forces of creation.
The male and female Leviathan (Leviathan zachar u’nekevah) represent the polarity of Chochmah (Wisdom) and Binah (Understanding) — the dynamic union of Divine principles.
The “slaying” or withdrawal of one signifies that full union is reserved for the Messianic world to come.
b. The Skin (or / עור) as a Divine Sheath
In Kabbalistic symbolism, the skin is the outer layer that encloses and filters Divine light (or / אור).
The Hebrew words for “skin” (or, עור) and “light” (or, אור) sound identical — a deliberate play revealing that what appears as concealment is in truth veiled light.
The skin of the Leviathan is thus light that clothes itself so that finite beings may perceive it.
Some Kabbalists — such as Rabbi Moshe Cordovero — see in this a reflection of the Sefirah of Malchut, the Divine Presence (Shechinah) that garments the Infinite Light.
c. Light and Shadow — The Or ha-Ganuz
The Leviathan and its skin are linked to the “Hidden Light” (Or ha-Ganuz) of creation — the primordial light that Hashem concealed to reveal only to the righteous in the world to come.
The skin of the Leviathan is the vessel holding this light until the world is purified.
The Zohar teaches that in the future world the righteous will dwell “in tents made from the skin of the Leviathan” — not physical tents, but spiritual enclosures of pure light.
d. Mystical Equation
Skin of the Leviathan = Enclosure of Divine Light = Revelation through Redemption.
In later Kabbalistic and Chassidic thought (notably in Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, founder of Chabad), the “skin of the Leviathan” is understood as the garment of Divine consciousness that envelops the soul when it beholds the Infinite Light directly — a transparent, luminous substance, materia lucida, where spirit and matter merge.
4. Kabbalistic Summary
Concept Symbolic Meaning
Leviathan Primordial force of Divine creation; union of opposites
Skin Garment of light; veil between Ein Sof (the Infinite) and the world
Tent of skin Consciousness-space of the righteous; vessel for Divine light
Feast of the Leviathan Union of matter and spirit in the Messianic world
Within this context, the prayer Yehi Ratzon assumes a profound mystical meaning.
The Connection between Yehi Ratzon and the Leviathan
1. Yehi Ratzon — in Kabbalistic Meaning
The phrase Yehi Ratzon (יְהִי רָצוֹן) literally means “May it be [Your] will.”
In Kabbalah, Ratzon (will) represents the supreme creative impulse — the first movement of Ein Sof, the Infinite Light, toward creation.
It is the transition from boundless potential to concrete reality — the Divine “Let there be” that sets existence into motion.
2. The Leviathan — Symbol of the Deep
In the mystical view, the Leviathan represents the primordial waters, the chaotic potential before creation — Tohu, the raw energy of unformed being.
3. The Relationship between Yehi Ratzon and the Leviathan
In Kabbalistic symbolism, the two correspond as cause and matter:
Yehi Ratzon Divine will, the creative impulse — “Let there be!”
Leviathan Primordial sea, chaos, unformed potential shaped by that will
Divine Will (Yehi Ratzon) calls the chaotic deep (Leviathan) into order and form — and thus creation begins.
Mystically expressed:
“Yehi Ratzon calls forth the Leviathan — the ocean of nothingness — into motion, so that form may rise from the depths.”
4. The Vertical Axis in Kabbalah
Highest Level Keter (the Crown) — Divine Will, Yehi Ratzon
Lowest Level Malchut or Tohu — the chaotic foundation, Leviathan
The Divine current flows from above to below — from Will to world, from “Let there be” to form.
5. Mystical Synthesis
Yehi Ratzon = Divine Will speaking “Let there be Light.”
Leviathan = the immeasurable depth of the not-yet-formed.
Together they form the eternal dialogue between will and chaos, light and water, form and potential — the very heart of creation itself.
