Sukkah 45 - Shabbat August 21, 13 Elul

How was the mitzva of arava performed in the Temple? Where were the aravot taken from? What did they say at the ceremony? What did they do differently when the last day fell on Shabbat? Rabbi Yochanan ben Broka had a different tradition regarding the custom and instead of arava they used palm branches and placed them on the sides of the altar. What was the height of the aravot that were placed near the altar? Why? The gemara brings several different drashot on the verse "isru chag… on the corners of the altar" One of the drashot was said by Rabbi Yirmiah in the name of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and the gemara quotes several statements made by Rabbi Yirmiah in the same of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai. In some of them, R. Shimon Bar Yochai talks about his greatness and that of his son. He speaks of them as if there are no others like them and the gemara raises a question on this from other sources, including one that mentions the 36 righteous people in every generation. Do we make a bracha on a lulav every day of the holiday? What about Sukkah? What are the different opinions?