Hoshana

The following is an excerpt from a Torah thought by Rabbi Dr Raymond Apple.

The name Hoshana Rabbah is not Biblical; Num. 29:32 refers simply to “the 7th day”. Hoshana Rabbah means “the great Hoshana“; hoshana is a prayer for salvation, based on two words, hosha na, “please save”. The term hoshana is also applied to the bundles of willow twigs which are beaten until the leaves fall off; an early name for the festival was yom sh’vi’i shel aravah – “the 7th day of the willow”.
The link with willows is suggested by the prayers for rain said on Sukkot. Willows need adequate water, and according to the Mishnah this is the time of year when the Almighty decides whether the coming year will have enough rain.
There is a belief that God told Abraham that if his descendants are not forgiven on Rosh HaShanah, they will be forgiven on Yom Kippur; if they are not forgiven on Yom Kippur they will be forgiven on Hoshana Rabbah. This makes the 7th day of Sukkot our final chance of forgiveness during the month of Tishri. The Jerusalem Talmud (Rosh HaShanah 4:8) commenting on Isa. 58:2 (“They seek Me day by day”), says there are two days when people seek God – Rosh HaShanah and Hoshana Rabbah. http://www.oztorah.com/2008/10/hoshana-rabbah-the-unknown-quantity-festival/

A guten kvittel to all.