The following are from ילקוט שמ"ש by Hakham Shalom Messas a"h.
The blessing to sit in the sukkah normally is said sitting down.
However, on erev Shabat hol hamoed and erev yom tov (when kiddush is said), the all the blessings are said standing. Ramba"m instructs that we should stand for the kiddush, sit for "yoshev b'sukkah" and then shekianu. Maran (Yosef Caro) believes the stand/sit/stand would cause an interruption. Tradition follows Maran.
On yomay hol, when there is no kiddush, the order is motze then immediately yoshev b'sukah.
Wave the lulav as follows
- Face south and wave (we do not shake) the lulav
- Turn to right until facing north and wave the lulav
- Turn to right until facing east and wave the lulav
- While facing east, wave the lulav upward
- While facing east, wave the lulav downward
- Turn to right until facing west and wave the lulav
This north-south-east-up-down-west follows HaAri. According to Hakham Yosef Messas a"h in his book הוד יוסף חי, Maran's order is east-north-west-south.
At every morning service (s'hareet) during Sukot, a sefer Torah is placed on the bemah and the congregants make one hakafah (walking with the arba minim) around the bema.
On Hosheanah Rabah, seven hakafot are made around the bema.
It is traditional to recite hosheanote after musaf.
Maran and those who follow the ancient minhag of Casablanca allow even men who do not have a lulav may join in the hakafot. Ramba"m rules that only those who have a lulav can make the hakafot.
On Shabat, hosheanote are recited but there are no hakafot (since the lulav is not waved on Shabat).
According to הוד יוסף חי, in order to say the "yoshev b'sukah" blessing a person must eat bread; rice and couscous without bread is not considered a meal. (Most North Africans require bread for every repast if it is to be called a "meal.")
The following are from דברי שלום ואמת. This work is in response to many rulings by former Hakham Bakshe Ovadia Yosef that disagree with North African - and often other - minhagim. It might be of interest to note that many North African minhagim are identical or nearly identical to those of the Ashkenazim.
When the maftir recites the blessing over the haftarah, he adds "m'kdash Israel v'hazmanim."
חג סכות שמח
