If one's head and most of his body were in the succah, and his table in his house — Beth Shammai rule that it is pasul, and Beth Hillel, that it is kasher. [The halachah is in accordance with Beth Shammai, whether it is a large succah and he is sitting at the entrance of the succah with his table in his house, or it is a small succah, which does not accommodate his head and most of his body — both are forbidden — a decree, lest he "be drawn" after his table.] Beth Hillel said to Beth Shammai: "Did it not happen that the elders of Beth Shammai and the elders of Beth Hillel went to visit R. Yochanan b. Hachorani and found him sitting with his head and most of his body in the succah and his table in the house, and they said nothing to him?" Beth Shammai rejoined: "Can you offer proof from there? They did, indeed, tell him: 'If this is how you have (always) deported yourself, you have never fulfilled the mitzvah of succah in all of your days!'"
Bartenura on Mishnah Sukkah
ב"ש פוסלין – And the Halakha is according to the School of Shammai, whether in a large Sukkah and he is sitting at the opening of the Sukkah and his table is within the house, whether in a small Sukkah which does not support/squeeze together his head, the majority of his body and his table, everything is prohibited, as a decree lest he is drawn after his table.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Sukkah
Introduction
The main topic of this mishnah is how much of a person’s body must be within the sukkah while he is eating.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Sukkah
One whose head and the greater part of his body were within the sukkah and his table within the house: Bet Shammai say: it is invalid and Bet Hillel say it valid. If someone has a small sukkah, one that is not capable of fitting his entire body, but only his head and most of his body, Bet Shammai declare the sukkah invalid and Bet Hillel say it is valid. Similarly, if one has a large sukkah, a sukkah sufficient to fit his entire body, but he sat with only his head and most of his body in the sukkah, while the rest of his body was out of the sukkah, he would not have fulfilled his obligation according to Bet Hillel. We should note that the terminology of this mishnah is ambiguous. At first it sounds like the mishnah is discussing where the person sits, regardless of the size of the sukkah. However, the words “valid” and “invalid” at the end of section one describe the validity of the sukkah based on its size. Hence, in my explanation I have tried to incorporate both elements. According to Bet Shammai the sukkah must be large enough to encompass his entire body and he must sit with his whole body in the sukkah. Bet Hillel say that the sukkah need only hold his head and most of his body and when sitting in the sukkah, only his head and most of his body need be inside. The table may be outside of the sukkah.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Sukkah
Bet Hillel said to Bet Shammai: Did it not in fact happen that the elders of Bet Shammai and the elders of Bet Hillel went to visit Rabbi Yohanan ben HaHoroni and found him sitting with his head and the greater part of his body within the sukkah and his table within the house, and they didn’t say anything to him? Bet Shammai said to them: From there [you bring] proof? Indeed they said to him, “If this is your custom, then you have never in your whole life fulfilled the commandment of the sukkah. This story illustrates the argument between Bet Hillel and Bet Shammai. As an aside, we can note from this story and the discussion in 2:1 that space in sukkot might have been tight. This might reflect the reality in the Second Temple period in Jerusalem when many people came to make their pilgrimage. Alternatively, it may reflect the cramped housing and living spaces of 2nd century towns in the land of Israel.
