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Comments (0)Today is Simchat Torah, the holiday during which we celebrate the completion of the annual cycle of reading the Torah and start afresh. It is customary to dance joyously with the Torah both the night preceding Simchat Torah and the following day during morning prayers.>
The Torah is supposed to circle the synagogue seven times. These circles are called hakafot. The circuit is launched with a dance around the bimah, which according to some opinions is meant to symbolize the Temple’s altar. Each hakafa has its own lyrics, though all are sung to the same tune.
After the initial circuit of each hakafa, many synagogues continue dancing for an unspecified amount of time, chanting Jewish tunes –– biblical, traditional or modern.>
According to some commentaries on hakafot, God is actually standing in the center of the circle, as it says will happen in the Talmud at the End of Days, when the righteous form a circle in the Garden of Eden with HaShem in the middle.>
Hassidic tradition points out the uniqueness of the circle. No matter where one stands around the circumference, he/she is equally close to the Torah. This embodies each Jew’s relationship with God; each person forges his/her own relationship and, if based on Torah, no one’s is closer or farther than anyone else’s is.