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About Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah literally means "Rejoicing of the Law".  It celebrates our completion of the yearly Torah reading cycle, and our immediate return to the beginning of the Torah - the cycle is renewed, and so are we.

Simchat Torah is not really a separate holyday.  It is actually the second day of the Festival of Shmini Atzeret, the "Eighth Day of Assembly".  In Israel, where Yom Tov is celebrated for one day, Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Torah take place on the same day.  Outside of Israel, Yom Tov is celebrated for two days. Our Simchat Torah celebration, therefore gets its own day.

The status of Shmini Atzeret is an interesting one - is it part of the Holyday of Sukkot, or a separate festival?  The details of such a discussion are beyond the scope of this page, but suffice it to say, Shmini Atzeret is accorded all of the blessings and trimmings of a separate Holyday.
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Hakafot
Simchat Torah is celebrated in several unique ways.  During the evening and morning services, all of the Torah scrolls are removed.  We parade the Torah scrolls around the sanctuary seven times.  Each parade, or circuit, is called a Hakafa.  Each Hakafa is introduced with a different verse from the liturgy.  These verses are sung to a distinct melody.  Each Hakafa culminates in singing and dancing with the Torah scrolls.

Why do we celebrate with seven Hakafot as opposed to some other number?   One given reason is that seven Hakafot match the number of circuits that Joshua made around the city Jericho.  Additionally, seven is an important number in Judaism.  Shabbat is the seventh day, the holiest day of the week.  The week is renewed after the seventh day.  Seven is therefore used to signify completion - the end of a cycle and the beginning of a new one. 

After the seventh Hakafa, most of the scrolls are returned to the ark.  In the evening, one scroll is left out.  Three aliyot are read from the last Torah portion, V'zot Habracha.  This is the only evening service during the year that includes a Torah reading.  

In the morning, we keep two scrolls after the Hakafot, and we read almost all of the last portion V'zot Habracha.  We repeat the reading over and over again, until all who are eligible for an aliya have been called to the Torah.  We use two scrolls so that this process does not take the entire day!  We also call up all of the children for a special aliya and blessing.

The person called up for the last aliya for the last section of the Torah is called the "Chatan Torah", the bridegroom of the Torah.  This is a high honor, usually reserved for clergy.

We then begin reading from the beginning Torah portion, B'resheet.  The person called for this aliya is called "Chatan B'resheet", the "bridegroom of the book Genesis".  This is also a high honor.  It is the last aliya of the day.
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The music of Simchat Torah
The mood of Simchat Torah day is festive.  However, there is a powerful seriousness that pervades through the day.  It is the last day of the High Holy Day season.  As such, there are some traditions that call for many High Holy Day tunes to be sung in the services of Simchat Torah.  Some communities will chant the evening service according to the beautiful High Holy Day chant.  There are even some communities that, for the reading of the Torah on Simchat Torah evening, use the High Holy Day cantillation.  This is not the custom at Beth Sholom, and customs vary from one synagogue to another.

Of course, the celebration of Simchat Torah is through music and dance.  The Hakafot, or circuits, are accompanied with singing and dancing with the Torah.
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Torah Dancing
The type of dancing that we do on Simchat Torah is often referred to as "Torah Dancing".  Torah dancing is circle dancing - we dance in a circle, holding hands or with hands placed on the shoulder of the person in front of you.  The men holding the Torah scrolls can be part of the main circle or they can go to the center of the main circle and form their own circle.  In this way, the Torah becomes the focal point of the dancing.

"Israeli" dancing is also circular dancing, although it usual involves more interesting movements than just revolving in a circle. Israeli dancing is usually done to modern Hebrew songs, as opposed to songs that have their roots in the liturgy.  At Beth Sholom, we sing several songs during the Hakafot that are typically danced in this "Israeli" style.

There are other communal dances that are popular at Jewish celebrations.  Certain "line" dances that involve partners stepping or running back and forth through two lines of people are inappropriate if one is carrying the Torah. During our Simchat Torah celebration, such line dances are occasionally organized, but they are separate from the dancing that involves the Torah scrolls.
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