[Avodah] What is the source for the minhag of Chasidim to have HaKafos on Shmini Atzeres night?

[Micha Berger]

On Sat, 28 Oct 2006 23:38:08 +1000, "SBA" <sba at sba2.com> wrote:
> It's not so rare., the Torah Temima's  theory about the origin of saying
> "migdol" in bentching on shabbos.. was to contrast the text of
> bentching with that in Shemu'el beis, and therefore read "besh"b
> 'migdol'".
> Somone then expanded the rashei teivos to "beShabbos" and so the minhag
> was allegedly born... the theory doesn't work because the Avudraham mentions
> the practice, and he didn't know about a future splitting of Shemu'el ..

> I am unsure how a mistaken REASON (or theory) for a minhag is the
> same as claiming that the minhag itself is based on an error.

It's not. The fact that the TT made a history mistake is a tangent. I
just couldn't cite his explanation without mentioning to people my
problem with accepting it.

But look again at the TT's claim. He writes that the nusach of saying
"migdol" on Shabbos was a ta'os, based on someone misreading "bsh"b". Now,
if the TT can say that a minhag Yisrael came from a ta'os, why couldn't
minhagim accepted by only a few qehillos?

>>See the mavo to haAqov leMishor by R' Dovid Cohen for more examples. If
>>RDC does it, why can't Yaari?

> I can't find my copy of that sefer right now.
> Can you give us some of his examples?

I don't even own a copy not to find. However, I recall seeing a long
list of ta'uyos soferim, and around 10% or so lead to differences
lema'aseh. Perhaps someone who owns a copy can fill in the gaps in
my memory.

But to repeat my thesis, minhagim, as opposed to taqanos, were practices
that arose grass roots, and only afterward gained approval from the
rabbinate. So why couldn't some of them have arose from errors -- as
long as the rabbanim found a similar post-facto justification?

Gut Voch!
-mi

PS: The quote in this signature file is relatively new. I think, though,
that it is a good reminder for email fora.

-- 
Micha Berger             Rescue me from the desire to win every
micha at aishdas.org        argument and to always be right.
http://www.aishdas.org              - Rav Nassan of Breslav
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