[Avodah] Why is it permitted to dance and clap on Simchas Torah,

Micha Berger micha at aishdas.org
Thu Oct 10 11:48:15 PDT 2019


 From today's OU Kosher Halacha Yomis

> Q. Why is it permitted to dance and clap on Simchas Torah, when these
> activities are prohibited on an ordinary Yom Tov?

> A. Chazal prohibited dancing and clapping on Shabbos and Yom
> Tov for fear that these activities may lead to fashioning musical
> instruments. (Shulchan Aruch OC 339:3)

Tosafos (Beitzah 30a) and the Ritva (Shabbos 148b) both say this extra
rider on musical instruments to also prohibit clapping hands, clapping
one's thigh or riqud (quoting the gemara Beitza) no longer applies.
Because musicians no longer know how to routinely fix their instruments
if they break while playing.

It is one thing to continue the core gezeira (prohibiting the use of
musical instruments) after the motivation ceased to be true. It's another
to continue these peripheral extensions.

>                                        On Simchas Torah, Chazal waived
> the prohibition in order to increase the honor of the Torah (Magen
> Avraham 339:1; Mishnah Berurah 339:8 and 669:5). An alternative reason
> presented by Aruch HaShulchan (OC 339:8,9) is that our mode of dancing
> and clapping are not forbidden because they do not lead to fashioning
> a musical instrument.

And leshitasam, not some special waver for Simchas Torah.

Which is why the Rama, after saying "mutav sheyehu shogegim", i.e.
that it's assur but we can't stop it, so don't try, add a vyeish
omerim... and then quotes Tosafos's wording.

How can Chazal wave a din for the purposes of a holiday and its
customs that post-dates them? To Chazal, it's just Shemini Atzeres,
or the Yom Tov Sheini shel Goliyos of Shemini Atzeres.

That's not a quesiton on the MA or MB, the MA says "lekhavod
haTorah mutar", citing the Mahariq. The MB is similar, but just cites
"acharonim". He does say it's mussar on Simchas Torah, but it's not a
waver specific to ST. Any chag when you're dancing lekhavod haTorah
would be equally exempt.

And the MB makes a point of telling you not to extend this heter to
other simchos shel mitzvah, like nisu'in. Nor to extend it to instruments
themselves.

The AhS says that since we are not clapping or dancing in a manner that
requires musical instruments this isn't the clapping or dancing included
in the issur. After all, why would anyone prohibit clapping because you
may fix a musical instrument if they were talking about clapping of a
sort totally unrelated to playing instumwents? It is less like Tosafos's
heter, which is also based on "do not lead to fixing instruments", and
instead saying our activities aren't the ones the gezeira included in the
first place.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger                 Here is the test to find whether your mission
http://www.aishdas.org/asp   on Earth is finished:
Author: Widen Your Tent      if you're alive, it isn't.
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