Simhat Torah: Saying "Thank You" Once Again
Simhat Torah is perhaps the most beautiful, festive holiday on the Jewish calendar, but at first glance we seem to observe it during the wrong time of year. It was on Shavuot, the sixth of Sivan, in the springtime, when G-d gave us the Torah at Mount Sinai. That would appear to be the more suitable time to celebrate Simhat Torah, to dance with the Torah, to distribute treats to the children in the synagogue, and to rejoice with the pageantry and fervor that characterizes the holiday of Simhat Torah.
Instead, Simhat Torah is observed almost six months later, in Tishri, whereas on the day when the Torah was given we celebrate Shavuot. The festival of Shavuot is, if we could say such a thing, a "bland" holiday. It does not feature any special Mitzvot, such as the Seder on Pesach, and the Sukka and Lulav on Sukkot, and certainly is not accompanied by the kind of joy and celebration with which we observe Simhat Torah. Why do we "tone down" the celebration of receiving the Torah on Shavuot, and delay the singing and dancing to Simhat Torah?
A young man once went to a Shadchan in search of a wife, and the Shadchan suggested a certain girl, describing her as possessing all the qualities he could even want in a wife. The boy consulted with a number of people whom he trusted, and they all encouraged him to agree to the match. They assured him of her extraordinary qualities and that she would bring him much happiness and satisfaction in every way. And so the young man agreed, and at the wedding he approached the Shadchan and all the people with whom he had consulted to thank them for their recommendation and for bringing him to this joyous occasion.
After the wedding, as the couple began living together, the man saw firsthand all the fine qualities that had been described to him. He saw his bride's grace, patience, diligence and pleasant demeanor, and with every passing day he felt happier and ever more grateful for having been given such a special wife. He thus decided to call the Shadchan once again to thank him for the match. And every year on the couple's anniversary, he would again give the Shadchan a call. When they began to have children, and the man saw how loving, caring and devoted a mother his wife was, he made yet another call to the Shadchan and to all those who recommended this woman as his wife, thanking them again for suggesting such a girl who exceeded even his highest expectations.
On Shavuot, G-d gave us the Torah, but we had yet to study it, analyze it, or experience it. We of course trusted that it was something special, something of inestimable value, and that we must feel privileged for having been singled out to receive G-d's laws. But because we had yet to experience the joy that Torah brings us, our gratitude is still only halfhearted. Therefore, on Shavuot we indeed celebrate to express our gratitude to the Almighty, but our joy is incomplete; we look forward to and anticipate experiencing the beauty and sanctity of Torah, but we have yet to do so. It is only on Simhat Torah, after we have spent several months studying and living with the Torah, when we truly appreciate its value, the direction it provides, and its profound wisdom and insight. We therefore wish to celebrate another "wedding," to express our newfound exuberance over this most precious commodity.
Torah shows us how to live our lives, how to find internal peace and serenity, and it gives us direction at every stage in our lives. A person driving from one city to another needs a map to show him how to travel, how to arrive at his destination. We, the Jewish people, are fortunate enough to have the Torah, the "roadmap" that shows us how to get from this world to the next world, to eternal joy. After experiencing this invaluable gift for several months, we once again say "Thank you" to G-d and celebrate and dance with the Torah, our "bride," which we are ever so privileged to have received.
