Below is the information I used to provide my talk last Shabbat on Shmini Atzeret. If you would like to learn more about this intriguing holiday read on!

The Eighth Day of Solemn Assembly & the Rejoicing of the Law

Note: In Israel, these two festivals are celebrated together on the same day.
Shmini Atzeret - Different from Sukkot

Although perceived as the last day of the festival of the Sukkot, the "Feast of the Eighth Day" is in reality unconnected with the previous days, especially in agricultural and national conceptions. In contrast to the abundance of sacrifices that used to be offered up during the festival of Sukkot in Temple times, only one sacrifice was made on this festival.
Also, we can detect original prayers and psalms in the liturgy of Shmini Atzeret which traditionally marked it off from Sukkot.
On the other hand, the one behest of the Bible which stood out on the Eighth day was the command, yet again, to be joyful.
The celebration would now be in the home and not in the Sukkah. The festival thus marks a change in emphasis - from the universalism of Sukkot (as represented by the 70 sacrifices for the nations of the world) to the intimacy of a people and its Maker: "Now bring a sacrifice for yourselves" - Zohar.

Significance

Although the word Atzeret means "Assembly" it also has the meaning of holding back. And our sages were unable to find any special purpose to the festival of the Eighth day except as expressed in the following parable:
God is like a king who invites all his children to a feast to last for just so many days; when the time comes for them to depart, He says to them: "My children, I have a request to make of you. Stay yet another day; I hate to see you go."
That the sages saw Shemini Atzeret in terms of "sweet sorrow", is typical of their attitude to all festival days. These were days of joy, not of burden; of pleasure, not only of duty, in which they were guests in the palace of the Lord.

The Prayer for Rain

On Shmini Atzeret, (also Simhat Torah in Israel,) a prayer for rain is invoked in the Synagogue.
It appears at a stage in the festivities after the harvest was brought in and after the season of sitting in the Sukkah, both of which would be affected by untimely rains.
The prayer itself was composed by Rabbi Eleazar Ha-Kallir who also is the author of the Hoshanot that are said throughout Sukkot and who was one of the greatest and certainly most prolific of the liturgical poets. He composed piyyutim, liturgical poems or poetical prayers for all the festivals and they were widely adopted into the prayer services. Ha-Kallir lived in the Land of Israel probably towards the end of the sixth century, although some scholars place him in a later period.
The season chosen for the recitation of this prayer for rain reflects the weather conditions and agricultural needs as they exist in the Land of Israel.
Even though this prayer at this time of the year may not be relevant for Jews scattered to other parts of the globe, their continued recitation of this and similar prayers serves to heighten their consciousness of the Holy Land and to help them maintain their spiritual bond with the Land of Israel.
The central theme running through the prayer for rain is ZEKHUT AVOT, "the merit of the fathers." The Jewish people plead for rain and sustenance, claiming not their own worthiness but for the righteousness of their saintly ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This theme also runs through all of the prayers for forgiveness and atonement on Yom Kippur.

Simhat Torah

Sometime after the 11th century, Shemini Atzeret also came to be known as Simhat Torah, "Rejoicing of the Torah." In the Diaspora, this name was applied only to the second day of Shemini Atzeret.
The Basis
Although the name was not known in the talmudic period, the practice of reading the final portion of the Torah, Deuteronomy 33-34, on this day was set by the Talmud. From this practice, there gradually grew a tradition of a special, joyous celebration to mark that completion.
The basis for such a celebration is found in the Midrash which described Solomon as having made a special feast after he was granted wisdom. Said Rabbi Eleazar:
"From this we deduce that we make a feast to mark the conclusion of the Torah, for when God told Solomon, 'I have given you a wise and understanding heart like none who came before you or after you . . .' and he immediately made a feast for all his servants to celebrate the event, it is only proper to make a feast and celebrate when finishing the Torah."

The Development

While the tradition of added merriment on this last day of the holiday in honor of completing the Torah began during the ninth and tenth centuries of the common era, at the time of the Geonim, the name Simhat Torah came into use even later.
The custom of reading of the last portion of the Torah was set by the Talmud, but that of reading of the first chapter of Genesis was not introduced on Simhat Torah until sometime after the 12th century. The reasons given for this additional reading were:
1) to indicate that "just as we were privileged to witness its completion, so shall we be privileged to witness its beginning" and
2) to prevent Satan from accusing Israel that they were happy to finish the Torah (in the sense of getting it over with) and did not care to continue to read it.
Initially it was the custom for the same person who completed Deuteronomy to read the Genesis portion from memory without using a scroll, on account of the general rule that "two scrolls are not taken out for one reader."
Eventually the practice developed of calling two different persons, one for the reading of the last portion of Deuteronomy and one for the first portion of Genesis, and two different scrolls began to be used.
The Honor
Each of these ALIYOT (callings to the Torah) came to be regarded as great honors.
The people so honored were called HATANIM, Bridegrooms (of the Law). The one who presided over the completion of Deuteronomy was called HATAN TORAH, Bridegroom of the Torah. The one who presided over the beginning of Genesis was called HATAN BERESHIT, the Bridegroom of Genesis.
It became customary for the men so honored to sponsor a festive meal later in the day. In our own day, those so honored usually sponsor a special Kiddush following services.

Hakkafot

The ritual custom most closely identified with Simhat Torah is that of the hakkafot. Hakkafot is the term used to designate ceremonial processional circuits, whether in the synagogue or elsewhere.
On Simhat Torah, all the Torah scrolls are removed from the Ark, and carried around the central platform in seven hakkafot. This takes place during the evening service and also before the readings from the two Torah scrolls (described above) during the morning service. Hasidic practice in the Diaspora is to conduct hakkafot also at the evening service of the first day of Shemini Atzeret, as in Israel.
Origins
Although the custom of hakkafot on Simhat Torah is of rather late origin, dating from about the last third of the 16th century (in the city of Safed), the practice of hakkafot goes back much further.
Processional circuits are first mentioned in the Bible, as a build-up to the downfall of the walls of Jericho. There were seven circuits around Jericho; once a day for six days, and seven times on the seventh day.
The lulav (and aravot too) were carried around the Temple altar during the seven days of Sukkot; once a day during the first six days, and seven times on the seventh day (see above). From there developed the custom of hakkafot around the synagogue with the lulav and the etrog.
At traditional Jewish wedding ceremonies the custom of hakkafot is still to be seen in the circling by the bride around the bridegroom at the very start of the ceremony, usually seven circuits.
Three such circuits (Persian custom) can be said to symbolize the three-part passage from the Prophets which describes Israel's relationship to God in terms of an idyllic betrothal and marriage:
I will betroth you unto me forever;
I will betroth you unto me in righteousness and judgment, in loving-kindness and mercy;
I will betroth you unto me in faithfulness and you shall know the Lord.
(see also weekday morning prayer for putting on tefillin).
Song and Circuit Dancing
In addition to the prescribed passages, it is commonplace for the congregation to join in the singing of many additional songs, generally verses from the Bible or the prayerbook that have been put to music.
It is also the practice in the more traditional congregations for the worshippers to join a circle and dance in between each circuit. Those holding Torah scrolls also join the dancing.
In the yeshivot, the schools of higher Jewish learning, and in those congregations where traditional youth predominates, the singing and dancing that accompany the hakkafot can last for many hours. It is sometimes even carried outdoors. The whirling bodies and the stomping feet, perhaps a performance of acrobatic feats by someone inside the dancing circle, all accompanied by continuous song, provide a scene of ecstatic joy.
Small children are generally given decorative flags or miniature scrolls and they too follow the Torah scrolls in the processions.
Special Blessing for Children
In addition to involving the children in the Torah procession, it also became customary to include them in the Torah reading which follows.
Although a child under the age of thirteen is not generally called to the Torah for an aliyah, on Simhat Torah there developed the custom of kol ha-ne'arim which means "all the children," and refers to the fact that all of the children in the congregation are called up collectively and given a joint aliyah.
A tallit is spread over the heads of the entire group and the blessings, led by one adult, are recited.
At the conclusion of the reading, the congregation invokes Jacob's blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh as a special blessing for the children.
"May the Angel who has redeemed me from all harm, bless the children. In them may my name be recalled, and the names of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac . . ."
Simhat Torah in Israel
In Jerusalem, it is now customary on Simchat Torah morning for some congregations to join together in a mass dancing procession through the city to the Western Wall.
Led by scrolls of the Torah carried under the canopies, literally thousands of people, young and old, eight and ten abreast, dance and sing their way to the Western Wall in a procession that stretches for as far as the eye can see.
The original custom of holding the hakkafot at the conclusion of Simhat Torah inspired the custom in Israel of carrying the Simhat Torah celebration also into the night after the holiday. Public gatherings with bands and music featuring hakkafot and singing and dancing are then held.
In one public square of Jerusalem, it is customary for the Chief Rabbis and high government officials to participate. At that celebration there is featured the varied practices of the different Jewish communities: Hasidic, Yemenite, Bukharan, native Israeli, etc. A different group is responsible for each of the hakkafot, doing it in their respective traditional dress and with their traditional melodies.
At one time, this was also the moment for identification with Soviet Jewry, who held their own extensive celebrations in Moscow, Leningrad and other major towns on this date.
Hakkafot also take place at Israel's army bases, and even men near frontline positions have been known to participate in them during quiet periods. In the midst of the Yom Kippur War which lasted till after Sukkot, television crews recorded scenes of the Chief Rabbi of Israel, Shlomo Goren, visiting forward army bases, having brought with him a small Torah scroll, and of men joining him in some traditional dancing with the Torah.
- Hide quoted text -

Bringing The Cycle To An End

The end of the fall holiday season looks forward to redemption.

By Michael Strassfeld

Reprinted with permission from The Jewish Holidays: A Guide and Commentary (Harper and Row).

We have seen that there are two kinds of time--historical time, which marks progress, and cyclic time, which is marked by recurring patterns. Historical time is centered in the High Holiday festival cycle. Cyclic time is found in the three pilgrimage festivals. Sukkot is the end of the pilgrimage cycle, and yet, by its placement in the year, also brings to a close the High Holiday cycle. Seemingly, then, Sukkot comes at the end of both kinds of time.

Redemption is Sukkot's theme and as such it answers the great question of Yom Kippur: Are we forgiven? Yet Sukkot only promises redemption and thus reflects an underlying uncertainty that bespeaks a cruel reality. Since redemption still has not come, Sukkot continues to signify our status as wanderers lost in the desert.

Despite Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, most of us are still far away from each other and the Other. Despite the liberation of Pesach and the revelation of Shavuot, we do not end the pilgrimage festival cycle by entering the Promised land; we are left wandering as the Promised Land eludes our grasp. On Sukkot, we rejoice with our lulav and etrog, imbued with a sense of relief, security, and joy now that the penitential days are over, and yet we sit in our sukkot, those temporary dwellings, open to the winds of time--both kinds of time.

If Sukkot brings both cycles to a close, it does so by looking toward the end of time and the final redemption. Sukkot's haftarah [prophetic reading], from the prophet Zechariah [chapter 14:1-21], describes how in the future all the nations will go up to Jerusalem in peace to worship the Lord on the holiday of Sukkot.

To understand Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, we must go back a bit. The seven days of Passover are followed by the 49 (7 X 7) of the omer, climaxing with the 50th day of Shavuot. Thus liberation is linked with revelation and the giving of the Torah. The experience of receiving the Torah is awesome. It is characterized by boundaries set around the mountain and a sound so terrible that the people flee. The mountain looms threateningly over their heads. There are no joyful outbursts at Sinai, only fear and anticipation. The experience concludes with the people's acceptance of the Torah and the Covenant.

Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are preceded by Sukkot, again seven days followed by one day, but here there is no intervening period as there is between Pesach and Shavuot. Shemini Atzeret is the eighth day--that is, the day after seven. Seven, being a perfect number in Judaism, signifies a complete unit of time--each week ends with the seventh day, Shabbat. Thus, the eighth day is the day after time. It is the end of both kinds of time. It is thus not just the promise of redemption but the actual moment of it. God said, "Remain with me [atzeret] an extra day," a time beyond time.

Shemini Atzeret is a taste of the messianic, of the time when Torah, the Holy One, and Israel will be one. This comes to a climax with Simchat Torah. Instead of circling around the Torah scrolls as we did on Sukkot, during hoshanot we circle with the Torah scrolls. We take the connecting link between us and God--our ketubah [marriage contract], as it were--and circle around an apparently; empty space that is filled with the One who fills everything.

Simchat Torah celebrates a Torah of joy, a Torah without restrictions or sense of burden. We circle God seven times with the Torah and then no more. There is no eighth circling. We read from the last portion of the Torah just before we enter the promised land, but leave the last few verses unread--the Torah unfinished. It is a magical moment when all that exists are God and Torah and ourselves. We throw ourselves into endless circles of dancing and become time lost.

But this moment must pass. Time does continue, and therefore the unity is broken. The sun rises and historical time, briefly halted, begins again. Cyclic time begins as well, for we start again the Torah reading cycle. There is no end to Torah; after Deuteronomy, we immediately begin Genesis as part of a constantly renewing cycle.

We also read the first chapter of the Book of Joshua, which shows that even after the Torah there is still something else. The Torah did not end last night. There is more to hear, for not only does the Torah cycle begin again, the Torah itself enters historical time beginning with the Book of Joshua.

Then, too, the Book of Joshua is the fulfillment of the dream of entering the Promised Land. It tells us that last night was no illusion, that the moment of redemption is always at hand.

Michael Strassfeld is rabbi at the Society for the Advancement of Judaism in New York City. He is the founding chairperson of the National Havurah Committee and is the author, editor or co-editor of numerous articles and books, including The Jewish Catalogue series.
God's Nostalgia
Rejoicing to prove a point
By Rabbi Irving Greenberg
Reprinted with the author's permission from The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays (Touchstone ).

When the seven days of Sukkot end, the Bible decrees yet another holiday, the Eighth Day of Assembly. The Rabbis interpreted this as an encore. After the High Holy Days, after the intense seven days of Sukkot and pilgrimage, the Jewish people are about to leave, to scatter and return to their homes.




God grows nostalgic, as it were, and pensive. The people of Israel will not come together again in such numbers until Passover six months hence. God will soon miss the sounds of music and pleasure and the unity of the people. The Torah decreed, therefore, an eighth day of assembly, a final feast/holy day. On this day Jews leave the sukkah to resume enjoying the comfort of solid, well built, well-insulated homes. The lulav and etrog are put aside; this day, Shemini Atzeret, is a reprise of the celebration of Sukkot but without any of the rituals. The message is that all the rituals and symbolic language are important but ultimately they remain just symbols.

Over the course of history this day has evolved into the day of the Rejoicing of the Torah (Simchat Torah). In Israel [and in many liberal congregations], Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah are celebrated together on one day. In the Diaspora where an extra holy day is added (making a ninth day), Shemini Atzeret is followed by Simchat Torah on the ninth day. The rejoicing makes a statement. Whatever the law denies to Jews, whatever suffering the people have undergone for upholding the covenant cannot obscure the basic truth: The Torah affirms and enriches life. At the end of this week of fulfillment, on this day of delight all the scrolls are taken out of the ark, and the Torah becomes the focus of rejoicing.

Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg is the president of Jewish Life Network and founding president of CLAL--the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. He is also the author of numerous books and articles dealing with Jewish theology and religion.


The Morning Service
Ending -- and beginning -- the Torah cycle

By Rabbi Ronald H. Isaacs

Excerpted from Every Person's Guide to Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah. Reprinted with permission of the publisher. Copyright 2000 Jason Aronson, Inc.

The morning service is the usual holiday one, with its own Amidah and the Hallel Psalms of Praise. After Hallel, the hakafot processionals follow as on the night before. After the hakafot, all the Torah scrolls--except three--are returned to the Ark. Three scrolls are needed, one for the reading of the sidra [portion]of Vezot HaBeracha [end of Deuteronomy],the second for the reading of the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, and the third for the concluding maftir portion [omitted in some liberal congregations].

Since the custom is for everyone to be honored with an aliyah on Simchat Torah, the section from Vezot HaBeracha is read over and over again. To facilitate this, large congregations will divide into smaller groups, each with its own Torah. Other congregations will call up more than one person at a time.

Usually the last aliyah is a special one, reserved for kol ha-ne'arim--"allthe children." Only this one time during the year, children who have not reached the age of Bar or Bat Mitzvah are given a Torah honor. A large tallit [prayer shawl]is spread like a canopy over their heads as they say the blessings along with an adult who accompanies them.

The last part of the Torah reading from the first Torah scroll is the reading of the last verses of the Book of Deuteronomy (33:27-34:12) The person honored with this aliyah is called the chatan Torah--"groomof the Torah." In synagogues that are egalitarian and offer equal participation to women, a woman may be given this honor, called the kallat HaTorah--"brideof the Torah." This person is generally a distinguished member of the congregation, and is called up to the Torah with a special piyyut [liturgical poem]in praise of the Torah. The following is a suggested text for the calling up of the chatan Torah:

"Requesting permission of God, mighty, awesome, and revered, and requesting permission of the Torah, our precious treasure which we celebrate, I lift up my voice in song with gratitude in praise of the One Who dwells in sublime light, Who has granted us life and sustained us with faith's purity, Who has allowed us to reach this day of rejoicing in the Torah which grants honor and splendor, life and security, which brings joy to the heart and light to the eyes, and happiness to us when we in- corporate its values which we cherish. The Torah grants long days and strength to those who love and observe it, heeding its warnings absorbed in it with reverence and love without setting prior conditions. May it be the will of the Almighty to grant life, lovingkindness, and a crown of blessings in abundance to [insert name] who has been chosen for this reading of the Torah at its conclusion."

After this aliyah, the beginning of Genesis (1:1-2:3) is, read from the second Torah scroll. The person honored with this aliyah is called the chatan bereshit--"groomof Genesis" (or kallat Bereshit --"brideof Genesis"). Again, a special piyyutis recited. As the first chapter of Genesis is read, the congregation recites for each day of creation veyehi erev veyehi voker--"therewas evening and there was morning"--which is repeated by the Torah reader. It is customary in many places to spread a tallit like a canopy over the chatan Torah and chatan Bereshit.

The lifting of the second Torah scroll is done in a special fashion. The person crosses his or her hands so that the scroll, when lifted, is reversed (i.e., the Hebrew script is facing the congregation). [This is not done at all congregations.] This is done to symbolize turning the Torah back to its beginning--to Genesis.

The third scroll is the maftir scroll, from which the concluding Torah portion of Numbers 29:35-30:1 is read. This is followed by the chanting of the Simchat Torah Haftarah, from the first chapter of the Book of Joshua.

The Musaf Additional Service for Simchat Torah is the usual festival one, except that the joyous mood is maintained by the ingenuity of the reader. Latitude is given to merriment, and some synagogues allow tasteful "fooling around" in order to heighten the great joy of the day. Simchat Torah thus gives expression to the unbreakable chain--the Torah--that links past and future generations. In that chain lies the secret of the eternal validity of the Jewish people.

Encyclopedia Judaica Entry on Simhat Torah:

On this festival, the annual reading of the Torah scroll is completed and immediately begun again. Simhat Torah, as a separate festival, was not known during the talmudic period. In designating the haftarah for this day, the Talmud refers to it simply as the second day of Shemini Azeret (Meg. 31a). Similarly it is termed Shemini Azeret in the prayers and the Kiddush recited on this day. Its unique celebrations began to develop during the geonic period when the one-year cycle for the reading of the Torah (as opposed to the triennial cycle) gained wide acceptance.
The Talmud already specified the conclusion of the Torah as the portion for this day (i.e., Deut. 33–34; see Meg. 31a). The assignment of a new haftarah, Joshua, is mentioned in a ninth-century prayer book (Seder Rav Amram, 1 (Warsaw, 1865), 52a, but see Tos. to Meg. 31a). Later it also became customary to begin to read the Book of Genesis again on Simhat Torah. This was done in order "to refute Satan" who might otherwise have claimed that the Jews were happy only to have finished the Torah, but were unwilling to begin anew (Tur, OH 669; cf. Sif. Deut. 33).
During the celebrations, as they continue to be observed by Orthodox and Conservative congregations, all the Torah scrolls are removed from the Ark and the bimah ("pulpit") is circled seven times (hakkafot). All the men present are called to the Torah reading (aliyyot); for this purpose, Deuteronomy 33:1–29 is repeated as many times as necessary. All the children under the age of bar mitzvah are called for the concluding portion of the chapter; this aliyah is referred to as kol ha-ne'arim ("all the youngsters"). A tallit is spread above the heads of the youngsters, and the congregation blesses them with Jacob's benediction to
Ephraim and Manasseh (Gen. 48:16). Those who are honored with the aliyyot which conclude and start the Torah readings are popularly designated as the hatan Torah and hatan Bereshit; they often pledge contributions to the synagogue and sponsor banquets for their acquaintances in honor of the event (see Bridegrooms of the Law). In many communities similar ceremonies are held on Simhat Torah eve: all the scrolls are removed from the Ark and the bimah is circled seven times. Some communities even read from the concluding portion of Deuteronomy during the evening service, the only time during the year when the Torah scroll is read at night (Sh. Ar., OH 669:1).
The Simhat Torah festivities are accompanied by the recitation of special liturgical compositions, some of which were written in the late geonic period. The hatan Torah is called up by the prayer Me-Reshut ha-El ha-Gadol, and the hatan Bereshit by Me-Reshut Meromam. The return of the Torah scrolls to the Ark is accompanied by the joyful hymns "Sisu ve-Simhu be-Simhat Torah" and "Hitkabbezu Malakhim Zeh el Zeh." A central role in the festivities is allotted to children. In addition to the aliyah to the Torah, the children also participate in the Torah processions: they carry flags adorned with apples in which burning candles are placed. There have even been communities where children dismantled sukkot on Simhat Torah and burned them (Darkhei Moshe to OH 669 n. 3 quoting Maharil).
Hasidim also hold Torah processions on Shemini Azeret eve. Reform synagogues observe these customs, in a modified form, on Shemini Azeret, which is observed as the final festival day. In Israel, where the second day of the festival is not celebrated, the liturgy and celebration of both days are combined. It has also become customary, there, for public hakkafot to be held on the night following Simhat Torah, which coincides with its celebration in the Diaspora: in many cities, communities, and army bases, seven hakkafot are held with religious, military, and political personnel being honored with the carrying of the Torah scrolls.

[Aaron Rothkoff]

In the U.S.S.R
Among Soviet Jewish youth seeking forms of expressing their Jewish identification, Simhat Torah gradually became, during the 1960s, the occasion of mass gatherings in and around the synagogues, mainly in the great cities Moscow, Leningrad, Riga, and others. At these gatherings large groups of Jewish youth, many of them students, sang Hebrew and Yiddish songs, danced the hora, congregated and discussed the latest events in Israel, etc. In the beginning, the Soviet authorities tried to disperse these "unauthorized meetings," but when Jewish and Western public opinion began to follow them and press correspondents as well as observers from various foreign embassies began attending them, the authorities largely reverted their attitude and even instructed the militia to cordon off the synagogue areas and redirect traffic, so as not to cause clashes with the Jewish youngsters, whose numbers swelled rapidly in Moscow into the tens of thousands. In many cities in the West, notably in Israel, England, the United States, and Canada, Simhat Torah was declared by Jewish youth as the day of "solidarity with Soviet Jewish youth," and mass demonstrations were staged voicing demands to the Soviet authorities for freedom of Jewish life and the right of migration to Israel.
[Editorial Staff Encyclopaedia Judaica]


Talmud Megillah 31a:

THE SECTION OF BLESSINGS AND CURSES.1 THE SECTION OF CURSES MUST NOT BE BROKEN UP, BUT MUST ALL BE READ BY ONE PERSON. ON MONDAY AND THURSDAY AND ON SABBATH AT MINHAH THE REGULAR PORTION OF THE WEEK IS READ, AND THIS IS NOT RECKONED AS PART OF THE READING [FOR THE SUCCEEDING SABBATH],2 AS IT SAYS,3 AND MOSES DECLARED UNTO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. THE APPOINTED SEASONS OF THE LORD;'4 WHICH IMPLIES THAT IT IS PART OF THEIR ORDINANCE THAT EACH SHOULD BE READ IN ITS SEASON.

GEMARA. Our Rabbis taught: 'On Passover we read from the section of the festivals5 and for haftarah the account of the Passover of Gilgal'.6 Now7 that we keep two days Passover, the haftarah of the first day is the account of the Passover in Gilgal and of the second day that of the Passover of Josiah.8 'On the other days of the Passover the various passages in the Torah relating to Passover are read'9 What are these? — R. Papa said: The mnemonic is M'A'P'U'.10 'On the last day of Passover we read, And it came to pass when God sent,11 and as haftarah, And David spoke'.12 On the next day we read, All the firstborn,13 and for haftarah, This very day.14 Abaye said: Nowadays the communities are accustomed to read 'Draw the ox', 'Sanctify with money', 'Hew in the wilderness', and 'Send the firstborn'.15 'On Pentecost, we read Seven weeks,16 and for haftarah a chapter from Habakuk.17 According to others, we read In the third month,18 and for haftarah the account of the Divine Chariot'.19 Nowadays that we keep two days, we follow both courses, but in the reverse order.20 On New Year we read On the seventh month,21 and for haftarah, Is Ephraim a darling son unto me.'22 According to others, we read And the Lord remembered Sarah23 and for haftarah the story of Hannah.24 Nowadays that we keep two days, on the first day we follow the ruling of the other authority, and on the next day we say, And God tried Abraham,25 with 'Is Ephraim a darling son to me' for haftarah. On the Day of Atonement we read After the death26 and for haftarah,For thus saith the high and lofty one.27 At minhah we read the section of forbidden marriages28 and for haftarah the book of Jonah.29

R. Johanan said:30 Wherever you find [mentioned in the Scriptures] the power of the Holy One, blessed be He, you also find his gentleness mentioned. This fact is stated in the Torah, repeated In the Prophets, and stated a third time in the [Sacred] Writings. It is written in the Torah, For the Lord your God, he is the God of gods and Lord of lords,31 and it says immediately afterwards, He doth execute justice for the fatherless and widow. It is repeated in the Prophets: For thus saith the High and Lofty One, that inhabiteth eternity whose name is holy,32 and it says immediately afterwards, [I dwell] with him that is of a contrite and humble spirit. It is stated a third time in the [Sacred] Writings, as it is written: Extol him that rideth upon the skies, whose name is the Lord,33 and immediately afterwards it is written, A father of the fatherless and a judge of the widows.

'On34 the first day of Tabernacles we read the section of the festivals in Leviticus, and for haftarah, Behold a day cometh for the Lord'.35 Nowadays that we keep two days, on the next day we read the same Section from the Torah, but what do we read for haftarah.? — And all the men of Israel assembled unto King Solomon.36 On the other days of the festival we read the section of the offerings of the festival.37 On the last festival day we read, 'All the firstlings', with the commandments and statutes [which precede it],38 and for haftarah, 'And it was so that when Solomon had made an end'.39 On the next day we read, 'And this is the blessing',40 and for haftarah, 'And Solomon stood'.41

R. Huna said in the name of R. Shesheth: On the Sabbath which falls in the intermediate days of the festival, whether Passover or Tabernacles, the passage we read from the Torah is 'See, Thou [sayest unto me]'42 and for haftarah on Passover the passage of the 'dry bones',43 and on Tabernacles, 'In that day when Gog shall come'.44 On Hanukkah we read the section of the Princes45 and for haftarah [on Sabbath] that of the lights in Zechariah.46 Should there fall two Sabbaths in Hanukkah, on the first we read [for haftarah] the passage of the lights in Zechariah and on the second that of the lights of Solomon.47 On Purim we read 'And Amalek came'.48 On New Moon, 'On your new moons'.49 If New Moon falls on a Sabbath, the haftarah is [the passage concluding] 'And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another'.50 If it falls on a Sunday, on the day before the haftarah is, 'And Jonathan said to him, tomorrow is the new moon'.51 R. Huna said:
____________________
(1) Lev. XXVI.
(2) And must be repeated on the Sabbath.
(3) This refers to all the previous part of the Mishnah.
(4) Lev. XXIII, 44.
(5) Lev. XXIII.
(6) Josh. V.
(7) This is an interpolation in the Baraitha inserted by an Amora who lived In Babylon and gives the practice of the Galuth.
(8) II Kings XXIII.
(9) Lit., 'he collects and reads of the subject of the day'.
(10) M=mishku (Draw and take you lambs, Ex. XII, 21); A=im ( If thou lend money to any of my people, Ibid. XXII, 24); P = pesol (Hew thee two tables of stone, Ex. XXXIV, 1); U = wayedaber (And God spoke, Num. IX, 1). All these passages go on to speak of Passover.
(11) Ex. XII, 17 relating to the passage of the Red Sea which is supposed to have taken place on the seventh day.
(12) David's song of deliverance in II Sam. XXII.
(13) Deut. XV, 19.
(14) Isa. X, 32 referring to the overthrow of Sennacherib which is supposed to have taken place on Passover.
(15) A mnemonic of the key words in the passages following the order: Ex. Xli, 21; Lev. XXII, 27; Ex. XIII; Ex. XXII, 24; Ex. XXXIV, 1; Num. IX, I; Ex. XIII, 17; Deut. XV, 19. Cf. Tosaf.
(16) Deut. XVI, 9.
(17) Hab. III, which describes the giving of the Law, commemorated (according to the Rabbis) by Pentecost.
(18) Ex. XIX.
(19) Ezek. I, describing the heavenly hosts who also are supposed to have appeared on Mount Sinai.
(20) I.e., Ex. XIX on the first day.
(21) Num. XXIX, 1.
(22) Jer. XXXI, 20. The text proceeds, 'For I shall surely remember him', which is suitable to the day of memorial.
(23) Gen. XXI, in order that the merit of Isaac may be remembered.
(24) l Sam. I, because Hannah was supposed to have been visited on New Year.
(25) Gen. XXII.
(26) Lev. XVI.
(27) Isa. LVII, 15, which goes on to speak of repentance.
(28) Lev. XVIII. Apparently this section is chosen because the temptation to sexual offences is particularly strong (Rashi). Cf. Tosaf.
(29) Which speaks of repentance.
(30) The reference to Isa. LVII leads to the introduction of the passage which follows.
(31) Deut. X, 17.
(32) Isa. LVII, 15.
(33) Ps. LXVIII, 5.
(34) The Barait