Holiday of rejoicing with the Torah. The sequence of reading the parshiyot, or sections, of the Torah on each Shabbat is set up such that the reading concludes and re-commences on Simchat Torah. Joyous dancing with the Torah accompanies the seven circuits [“hakafot”] around the synagogue. In the Diaspora, i.e., outside of Israel, Simchat Torah is celebrated the day after Shmini Atzeret.
