Dancing Lessons

 There is dancing and there is dancing.

Everyone dances at weddings especially at religious weddings. And everyone dances in a different way. Youngsters go full throttle and spirit older folks move at a slower pace and try to stay out of the way and children form their own little circle dances. There are as many varieties of dance as there are varieties of guests. All strive to fulfill the religious duty to be mesamei’ach chassan v’kallah — to enhance the joy of the bridegroom and his bride.

A wedding simchah is a two-way street: the joy of the couple inspires the guests and the joy of the guests uplifts the couple — often literally. As they begin the long and sometimes arduous journey that is marriage and confront the challenge of building a bayis ne’eman b’Yisrael the rousing send-off of the music the dancing the singing the laughter — and the presence of family and friends — provide sustenance and strength to the couple as they set out on their adventure.

Dance is the body’s wordless expression of inner feelings. It can project melancholy exaltation and even religious emotion: the leaping hopping and springing — the feet leaving the ground — express the profound aspiration to rise above physicality and to reach heavenward (which is also why we spring upward like the angels when reciting kadosh kadosh kadosh).