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At a wedding, the groom is facing the audience. When the bride comes to the chuppah she begins to circle to her right as he is facing the groom, and circles first behind the groom proceeding in a counter-clockwise direction (beginning the circling leftward.)

This is what I've seen at every wedding. I assume that there is some halachic principle that the bride should start to her right, when she is facing the groom. But, I don't know its source, or if this is a halacha or minhag.

If a wedding is in Australia, does she circle in the opposite direction?

DanF
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    Related? https://judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/64463/why-do-we-do-hoshanos-and-hakafos-counterclockwise – Isaac Moses Jun 19 '17 at 15:14
  • counter clockwise from which perspective? – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 15:16
  • http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=46545&st=&pgnum=128 – Gershon Gold Jun 19 '17 at 15:20
  • @Gershon - interesting source! It seems there's no agreement on this. Maybe you can condense some ideas and form an answer? – DanF Jun 19 '17 at 15:28
  • +1 for the Australia reference, though that's actually a myth that water swirls the other way down under. – DonielF Jun 20 '17 at 03:49
  • @DonielF https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/q/450/6962 it's only 99% a myth – Double AA Jun 20 '17 at 04:03
  • @DonielF See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coriolis_force. It explains the direction of rotation of cyclones and anti-cyclones, among some other items. – DanF Jun 20 '17 at 14:42
  • The groom doesn't necessarily face the audience - at a Jecke wedding the groom has his back to the audience. – Jakub Jun 21 '17 at 21:51
  • @Jakub correct. I used that to explain the direction of "counter-clockwise". Even with the groom's back to the audience, she would still be starting on her right and circling towards the left. – DanF Jun 22 '17 at 03:13

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The idea of circling counter-clockwise, which is moving to the right, follows the avodah of the Kohanim in the Temple.Like is found in Mishnah Torah, Hilchot Beit HaBechirah 7:3.

וְכָל הַנִּכְנָסִין לְהַר הַבַּיִת נִכְנָסִין דֶּרֶךְ יָמִין וּמַקִּיפִין וְיוֹצְאִין דֶּרֶךְ שְׂמֹאל חוּץ מִמִּי שֶׁאֵרְעוֹ דָּבָר שֶׁהוּא מַקִּיף עַל הַשְּׂמֹאל. לְפִיכָךְ הָיוּ שׁוֹאֲלִין לוֹ מַה לְּךָ מַקִּיף עַל הַשְּׂמֹאל. שֶׁאֲנִי אָבֵל. הַשּׁוֹכֵן בַּבַּיִת הַזֶּה יְנַחֶמְךָ. שֶׁאֲנִי מְנֻדֶּה. הַשּׁוֹכֵן בַּבַּיִת הַזֶּה יִתֵּן בִּלְבָבְךָ וְתִשְׁמַע לְדִבְרֵי חֲבֵרֶיךָ וִיקָרְבוּךָ:

This is a general practice which is seen in many different cases, like for example when one is called to the Torah reading like is found in Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 141:7.

הָעוֹלֶה לְמִגְדָּל, עוֹלֶה בְּפֶתַח שֶׁהוּא לוֹ בְּדֶרֶךְ קְצָרָה מִמְּקוֹמוֹ וְיֵרֵד מֵהַמִּגְדָּל בְּדֶרֶךְ אַחֵר, שֶׁהוּא לוֹ בְּדֶרֶךְ אֲרֻכָּה עַד מְקוֹמוֹ; וְאִם ב' הַדְּרָכִים שָׁוִים, עוֹלֶה בַּפֶּתַח שֶׁהוּא לוֹ בְּדֶרֶךְ יָמִין, וְיוֹרֵד בַּפֶּתַח שֶׁכְּנֶגְדּוֹ.

And the comment of the Mishnah Berurah there, note 24:

(כד) עולה בפתח וכו' - כדאמרינן בעלמא כל פינות שאתה פונה לא יהא אלא דרך ימין:

When one is called, one approaches from the right, it is a sign of joy and kindness like is mentioned at the end of the Why paragraph at this link from Chabad. If one approached clockwise, meaning from the left, it is a sign of mourning and judgement.

The same principle applies with the circling of the bride under the Chuppah.

Regarding your final question pertaining to Australia, no, you do not approach from the left in the southern hemisphere.

Yaacov Deane
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  • Sounds credible. Can you strengthen this by either providing a source to support the general rule regarding circling or that the circling under the chuppah is compared to the avodah? I don't see the connection. – DanF Jun 19 '17 at 15:25
  • Bli neder, I'll have to dig out some sources later. For some reason, I think this appears in Kitzur Shulchan Aruch. – Yaacov Deane Jun 19 '17 at 15:29
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    Isn't circling counter clockwise turning to the left? If I walk around a room counter clockwise from above, then every time I hit a corner I'll make a left turn. – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 15:52
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    "follows the avodah of the Kohanim in the Temple." Does this mean that the goal is to mimic the Avoda, or that both the Avoda and this have the same reason? (If the latter, why mention the Avoda at all since it's irrelevant? If the former, why are we mimicking the Avoda?) – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 15:53
  • @DoubleAA It does not mean turning to the right, it means when facing the object being circled, moving to the right. Thus the object being circled is always to the left of the one making the circle. – sabbahillel Jun 19 '17 at 18:33
  • @sabbahillel So if you face outwards, is it better to go clockwise? What if you face tangent to the circle? – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 18:35
  • Yaacov, it's now taken you three edits and in the end you're quoting a Mishna via the Mishna Berura. Why not just cut out most of this answer and just quote the Mishna directly? – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 18:44
  • In the past, others have demanded that I give a support for each statement to make the answer more complete. Out of consideration for them, I'd rather leave it as it is. – Yaacov Deane Jun 19 '17 at 18:49
  • @DoubleAA Since it is treated like the mizbeach, the language used is the same. One treats it as which direction is to the right when facing the center of the circle even though one faces in the direction of motion while making the circle. – sabbahillel Jun 19 '17 at 18:53
  • @sabbahillel Since what is treated like the Mizbeach? The Chuppah? – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 18:55
  • @YaacovDeane Consideration for them would imply quoting a Mishna as a Mishna, not as a Mishna Berura. Supporting everything doesn't mean needlessly making things longer and more obtuse. – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 18:56
  • @DoubleAA The bride circling the groom is treated like the kohen circling the mizbeach. – sabbahillel Jun 19 '17 at 18:56
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    @sabbahillel Is she? Why? – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 18:56
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    @DoubleAA That would be a different question. Actually, there are other cases involving turning "to the right" and the answers reference the kohen circling the mizbeach as the main example of this behavior (not the reason for the behavior). Also consider the circling of the shul for hoshanos which has the same behavior. – sabbahillel Jun 19 '17 at 18:59
  • @sabbahillel How would that be a different question and not this one??? The OP asked why they move in a certain direction. This answer suggests counter clockwise is "to the right". I don't understand that. How is counter clockwise to the right if you aren't facing the center of the circle? You suggest counter clockwise is right for the bride since it's treated like the Mizbeach where they faced the center as they moved. But why would that be? – Double AA Jun 19 '17 at 19:01