Ketubot

The bride as she is.  And Beth Hillel say: 'Beautiful and graceful bride'!  Beth Shammai said to Beth Hillel: If she was lame or blind, does one say of her: 'Beautiful and graceful bride'? Whereas the Torah  said, 'Keep thee far from a false matter.'  Said Beth Hillel to Beth Shammai: According to your words,  if one has made a bad purchase in the market, should one praise it  in his eyes or depreciate it?  Surely,  one should praise it in his eyes. Therefore,  the Sages said: Always should the disposition of man be pleasant with people. — When R. Dimi came,  he said: Thus they sing before the bride in the West:  no powder  and no paint  and no waving  [of the hair], and still a graceful gazelle. When the Rabbis ordained R. Zera they sang before him thus: No powder and no paint and no waving [of the hair], and still a graceful gazelle. When the Rabbis ordained R. Ammi and R. Assi they sang before them thus: Such as these, such as these ordain unto us, [but] do not ordain unto us of the perverters  or babblers,  and some say: of the half-scholars  or one-third-scholars.— When R. Abbahu came from the Academy to the court of the Emperor,  hand-maids  from the Imperial house went out towards him and sang before him thus, 'Prince of his people, leader of his nation, shining light,  blessed be thy coming in peace!' They tell of R. Judah b. Ila'i that he used to take a myrtle twig and dance before the bride and say: 'Beautiful and graceful bride.' R. Samuel the son of R. Isaac danced with three [twigs].  R. Zera said: The old man is putting us to shame.  When he  died,  a pillar of fire came between him and the whole [of the rest of the] world. And there is a tradition that a pillar of fire has made such a separation  only either for one in a generation or for two in a generation only.  R. Zera said: His twig  [benefited] the old man, and some say: His habit  [benefited] the old man, and some say: his folly  [benefited] the old man. — R. Aha took  her  on his shoulder and danced [with her]. The Rabbis said to him: May we [also] do it? He said to them: If they  are on you  like a beam,  [then it is] all right. and if not, [you may] not. R. Samuel b. Nahmani said [that] R. Jonathan said: it is allowed to look intently at the face of the bride all the seven [days]  in order to make her beloved to her husband.  But the law is not according to him. Our Rabbis taught: One causes a funeral procession  to make way  for a bridal procession,  and both of them  for the King of Israel. One tells of King Agrippa that he made way for a bride, and the Sages praised him. — They praised him — from this it would seem that he did well. Did not R. Ashi say: Even according to him, who says [that] if a king forgoes his honour, his honour is forgone, if a king forgoes his honour, his honour is not forgone. for a Master said:  'Thou shalt set a king over thee,'  [this means] that his awe shall be over thee?  — It was [at] a cross-road. Our Rabbis taught: One interrupts  the study of the Torah for the sake of a funeral procession  and the leading  of the bride [under the bridal canopy]. They tell of R. Judah b. Ila'i that he interrupted the study of the Torah for the sake of a funeral procession  and the leading  of the bride [under the bridal canopy]. This applies only  when there are not sufficient people at the funeral procession,  but if there are sufficient people one does not interrupt [the study of the Torah].  And how many are sufficient? R. Samuel the son of Ini said in the name of Rab: Twelve thousand men and six thousand trumpets.  And some say: Twelve thousand  men and among them six thousand trumpets.  'Ulla said: For instance when people form a line from the city-gate to the burial place. R. Shesheth, and some say R. Johanan said: Its taking away  is like its giving.  As its giving was in [the presence of] sixty myriads  [of people], so [has] its taking away [to be] in [the presence of] sixty myriads [of people]. And this is the case only  with regard to one who read [the Bible] and studied [the Mishnah.]