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Al pi halachah, what are the standard, minimum mainstream sizing requirements for fitting a tallith gadol to an individual?
For Example: Must the tallith gadol wrap around one's entire head and body, or must it only wrap around one's head and around the majority of one's body, et cetera?
How is said halachah applied in practicality?
Only Isaac Luria and followers provide a minimum dimension for a tallis gadol as distinct from tallis qatan; all other posqim assume there is no difference. Hayyim Vital (Pri Etz Hayyim) quotes Luria that the minimum is "that it covers the head and majority . . . and reaches the torso". Kaf haChaim 16:2 quotes Luria that the minimum is "to cover the head and the body, including the arms, and until the end of the torso, both in front and behind." These requirements are derived from a Lurianic-Qabbalistic logic and are specifically associated with his adherents but you can find them in some mainstream sefarim. All posqim before Luria and many (most?) posqim today would tell you that there is no minimum size other than that of the tallit qatan.
