Shalomfriends,The holiday ofPurim commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people, in the Persian , from the attempt to annihilate them. Thestory was documented in the Scroll of Esther (מְגִילַת אֶסְתֵּר, megilat ester), which became the last of the 24 books of the Tanach(תנ"ך,the Bible).In short, the storytells about a plot planned by the advisor of King Ahasuerus, the wicked Haman,to kill all the Jews of the kingdom. Queen Esther, the concealed-Jewish wife ofthe king, with the help of her cousin Mordechai, rescued the Jews, utilizing abrave and ingenious plan. The day of extermination turned into the day ofdeliverance and the salvation has been celebrated ever since.In our last yearnewsletter, I retold the story of the Scroll of Esther.The story ends withthe command to celebrate this day every year in joy and festivity and by sendinggifts to each other.כַּיָּמִים, אֲשֶׁר-נָחוּ בָהֶם הַיְּהוּדִים מֵאֹיְבֵיהֶם,וְהַחֹדֶשׁ אֲשֶׁר נֶהְפַּךְ לָהֶם מִיָּגוֹן לְשִׂמְחָה, וּמֵאֵבֶל לְיוֹם טוֹב;לַעֲשׂוֹת אוֹתָם, יְמֵי מִשְׁתֶּה וְשִׂמְחָה, וּמִשְׁלֹחַ מָנוֹת אִישׁלְרֵעֵהוּ, וּמַתָּנוֹת לָאֶבְיֹנִים.(אסתר ט', כ"ב)the dayswherein the Jews had rest from their enemies, and the month which was turnedunto them from sorrow to gladness, and from mourning into a good day; that theyshould make them days of feasting and gladness, and of sending portions one toanother, and gifts to the poor. (Esther, 9:22)In thisissue, we will learn about the customs of Purim – those that were commanded inthe Bible, and those that developed throughout the years.
There are four main mitsvot(מִצְווֹת, commands) pertaining to the holiday ofPurim: Reading the Megila, sending gifts to friends, giving charity to the poor,and eating a festive meal. Throughout the years many other customs where added,such as eating Hamantash, masquerading, and makingnoise when Haman's name ismentioned.*Reading the Scroll of Esther (קְרִיאַתמְגִילָה, kri’atmegila): Everyoneshould attend the reading of the Megila on Purim eve and Purim day. Women are obligedto attend the reading, because a woman, Queen Esther, is responsible for themiraculous deliverance of the Jews.*When the reader mentions Haman (54 occurrences), there is boisteroushissing, stamping, and rattling. Most often the noise is made by a noisy rattlecalled Ra’ashan (רַעֲשַׁן).The word רַעֲשַׁןis derived from the word רַעַשׁ(ra’ash), whichmeans noise.*The reader is to pronounce the names of the ten sons of Haman in onebreath, to indicate their simultaneous death.*Sending food gifts tofriends (מִשְׁלוֹחַ מָנוֹת, mishlo’ax manot) andGiving charity to the poor (מַתָּנוֹת לָאֶבְיוֹנִים, matanot la'evyonim):The Scroll of Esther prescribes “sending portions one to another, and giftsto the poor.” (9:22). Each Jew must send a minimum of two different,ready-to-eat foods to one friend, and two charitable donations to two poorpeople. Many people often prepare many food baskets and deliver to friends,neighbors, and relatives on Purim day.*Hamantash (אָזְנֵי הָמָן , ozney haman): There is one “must” in the Mishlo’ax Manot –Hamantash. This pastry is recognizable for its three-cornered shape. Theshape is achieved by folding in the sides of a circular piece of dough, with afilling placed in the center. The most common filling is poppy seed (פֶּרֶג,pereg). The Hebrew name refers to Haman’s ears. *Eating a festive meal (סְעוּדַתפּוּרִים,se’udat purim): On Purimday a jovial festive meal is heldaccompanied by much wine.*t is stated in theTalmud that one should drink on Purim until he can no longer distinguish between (addelo yada) the phrases, arur Haman (אָרוּר הָמָן, Cursed is Haman) and baruch Mordecai (בָּרוּךְ מָרְדְּכַי, Blessed is Mordecai):
עַד דְּלָא יָדַע בֵּין "אָרוּר הָמָן"לְ"בָּרוּךְ מָרְדְּכַי""It is recommended, however, to drink only alittle more than usual, and then try to fall asleep whereupon one certainlywill not be able to tell the difference between the two phrases
*Masquerading (לְבִישַׁת תַּחְפּוֹשׂוֹת וּמַסֵּכוֹת, levishat taxposot umasexot):One of the most entertaining customs ofPurim is dressing-up in masksand costumes. Children in particular enjoy dressing up as the protagonists inthe Book of Esther, as well as modern-day costumes such as animals, professions,or costumes related to well-known figures from movies, politics, or TV. Costumesand masks are worn to disguise the wearers' identities, because mistakenidentity plays an important role in the story of Esther, as Esther hid hercultural origins from the king, Mordecai hid his knowledge of all the world'slanguages, and Haman was mistaken for Mordecai, when he led Mordecai throughthe streets of the capital.The custom of wearingcostumes is relatively new.It wasprobably introduced by the Italian Jews who were influenced by the Romancarnival.*Adloyada (Ad-עד Lo-לא Yada-ידע, Until one didn't know the other): In Israel there are Purim parades called Adloyada.The name refers to the drinking feast described in the Scroll of Ester, afterwhich the guests couldn't tell their friends apart from the other attendees. Inthese Parades, men, women, boys and girls dress in costumes and masks andcelebrate publicly.
Purim Hebrew Words
מַסֵּכָה
Transcription:masexa
Part of speech: noun, feminineLiteral Meaning: mask, masqueמְגִילָה
