Purim: Jewish Feast of Lots
Victory, merrymaking and lots of food, and the Book of Esther
During Purim, Jews celebrate the bravery of Queen Esther with good cheer and lots of food.
This year the four-day Jewish festival of Purim or the Feast of Lots falls on 1-5 March, 2007, or 11-15 Adar, 5767 in the Jewish calendar. The main day is the fourteenth day of the month of Adar. The Festival of Purim celebrates the story of Esther (also known as Hadassah), as related in the Book of Esther (or the Megillah).
The story is set at a time when the Jews had returned from Babylonian captivity and built the Second Temple in Jerusalem, and lived under Persian Rule. The ruling King is called Ahashverosh (or Ahasuerus, probably Xerxes I, who ruled from 485-465 BCE). When Ahashverosh is presented with the virgin Esther, he is so struck by her beauty that he appoints her his Queen. Eshter keeps it a secret that she is a Jewess.
In the meantime the wicked vizier, Haman, advises the King to annihilate all the Jews in the empire. By an intricate sequence of manipulations and seeming coincidences, Esther saves her people by gaining the King’s goodwill, revealing her Jewish origin, and compromising Haman, who is hanged along with his ten sons.
One of the four commandments (mitzvoth) of Purim is to listen to recitations of the Book of Esther twice, usually in the synagogue. Whenever Haman appears, the listeners will try to drown out his name by booing and hissing, stamping their feet and making noise with rattles called “greggers” or “graggers”.
Purim is Hebrew for lots, indicating events that seem random but are guided by the divine hand. As a jubilation of victory, it is light-hearted. The only stern commandment is to donate some money – traditionally 3 half-dollar coins – for charity. For the rest, people need to be with family and friends and make merry. They don customes and masks (a hint at Deut. 31: "I shall surely hide my face on that day”), and children have fun in Purim comedy plays.
Food is very important in the story of Esther, in which sumptuous banquets serve to gain favor. Accordingly, the two last Purim commandments are to give food to friends and to eat a festive meal on the fourteenth day of Adar. The fast the day before is very light. It is also customary to drink alcohol. Traditional Purim foods are “Hamentaschen” cookies (“Haman’s Pockets”) and “kreplach” or dumplings: their fillings symbolize the hidden “lots”. The motto of Purim seems to be: “They tried to kill us. We won. Let’s eat!”
Purim dates:
- 2007 (Jewish Year 5767): sunset 3 March - nightfall 4 March
- 2008 (Jewish Year 5768): sunset 20 March - nightfall 21 March
- 2009 (Jewish Year 5769): sunset 9 March - nightfall 10 March
- 2010 (Jewish Year 5770): sunset 27 February - nightfall 28 February
Other Jewish Festivals:
