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1 בס''ד נפלאות הבריאה PURIM Editor: Sam. Eisikovits [email protected] 2 Purim help·info) Pûrîm "lots", from the) ּפּורִ ים :Purim (/ˈpʊərɪm/; Hebrew pur, translated as 'lot' in the Esther, perhaps related to פור word Akkadian pūru 'stone, urn'; also called the Festival of Lots) is a Jewish holiday which commemorates the saving of the Jewish people from Haman, an Achaemenid Persian Empire official who was planning to Megillat מגילת אסתר) kill all the Jews, as recounted in the Book of Esther Ester in Hebrew; usually dated to the 5th century BC). Haman was the royal vizier to King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I or Artaxerxes I of Persia, "Khshayarsha" and "Artakhsher" in Old Persian, respectively), and he planned to kill all the Jews in the empire. His plans were foiled by Mordecai and Esther, his cousin and adopted daughter who had become Queen of Persia. The day of deliverance became a day of feasting and rejoicing. According to the Scroll of Esther, "they should make them days of feasting and gladness, and of sending portions one to another, and gifts to the poor." Purim is celebrated among Jews by: Exchanging gifts of food and drink known as mishloach manot Donating charity to the poor known as mattanot la-evyonim Eating a celebratory meal known as a se'udat Purim Public recitation ("reading of the megillah") of the Scroll of Esther, known as kriat ha-megillah, usually in synagogue Reciting additions to the daily prayers and the grace after meals, known as Al HaNissim Other customs include wearing masks and costumes, public celebrations and parades (Adloyada), and eating hamantaschen ("Haman's pocket”); men are encouraged to drink wine or any other alcoholic beverage. According to the Hebrew calendar, Purim is celebrated annually on the 14th day of the Hebrew month of Adar (and it is celebrated on Adar II in Hebrew leap years which occur every two to three years), the day following the victory of the Jews over their enemies. In cities that were protected by a surrounding wall at the time of Joshua, Purim was celebrated on the 15th of the month of Adar on what is known as Shushan Purim, since fighting in 3 the walled city of Shushan continued through the 14th day of Adar. Today, only Jerusalem and a few other cities celebrate Purim on the 15th of Adar. Purim narrative The Book of Esther begins with a six-month (180-day) drinking feast given by King Ahasuerus for the army of Persia and Media and the satraps and princes of the 127 provinces of his kingdom, concluding with a seven-day drinking feast for the inhabitants of Shushan (Susa), rich and poor, and a separate drinking feast for the women organized by Queen Vashti in the pavilion of the royal courtyard. At this feast Ahasuerus gets thoroughly drunk, and at the prompting of his courtiers, orders his wife Vashti to display her beauty before the nobles and populace, wearing her royal crown. The Rabbis of the Oral Torah interpret this to mean that he wanted her to wear only her royal crown, meaning that she would be naked. Although she would have wanted to do this, she refuses due to a skin condition. Her refusal prompts Ahasuerus to have her removed from her post. Ahasuerus then orders all young women to be presented to him, so he can choose a new queen to replace Vashti. One of these is Esther, who was orphaned at a young age and was being fostered by her first cousin Mordecai. Some rabbinic commentators state that she was actually Mordecai's wife, since the Torah permits an uncle to marry his niece. She finds favor in the king's eyes, and is made his new wife. Esther does not reveal her origins and that she is Jewish. Shortly afterwards, Mordecai discovers a plot by two palace guards Bigthan and Teresh to kill Ahasuerus. They are apprehended and hanged, and Mordecai's service to the king is recorded in the daily record of the court. Ahasuerus appoints Haman as his viceroy. Mordecai, who sits at the palace gates, falls into Haman's disfavor as he refuses to bow down to him. Having found out that Mordecai is Jewish, Haman plans to kill not just Mordecai but the entire Jewish minority in the empire. Obtaining Ahasuerus' permission and funds to execute this plan, he casts lots ("purim") to choose the date on which to do this—the thirteenth of the month of Adar. When Mordecai finds out about the plans, he puts on sackcloth and ashes, a sign of mourning, publicly weeping and lamenting, and many other Jews in Shushan and other parts of Ahasuerus' empire do likewise, with widespread penitence and fasting. Esther discovers what has transpired; there follows an exchange of messages between her and Mordecai, with Hatach, one of the palace servants, as the intermediary. 4 Mordecai requests that she intercede with the king on behalf of the embattled Jews; she replies that nobody is allowed to approach the king, under penalty of death. Mordecai warns her that she will not be any safer in the palace than any other Jew, says that if she keeps silent, salvation for the Jews will arrive from some other quarter but "you and your father's house will perish," and suggests that she was elevated to the position of queen to be of help in just such an emergency. Esther has a change of heart, says she will fast and pray for three days and will then approach the king to seek his help, despite the law against doing so, and "if I perish, I perish." She also requests that Mordecai tell all Jews of Shushan to fast and pray for three days together with her. On the third day, she seeks an audience with Ahasuerus, during which she invites him to a feast in the company of Haman. During the feast, she asks them to attend a further feast the next evening. Meanwhile, Haman is again offended by Mordecai's refusal to bow to him; egged on by his wife Zeresh and unidentified friends, he builds a gallows for Mordecai, with the intention to hang him there the very next day. That night, Ahasuerus suffers from insomnia, and when the court's daily records are read to him to help him fall asleep, he learns of the services rendered by Mordecai in the earlier plot against his life. Ahasuerus asks whether anything was done for Mordecai and is told that he received no recognition for saving the king's life. Just then, Haman appears, and King Ahasuerus asks him what should be done for the man that the king wishes to honor. Thinking that the king is referring to Haman himself, Haman says that the honoree should be dressed in the king's royal robes and led around on the king's royal horse. To Haman's horror, the king instructs Haman to render such honors to Mordecai. Later that evening, Ahasuerus and Haman attend Esther's second banquet, at which she reveals that she is Jewish and that Haman is planning to exterminate her people, which includes her. Ahasuerus becomes enraged and instead orders Haman hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. The previous decree against the Jewish people could not be annulled, so the King allows Mordecai and Esther to write another decree as they wish. They decree that Jewish people may preemptively kill those thought to pose a lethal risk. As a result, on 13 Adar, five hundred attackers and Haman's ten sons are killed in Shushan. Throughout the empire 75,000 of the Jewish peoples' enemies are killed. On the 14th, another 300 are killed in Shushan. No spoils are taken. 5 Mordecai assumes the position of second in rank to Ahasuerus, and institutes an annual commemoration of the delivery of the Jewish people from annihilation. Esther Scroll The primary source relating to the origin of Purim is the Book of Esther, which became the last of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible to be canonized by the Sages of the Great Assembly. It is dated to the fourth century BCE and according to the Talmud was a redaction by the Great Assembly of an original text by Mordechai. The Tractate Megillah in the Mishnah (redacted c. 200 CE) records the laws relating to Purim. The accompanying Tosefta (redacted in the same period) and Gemara (in the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmud redacted c. 400 CE and c. 600 CE respectively) record additional contextual details such as Queen Vashti having been the daughter of Belshazzar as well as details that accord with Josephus' such as Esther having been of royal descent. Brief mention of Esther is made in Tractate Hullin (Bavli Hullin 139b) and idolatry relating to worship of Haman is discussed in Tractate Sanhedrin (Sanhedrin 61b). The work Esther Rabbah is a Midrashic text divided in two parts. The first part dated to c. 500 CE provides an exegetical commentary on the first two chapters of the Hebrew Book of Esther and provided source material for the Targum Sheni. The second part may have been redacted as late as the eleventh century CE and contains commentary on the remaining chapters of Esther. It too contains the additional contextual material found in the Josippon (a chronicle of Jewish history from Adam to the age of Titus believed to have been written by Josippon or Joseph ben Gorion). Historical views Traditional historians Berossus (early third century BCE) provides context for the account in that he records the introduction of idols of Anahita under Artaxerxes II Mnemon throughout the Persian Empire.