Jewish holidays for people who are not connected with the culture of this people seem to be something incomprehensible, mysterious and at the same time attractive. What are these people happy about? Why so recklessly having fun? For example, the Purim holiday - what is it? From the side it seems that the participants in the celebration are so happy as if they had just escaped some great trouble. And this is true, only this history is already 2500 years old.
Purim - a feast of feast and fun!
Purim is a spring holiday. Most often it is celebrated in March. Some even believe that Purim is the Jewish holiday of March 8th. However, this is a big mistake.
Like all Jewish holidays, it is celebrated according to the lunar calendar and corresponds to the 14th day of the month of Aidar. Therefore, when Purim is celebrated in a given year, not everyone knows.
Purim is a holiday in which Jews are commanded to feast and have fun. And have fun as if the events that this day is dedicated to happened yesterday.
The actions that marked the beginning of the holiday are associated with the salvation of a large part of the Jewish people from imminent death in Persian captivity. Thanks to the ingenuity of the Jewish leader Mordecai and the self-sacrifice of the beautiful Esther, the Jewish people escaped a terrible massacre, since then it has been remembered for about 2500 years. And all the participants in the feast are commanded to have fun and enjoy this salvation every year.
The celebration begins with the reading of the scroll of Esther (Esther), a book that details events that became the prologue of Purim. Then the celebration itself begins. This is the only Jewish holiday in which fun and feast is not just a tradition, but also a commandment. Therefore, it remains the most fun day of the Jewish calendar. So, the Purim festival - what is it? How do people spend this day?
Purim Holiday: The Story of a Prophecy
Events preceding the history of Purim began in 586 BC. e. In this year, the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem and destroyed the temple, captured thousands of Jews. The Babylonian captivity lasted 47 years, after which, by decree of King Cyrus II, the Jews were given the opportunity to return to Jerusalem and begin rebuilding the temple. However, a little more than 40 thousand people took advantage of this opportunity.
This story, from the Babylonian captivity to the events described in the scroll of Esther, is connected with the prophecy of Jeremiah, who predicted the restoration of Jerusalem 70 years after the destruction and death of the Kingdom of Babylon. These events help to understand that the Purim holiday is very important for the Jews, that it is a special day for them.
Almost all the Babylonian and Persian kings lived in fear of this prophecy and hoped that it would turn out to be false. The prophecy for a long time protected the Jews, since none of the rulers decided to harm them in fear of an unprecedented Jewish god.
Everything changed with the coming to power of the Persian king Artaxerxes, one of the most powerful and wayward rulers of Persia, who created one of the greatest empires in the Ancient World. Deciding that the time of the prophecy was over, he arranged a feast of 180 days in duration as a sign of his superiority to the god of the Jews, who did not fulfill the prophecy. According to Jewish sources, the king of Persia was mistaken in his calculations and died a few years later.
Tricks of Oman
The story begins with Xerxes banishing his wife for refusing to dance naked in the presence of the king’s close associates. He is looking for a new spouse. After a long marriage, Xerxes selects Esther, the niece of the Jewish sage Mardechai, the man who saved Xerxes from the plot.
At the same time, the second person of Persia, close to the king, was Aman the Amilicite. One day he ran into Mardechai, who refused to bow to the nobleman. This "impudence" became an occasion for a terrible revenge, which Haman decided to prepare for the entire Jewish people.
Haman came to Xerxes and said that the captive Jewish people live in the empire, who do not obey the laws of Persia and do not honor the king, but honor only their god and their traditions. An angry ruler ordered a decree to be executed on the extermination of all Jews living in Persia. Haman decided to cast lots to determine what day he would exterminate the Jews. After that, he sent messengers throughout the empire with a message about the beginning of the reprisal of the 12 and 13 Aidars.
However, Esther became aware of the secret conspiracy and she relayed the disturbing news to Mardechai.
Feat of Esther
The only person who can save the Jews is Esther, who is able to influence the decision of the king. However, even this company is associated with great risk, since it needs to contact Xerxes with a request for a violation of the established order. This can lead to her death.
Mordechai comes up with a risky plan for how to attract Attrtaxerxes' attention and not cause anger. Everything else depends entirely on the charm and fearlessness of the queen.
Risking her life, Esther held several feasts for Xerxes. Over the course of long conversations, she was able to convince her husband of the loyalty of the Jewish people, reminding him of who saved him from the plot. As a result, the king believed in the treachery and betrayal of Haman. Having learned what was the true cause of the attacks on the chosen people, the formidable ruler of Persia brought down all the anger at Haman and his family, turning all his decrees against him.
The salvation of the Jewish people
The first thing the formidable king commanded was to hang Aman on the gallows prepared by Mardechai. Since the Persian ruler could not cancel his own decrees, he allowed the Jews to protect their lives and the lives of their children with weapons in their hands from everyone who raises their hands on them.
Thus, on the 12th and 13th Aidaras, the Jewish people met their killers face to face. For two days, the battle continued throughout Persia, as a result of which all the attackers were destroyed or fled. In total, it is said about 70 thousand dead, including 10 sons of Haman, who led the failed genocide.
On 14 Aidara, the Jews learned that danger had passed and they escaped death. A great holiday began, which lasted all day. Mardechai commanded to make this day special, so that it would be a reminder to future generations of fatal events. In the book of Esther, the holiday is called the days of feast and fun.
The Jewish Purim received its name from the word pur (lot). Thus, the name symbolizes that they tried to decide the fate of the people by casting lots.
When is Purim celebrated?
As noted above, Purim celebrate 14 Aidaras. However, what does this day correspond to? Almost always Purim falls in March or the end of February. Each year this date falls on a different number, since the lunar year is 10 days shorter than the solar one. So, in 2014, the celebration took place on March 15 and 16, in 2015 - on 4 and 5, and in 2016 - on the 23 and 24 numbers.
In Jerusalem, Purim is traditionally celebrated a day later, which allows many Israelis to mark the holiday twice.
During the period of Jewish dispersion, the holiday had a negative effect on the attitude of Christians towards the Jews. First of all, due to the fact that his celebration almost always coincided with Lent. This often provoked pogroms by Christian communities. Bright fun, dissonant with the days of fasting, gave rise to the superstition that the holiday carries an anti-Christian meaning.
Nowadays, there is a prejudice that Purim is the Jewish holiday of March 8th. However, on this day it falls out only once every 25-30 years. In every national or religious tradition, there is a holiday that falls at the end of winter, the beginning of spring. So, in Russia it’s Shrovetide, in Islamic tradition - Novruz and so on.
How is Purim celebrated?
There are four unshakable traditions of the celebration of Purim. The main one is reading the Scroll of Esther. Moreover, the word "scroll" is understood literally. The book is read in the synagogue during evening and morning prayers. In the process of reading the scroll at the time of reading the name of Aman, visitors to the synagogue begin to make noise, stamp their feet and use special rattles, expressing contempt for the memory of the villain.
A festive meal is an obligatory part of Purim. She was always the richest and richest for the whole year. Of the special traditions that have developed on this day, one can recall the obligatory treat in the form of "Haman's ears" - open triangular pies with sweet or meat filling. In addition, it is prescribed to drink wine until the participants in the fun stop distinguishing between the names of Aman and Mardechai. However, this tradition is performed at will.
A compulsory part of the holiday are gifts to relatives and friends in the form of treats. At the same time, congratulations on Purim and wishes for a happy holiday are said. In addition, all members of the community must provide assistance to the poor.
And the fourth tradition of the holiday is a carnival. In different communities, tradition has a completely different manifestation. For example, in Russia they are usually limited to a small theatrical performance. In European countries, there was a tradition of street performances for which tickets were sold. Also, in the Old World, they began to hold full-fledged carnival processions, which especially flourished in Israel.
Otherwise, complete freedom can be shown, since it is also the most democratic Jewish holiday in which the main commandment is fun and joy. Everyone sings songs on Purim, dances and enjoys the holiday.
Traditional food on Purim
The culinary traditions on Purim's day are rather arbitrary. However, in every source that describes the festive table, there are common dishes.
Among them is lamb baked in a pot, which is cooked with green beans and herbs. Chicken soup with dumplings, which are prepared not from traditional flour, but from ground matzo. In addition, beef tongue dishes cooked with various sauces are very popular. Baked or stewed zucchini or eggplant are also common on the festive table.
Pies with different fillings remain with the obligatory dish: with meat, potatoes, cabbage, cottage cheese or jam.
Of the Jewish dishes traditional for Russia, cimes (a dish of prunes and carrots) and stuffed fish, without which no festive table is worthy, should be added to this list.
Carnival on Purim
This is one of the most interesting parts of the holiday, which is a tradition only for the last couple of centuries. In the old tradition, a small theatrical performance of several actors was enough. However, over time, the script became more complicated on Purim, more voluminous and longer productions were created with a large number of actors.
Now an integral part of the holiday is the large Jewish performances dedicated to the dramatic history of the holiday. In addition, each community creates theatrical performances. However, theatrical performance is only part of the feast.
Full-fledged carnival processions can be called the freshest stream of the holiday, which is gaining more momentum. First of all, this tradition has taken root in Israel, where Purim has acquired a truly grandiose scale. But communities of other countries are not far behind, where carnivals and processions are also beginning to gain popularity.
Purim in Israel
Purim is a holiday in Israel, in scope comparable only to the Russian New Year. The brightness of this celebration is associated with the beginning of spring. Carnivals and colorful processions are held in every city. A huge number of theatrical concert venues operate throughout the country. People take to the streets, congratulate each other on Purim, saying the phrase “Hag Purim Sameah” (happy Purim celebration) to all those who are familiar and simply on the way.
The Purim festival is widely celebrated in Israel, its history, in fact, began anew. In all countries of the world during the time of the dispersal of the Jewish people, this important day was celebrated semi-underground. Now it has splashed onto the streets of the country, has become one of the brightest holidays. Visiting Israel on this day means getting a lot more positive emotions than you could expect.
It is worth visiting this country only to see the Purim festival with your own eyes. What is it? And why is everyone so young and old so fond of him?
The most joyful holiday
How is Purim celebrated? And how would you celebrate it if you survived the threat of death and escaped from it at the last moment? This day would surely be remembered as one of the most important in life. But for some reason this holiday seems strange and incomprehensible to many.
But in fact, every person needs at least one day a year, when he could forget about all his problems and life's troubles and enjoy only that you live. This is the whole philosophy and meaning of this slightly crazy and very cheerful holiday. At least, such a conclusion can be drawn by a person from another country who has fallen for this identity.
Purim is such a bright and positive holiday that it begins to seep into other cultures, more and more often representatives of other nationalities mark it in their calendar in red and send each other congratulations on Purim.