Chapter 24
A Jewish Carnival: Purim
In This Chapter
Discovering how Esther, Queen of Persia, saved the Jews from destruction
Drinking (lots) on Purim
Uncovering the inner Purim drama
Imagine a holiday that encourages people to reconnect not only to their good side but to their dark side as well. Imagine a holiday on which people dress up, make fun of their leaders, and generally have a great time. And imagine a holiday that challenges people to discover deeper truths about being human. This is the holiday called Purim — the most fun, children-oriented holiday in the Jewish calendar, but ironically, the holiday that memorializes one of the darkest, most sexual, and most violent stories in the Bible.
Purim: Based on a True Story (Sort Of)
Purim celebrates the story told in the biblical Book of Esther, in which the evil Haman plots to exterminate the Jewish people of ancient Persia (now Iran), but is foiled by Queen Esther and her cousin Mordecai, who are Jewish. The story is compelling — of all the Jewish holidays, none would be as good to base a Hollywood movie on as Purim. (We can see it now: Purim: The Final Conflict, starring Johnny Deppstein and Keira Knightberg.)
Even though the traditional view is that everything in the Bible is literally true, most Jews tend to agree that the story in the Book of Esther is flat-out fiction. Actually, think of it more like a historical fiction that you may see on the A&E channel, where some of the names are similar, but that’s where the facts stop and imagination takes over.
It all starts with a banished queen
Once upon a time, the story goes, a Persian King named Akhashveyrosh (often written Ahasuerus, or translated Xerxes) loved to party. Once, he topped off a 180-day party with a 7-day banquet. Finally, when he was really drunk, the King decided that he wanted to show off his Queen, Vashti, to all his cronies. Some later interpretations suggest that he asked her to dance naked, but whatever the case, she refused. The King, following advice that he must punish the Queen, lest all wives in the kingdom be encouraged to refuse the demands of their husbands, banished her.
Of course, this left him queen-less, so the court held a contest. Jewish parents usually teach their children that this was a beauty contest, but the story is pretty clear: Virgins were brought to the harem, pampered for months in preparation for the King, and then offered to him for an evening to see which woman he would choose as queen. Afterward, each unchosen woman would be “unfit” to marry, so she would just stay in the harem.
Enter Esther, stage left
Meanwhile, a Jew named Mordecai had adopted his cousin Esther after her parents died. Esther was taken to the palace to prepare for a rendezvous with the King, and Mordecai forbid her to reveal that she was Jewish. (Why? No one knows, but it certainly makes for a better story.) Of course, when it was Esther’s turn before the King, he was so smitten with her that he crowned her the new Queen.
Mordecai stayed as close to the palace as he could, often communicating with Esther (curiously, no one figured out that they were related). He discovered that two eunuchs planned to assassinate the King. He passed this information on to Esther, who told Akhashveyrosh; the plot was foiled, and the eunuchs were hung. This little event was written in the official court chronicles, and then everyone just forgot about it.
Enter Haman, stage right
Now, every good melodrama has to have a really evil character, and this story’s villain is Haman, the new prime minister. He was so full of himself that he became furious when he found out that Mordecai wouldn’t bow down to him. (Jews aren’t supposed to bow down to anyone except God.) Not content to find a fitting punishment for Mordecai alone, Haman decided to wipe out every Jew in the kingdom. Sort of his own “final solution.”
Why Akhashveyrosh went along with Haman’s wicked plan is unclear, but the king dispatched a royal decree saying that on the 13th of Adar (which usually falls in March) anyone could kill Jews and take their property. The story says that this fateful date was decided by casting lots (like picking numbers in a lottery). Thus, the name of the holiday: purim means “lots.”
Mordecai and Esther were understandably upset, and Mordecai urged her to approach the King. Esther was reluctant — the King still didn’t know she was Jewish, and what’s more, the rule of the land said that anyone who appeared before the King without an invitation could be put to death immediately (even the Queen). Fortunately, Mordecai pressed her with the most interesting lines in the story: “If you persist in remaining silent at such a time, relief and deliverance will come to the Jews from another place, but both you and the house of your father will perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come to the throne for just a time as this.”
Haman’s big mistake
Esther and the Jews of the city fasted for three days and nights in preparation for her approaching the King. Fortunately, her fears were allayed, for when the King saw her, he stretched out his golden scepter, and she placed her hand on it. (Oy, what would Freud say?) The King invited her to make a request of him, and Esther invited him and Haman to a special private banquet, an invitation that they both gladly accepted. At that dinner, her only request was that they both come to a second banquet, the following night.
By this time, Haman’s ego was as full as it could be, but when he encountered Mordecai the following day outside the palace, he again became enraged that Mordecai didn’t bow to him, and ordered gallows to be erected immediately so that the Jew could be hung in the morning.
Unfortunately for Haman, the winds of fate turned that night. The King, unable to sleep, had the court chronicles read to him (insomniacs, take note). However, instead of lulling him, he became curious about one story, that of some guy named Mordecai who helped foil an assassination plot. When he learned that nothing was ever done to honor Mordecai, he called Haman and asked him what should be done for a man who the King wishes to honor.
Haman assumed the King was referring obliquely to him, so Haman suggested that the man be carried on one of the King’s horses through the town in fine royal attire, with an attendant yelling, “Here’s how the King treats those he wishes to honor.”
Big mistake, for the King then told Haman to give this honor to Mordecai. What’s worse, Haman himself had to attend to Mordecai and lead his horse through the city.
Where is God?
Probably the strangest aspect of the Book of Esther is that God is never mentioned, even when the Jews are in dire straits. The only other book in the Bible that doesn’t mention God is the Song of Songs, but many people assume that God is present there as one of the main characters in the love poems. In the Book of Esther, God appears to be entirely absent. Some rabbis teach that the underlying message is that even when life is at its worst and you think you’re really alone, God is actually at work behind the scenes. You may not be able to see or even feel this mysterious force, but it’s there, nonetheless.
Of course, just when it seemed things couldn’t get worse, Haman and the King showed up at the second banquet. Esther revealed that she was Jewish, and that because of Haman, she and her people were about to be killed. The King, in a rage at Haman, took a break to relieve himself. However, when he returned, he found Haman fallen onto Esther’s couch. The King didn’t realize that Haman was pleading for his life; the King thought Haman was trying to seduce his Queen. The King immediately called for Haman to be hanged on the gallows built for Mordecai.
The final battle
If this were a Disney movie, the King would simply reverse his decree permitting the killing of Jews, and everyone would live happily ever after. But the King insisted that he couldn’t reverse his royal edict, so there was only one way forward: Mordecai (who had now become the prime minister) sent out a royal decree that the Jewish people could fight back in self-defense on the 13th of Adar.
The day came, the battle ensued, and when the dust settled, the Jews had won, ultimately killing more than 75,000 of their opponents. And, just to make the point, Haman’s ten sons were killed . . . twice — once in the battle and again by public hanging. And the people rejoiced.
Why Purim Survived
If history hadn’t taken a rather unpleasant course for the Jewish people, it’s unlikely that Purim would be celebrated today any more than the Fast of Gedaliah. (If you’ve never even heard of that holiday, you see what we mean.) Unfortunately, the story of persecution and Jewish renewal has played out many times since Haman tried to wipe out the Persian Jews.
The persistence of persecution
Jews themselves often forget that the United States of America was the first country ever to offer full and equal status to Jews. Historically, Jews have been set aside as an “other people,” and they rarely had protection under the law. Thus, “Hamans” have been able to rise to power and target the Jewish people time and time again.
Haman has become a symbol of any serious enemy of the Jewish people, whether Hitler or any modern-day terrorist. Celebrating Purim offers an opportunity to remember the persecution Haman symbolizes.
Within you and without you
One of the reasons why the Bible is such an extraordinary piece of literature is that it’s filled with stories that didn’t just happen a long, long time ago, but are also happening right now, every moment, within people. This may seem like pop psychobabble, but bear with us for a moment and try looking at each character in this story as an archetype, a mirror for an aspect of your own personality.
Everyone has a monstrous bully hidden beneath the surface, as well as a wily and seductive creature, and also a part that just dumbly bumbles along, enjoying the party. Purim is an opportunity to look at each of these roles within ourselves and within others in our communities. The holiday is an especially good time to look at the darker forces, the shady, lustful, perhaps ugly side of your personality — much like the wild masks and floats in the Mardi Gras parade reflect savage and almost nightmarish personalities.
These are the roles that everyone keeps hidden through the year, but if a hundred years of psychology and four thousand years of drama have taught anything, it’s that you can’t deny this stuff without having it come back and bite you. So Jews let out the monsters on Purim, not to let them run rampant, but to acknowledge them and honor them as part of every person.
Bang a Gong: Celebrating Purim
Take the Christian Christmas pageant, add a down-home Halloween and a couple bottles of wine, and you start to get a good idea of the Purim festival.
A first-timers’ guide to Purim
Purim parties are often the most festive events of the year, giving meaning to the phrase “party hardy!” The most important question to ask the hosts before arriving is whether you should wear a costume. People love to dress up on Purim (though sometimes the grownups are too stuffy, and they leave the costumes for the kids). The most popular costumes reflect the characters in the book of Esther: the Queen, the King, and Haman (some folks love playing the villain), but people often dress with all sorts of fanciful and mythical masks and capes.
While you never know exactly what to expect at a Purim celebration, the more traditional the setting, the more likely that many people will imbibe until they don’t know the difference between “Blessed is Mordechai” and “Cursed is Haman.” Some Jews see this as the one time each year that they can really let down their forelocks and drink freely. We suggest eating something before you get to the party, as often there are only desserts available.
If you go to the reading of the megillah (the book of Esther in this case) at a synagogue or community center, you might want to bring along some sort of noise-maker — perhaps a grogger (which clicks loudly as you spin it) or even some pots and pans to bang together. Just watch for the cues around you; you’ll pick up the loud game quickly.
Purim is celebrated on the day after the great battle in the Book of Esther, on the 14th of Adar, which is usually in mid-March. However, in Jerusalem, the holiday is celebrated on the 15th of Adar as well because Jerusalem is a walled city, and as the story goes, the Jews had to defend themselves for two days in the capital city of Shushan, which also was walled.
Jews traditionally follow four mitzvot (traditional requirements) at Purim:
Reading the Book of Esther out loud
Being festive and rejoicing
Giving gifts of fruits and nuts
Offering gifts to the poor
In this section, we explore these basic mitzvot as well as a number of other Purim traditions that have blossomed more recently.
Reading the Book of Esther — the whole megillah
Traditionally, the book of Esther is read out loud at synagogue twice on Purim: once at night and once during the day. This story is one of five books of the Bible that are each written on a single scroll (a scroll wrapped around a single wood post rather than the much longer Torah, which is on two posts). This kind of scroll is called a megillah, and if there’s one thing you can count on, it’s that each year someone will ask, “Do we have to read the entire story?” The answer, of course, is “Yup, the whole megillah.”
Even though the whole story is read, you may not actually hear much of it. That’s because every time Haman’s name is mentioned, congregants boo, hiss, stamp their feet, or twirl noise-makers (the groggers). The idea is to stamp out Haman so completely that you can’t even hear his name. Some people write Haman’s name on the soles of their shoes or on wood or stone blocks and then stomp and grind on them to help obliterate him further.
Partying and playing dress up
That Purim arrives at the break of spring (at least in the northern hemisphere) is no accident. The air is perfumed with a certain magic that makes you giddy and just a little bit crazy. This time of year just shouts out for a party. In fact, some scholars believe that Purim is based on ancient pagan full-moon spring festivities and myths — the names Esther and Mordecai are eerily similar to the ancient Babylonian Ishtar (goddess of love and fertility) and Marduk (one of several “creator gods”).
Like the Greek and Roman festivals celebrating Dionysus — god of fertility, wine, and drama — Purim is a sort of Jewish bacchanalia, a day when many rigid cultural norms are stripped and people can let off steam in a wild and sometimes frenzied way. Purim has been called the Jewish Halloween, when children — and often adults — dress in costume and enjoy sweet treats.
Walk through any predominantly Jewish area of a large city during Purim and you can see dozens — if not hundreds — of children (and often adults) dressed in colorful costumes and masks. Since the Middle Ages, Purim has been the theatrical season for the Jewish community, when they perform plays (purimspiels) based loosely on the Book of Esther. Another custom encourages the community to poke fun at their rabbi, offering satirical parodies of teaching and of sermons.
What’s more, Jews traditionally drink wine and brandy heavily on the night of Purim, following the rabbinic commandment of Ad sheloh yadah: Drink until you don’t know the difference between Arur Haman (“Cursed is Haman”) and Barukh Mordecai (“Blessed is Mordecai”).
Giving the gift of sweets
Shalakh Manot (pronounced “shah-lakh mah-note”) is the practice of sending gifts — traditionally food that can be eaten without further cooking or preparation — to friends, family, and neighbors. Sort of a Jewish meals on wheels, these packages are often chock full o’ nuts and fruit. Try to send at least one of these to someone during Purim.
Perhaps the clearest (and sweetest) symbol of Purim is the hamantaschen, the three-cornered “Haman’s pocket” cookie that is the most popular holiday food eaten during Purim (see the hamantaschen recipe in this chapter). The original name for this confection was mundtaschen (“poppy seed pocket”). In Israel, they call it oznei Haman (“Haman’s ears”). The Jews make their enemy into a cookie and celebrate the sweetness rather than the bitterness of memory.
Hamantaschen
Prep time: 30 minutes • Cook time: 20 minutes • Yield: About 24 cookies
Ingredients
4 ounces poppy seeds (about 1⁄2 cup plus 2 tablespoons), ground
1⁄2 cup water
1⁄2 cup sugar
Juice of half a lemon
1⁄4 to 1⁄2 teaspoon lemon rind
1⁄2 cup bread crumbs
3 cups flour
11⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄4 teaspoon salt
1⁄3 cup oil
1⁄4 cup water
1⁄2 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
Directions
1. In a medium sauce pan add water and bring to a boil. When water is boiling, add sugar and allow it to dissolve. Add the poppy seeds to the sugar water and stir frequently until almost all the liquid is absorbed (about 10 minutes). Mix in the lemon juice, rind, and crumbs. Remove mixture from heat, allow to cool, and chill the mixture, covered in refrigerator, for at least one hour or up to three days, before using as cookie filling.
2. For the dough: In a medium bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, mix the oil, water, and sugar, and then fold in the eggs and vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, mix well, and chill the mixture for at least one hour or up to three days.
3. Roll out the chilled dough, using extra flour to prevent sticking, to about a 1⁄8-inch thickness. Use a 3-inch wide cup (or an empty, cleaned can) to cut out rounds. In the middle of each round, place about 1 tablespoon of filling, and then fold up three sides, pinching the edges together to make the characteristic triangular shape (you should still be able to see a little of the filling at the top). Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Per serving: Calories 75 (From Fat 26); Fat 3g (Saturated 0g); Cholesterol 8mg; Sodium 30mg; Carbohydrate 11g (Dietary Fiber 1g); Protein 2g.
Variation: Instead of the traditional poppy seed filling, you can use other fillings, including prunes, cherries, apricots, raisins, and dates.
Remembering the poor
Matanot l’evyonim (prounounced “mah-tah-note l’ev-yo-neem”) is giving to the poor. Although some people find it a suitable time to give to a charity, traditionally people specifically give money to individuals or families. The week during which Purim falls is a time when you don’t look away from people asking for money, even if you think they aren’t worthy. You may even leave the house with extra dollars in your pocket and make sure you give them away before you get home.
Only have a few bucks in your bank account? Jews consider matanot l’evyonim so important that even poor people must give to those less fortunate than themselves.
Other traditions: The Fast of Esther
The day before Purim is a minor fast day called the Fast of Esther. (“Minor” meaning that you only fast from sunrise to nightfall, and if this day falls on Shabbat, then you move the fast to a day earlier.) Note that the Fast of Esther isn’t even mentioned in the Bible or the Talmud; it’s just another example of a holiday that sort of developed over time.
Bringing Darkness to Light
Purim celebrates far more than a particular victory over those who sought the Jews’ destruction. And even though Purim reminds us of other terrible times when evil energies attacked the Jewish people, the deeper teaching transcends such battles and finds resolution beyond one side winning and the other losing.