Purim (17/03)

Purim — is a holiday in memory of the miraculous salvation of Jews in the Persian kingdom more than 2,400 years ago, during the reign of King Ahasuerus (Artaxerxes), named from the word «pur», which means «fallion».

With the help of a lot, the king's adviser Haman determined the day — 13 of Adar, when the Jews of Persia should have been exterminated. Why Jews? It was like this... Before this arrogant dignitary, everyone, by his decree, had to kneel, and near the palace, Mordechai, a relative of the king’s wife, always caught his eye and did not kneel. Like, Jews kneel only before God.

Then Haman went to the king and reported — in your kingdom there is a proud, irreverent people who do not bow to their superiors. Allow it, they say, so that on the appointed day anyone can kill the Jew and take his property for themselves. And I, they say, will also donate 10,000 pieces of silver to the treasury for this.

Ahasuerus signed the decree on genocide with a light heart, since the word «Jews» did not tell him anything, and he did not know that his beautiful wife Esther (Esther) — was Jewish. And Mordechai spent days and nights at the palace because he promised this to his orphan pupil. She, the young queen, was lonely and scared away from her home. It so happened that one night Mordechai heard a conversation between two guards who were planning to kill the king. He immediately reported them, the criminals were captured, and his action was written down in the palace books.

One of the next nights the king did not sleep and these books were read to him. Having learned that his savior had not yet been awarded in any way, he called Haman and asked what should be done with the man to whom the king owed a lot. For some reason, Haman decided that the king wanted to reward him and said that such a person should be given expensive clothes, put on a good horse, and lead the horse through the streets of the capital, loudly announcing: «This is what the king does to those who provide him with the service». The king agreed and ordered Haman to reward Mordechai this way. Haman became even more angry, because he had even already chosen the tree on which Mordechai was going to hang 13 adars.

Mordechai told Esther about Haman's plans and asked him to do everything to save the Jews. Esther invited the king (and Haman) to a feast that he liked so much that he promised to fulfill any of her wishes. Throwing herself at the king’s feet, Esther began to pray to him to cancel the decree on the extermination of Jews. Ahashverosh was terribly angry with Haman, went out into the garden to think about the situation and, returning, found Haman at Esther’s box! He prayed to her for intercession, but, declaring that Haman was encroaching on the queen’s honor, Ahasuerus ordered him to be hanged on the very tree on which the adviser was going to hang Mordechai.



Since then, two days after this date have become days of celebration and feasting; theatrical performances, carnival processions are held in Jewish communities, and it is customary to send holiday treats to friends. They bake small triangular jam pies, they are called gomentashi (Aman's ears). Although the attitude towards wine in the Jewish tradition is restrained, it is about this day that the Talmud says: On Purim, be sure to get drunk so as not to distinguish « curses of Aman» from « blessings of Mordechai». On the eve of the holiday, «Ester» Scroll is read in synagogues and at every mention of Haman’s name they knock with ratchets (in the first picture — it is they and «Megilat Ester» himself).

In the cities that were surrounded by a fortress wall during the events described in the «Scroll of Esther», like the then capital of Persia, Shushan, Purim is celebrated the next day, 14 Adar, and is called Shushan-Purim.

In a leap year according to the Jewish calendar (seven times for every 19 years) there are two months of Adar, and Purim, which is celebrated in the first of them, is called Purim-katan (small Purim).

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