The eves of our lives

“MI-she-nichnas Adar marbim be-simcha.”

With the onset of the month of Adar, we increase joyfulness or merriment.

This is the Talmudic adage for this month in the Jewish calendar.

Interestingly, the famous commentator, Rashi, links the holiday of Purim in the month of Adar with that of Passover, the holiday in the following month. Rashi is addressing this famous adage of why this month of Adar, specifically, embodies infectious, increasing joy. Because, Rashi comments, these days of Purim and Passover were days of miracles for the Jewish people.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Rashi connects these two holidays.

Yes, it’s true that significant parts of the historical Purim story took place during the holiday of Passover. Nonetheless, they are two separate holidays, which is why we celebrate them at different times, with completely different tones and messages.

In fact, Purim is the final holiday of the Jewish holiday calendar and Passover is the first. Purim seems to be ending a cycle, and Passover, inaugurating it.

While Purim is two weeks shy of the beginning of the Hebrew month of Nisan, Passover occurs two weeks after the beginning of Nisan. These two holidays are symmetrically proximate to the beginning of the Biblical Jewish year — the beginning of Nisan. Although there are some similarities in the basic stories of these holidays, such as the Jewish people being oppressed almost to the point of extinction, and having a hero or heroine saving the Jewish people from an evil force (Moses against Pharaoh and Esther against Haman), the truth is, these two holidays could not be more different.

While G-d overtly saves the Jewish people from Egypt with public displays of miracles, in the story of Purim G-d is not revealed. His name does not even appear once in the Megillah, which recounts the history of Purim. While the exodus from Egypt reveals the greatness of G-d with open miracles and dramatic plagues, the salvation in Persia many hundreds of years later is drawn out, hidden and obscured.

So, how is the joy and merriment of Purim linked to the redemption of Passover? And why must we increase joy for an entire month?

Like most of our Jewish holidays, Purim appears at the center of the month, in the glow of the full moon. And yet, from day one of Adar it’s “welcome to Purim.”

THE second Sochatchover Rebbe reflects on this famous teaching about increasing joy in Adar. Basically, he says that Adar is to Nisan what the month of Elul is to the month of Tishrei. In other words, we can’t really experience Tishrei — the High Holiday season of reflection and repair — without the preparation of the previous days of awe of Elul. Yom Kippur can’t really be Yom Kippur just by stepping into shul one day and opening up the machzor, the High Holiday prayer book.

Passover, the holiday representing the formation and redemption of the Jewish people, can’t be experienced fully and robustly for what it is without the preceding preparation of Purim.

While entering the holiness of Yom Kippur demands reflection, repair and rejection of our past in order to become who we want to be spiritually, the preparation for the redemption of Passover demands that we look forward with joy and acceptance of a new, redemptive future.

Tapping into joy, the art of letting go of sadness, choosing and embracing happiness — this preparation is what is needed for Passover to be lived as fully as it can be. Purim, then, is the prelude to Pesach.

THIS got me thinking about preludes and the many eves of our lives. Eves are all about the anticipation of milestones, of high’s, of occasions looked-forward-to.

Weekly, we experience erev Shabbos. Already on Thursday night the week feels like it is coming to a halt; something shifts in preparation for the impending arrival of the Sabbath Queen.

We all experience our private eves — those private moments permeated with anticipation for a particular, significant occasion that may mean a lot to us and whose arrival we have awaited.

On the eves of our lives, the art of letting go of sadnesses or disappointments, surrendering to what is, getting ready with increasing pleasure, ease and joy — and perhaps an extra heartbeat of excitement or a butterfly or two fluttering in our stomach — this is how we can welcome the redemptions or great occasions in our lives.

Copyright © 2012 by the Intermountain Jewish News