Purim - Festival of Lots

Purim is one of the most joyous and fun holidays on the Jewish calendar. It commemorates a time when the Jewish people living in Persia were saved from extermination.

Purim Holiday Manual

Dispersed throughout Persia (today's Iraq and Iran), many Jews lost faith in the prophecies that predicted their eventual redemption from exile and return to Israel. Instead of taking pride in their Jewish heritage, they were awed and impressed by alien kings and lifestyles, palaces and parties, and lost vision of their own future and destiny.

The Story of the Scroll of Esther

The story of Esther, set after the Babylonian exile when Persia rules over Judah, is that of a Jewish maiden who becomes queen of Persia, and how she uses her position to avert an annihilation of her people. The book explains the origin of the popular Jewish festival of Purim.

Why we Masquerade

Dressing up in masks and costumes is one of the most entertaining customs of the Purim holiday. Children in particular enjoy dressing up as the protagonists in the Book of Esther, including Queen Esther and Mordecai; other Biblical personalities such as King David and the Kohen Gadol ("High Priest").

Shushan Purim

Shushan Purim is the day on which Jews in Jerusalem and Shushan celebrate Purim. The Book of Esther explains that while the Jews in unwalled cities fought their enemies on the 13th of Adar and rested on the 14th, the Jews in the walled capital city of Shushan spent the 13th and 14th defeating their enemies, and rested on the 15th.

The Book of Esther - the origin of Purim

Megillat Esther, the Book of Esther in the form that we have it in the Hebrew Bible, provides the story of the origin of Purim, the blueprint for its celebration, and the authorization for its observance in perpetuity.

The Fast of Esther

The Fast of Esther, observed before Purim, on the 13th of Adar, is an original part of the Purim celebration, referred to in Esther 9:31-32. On the 13th of Adar, the Fast of Esther is observed in memory of the Fast observed by Mordechai and Esther and all Israel.

Purim Songs

Shoshanas Yaakov, MisheNichnas Adar, Ten Katef - Give Me a Shoulder, Chag Purim, Kacha Yay'aseh, Al HaNisim, VeNahafoch Hu, LaYehudim Hayesa Orah, Ve Mordechai Yatza, Chayav Inish, Utzu Eitzah