THE FAST OF ESTHER
We rejoice more during the month of Adar. On the thirteenth of Adar we observe the Fast of Esther: we fast and say Aneinu in the Amidah (silent prayer). Three people are called up for the reading of the para-sha “Vay’chal” for fast days from the Sefer Torah (Torah scroll) both at Shacharit (morning prayers) and at Minchah (afternoon pray-ers). If the thirteenth of Adar is Shabbat, then we advance the Fast of Esther to Thursday.
Sepharadim say Aneinu both at Shacharit and at Minchah, chazzan (prayer leader) and congregation alike. Ashkenazim have the chazzan say it at Shacharit and Minchah, but the congregation says it only at Minchah.
MINCHAH ON THE EVE OF PURIM
It is the custom to donate charity on the day before Purim, either a half of the local denomination (e.g., a half a dollar) or the worth of ten grams of silver, and to say that this charity is in memory of the Machatzit Hashekel. At Minchah, after finishing Ashrei, the chazzan says half-Kaddish, we take out the Sefer Torah, and three people are called up to the Torah reading of Vay’chal. Kaddish is not said after the reading. The Torah is returned to the ark, we say Tikkon T’filati etc., the chazzan says half-Kaddish and we pray the Amidah (with Aneinu). In the repetition of the Amidah the cohanim bless Birkat Cohanim, then one says Y’hi Sheim etc., the chazzan says Kaddish with Titkabal, then one says Lamnatzei’ach Bin’ginot, Lam-natzei’ach Al Ayelet Hashachar, followed by full Kaddish and Aleinu. (Ashkenazim read the Haftarah of fast days after the Torah reading.)
WALLED CITIES
Every city that was walled in the days of Y’hoshua Bin Nun (Josh-ua) celebrates Purim on the fifteenth of Adar, even if it is not walled presently. Any other city or place celebrates Purim on the fourteenth of Adar. (Someone who travels to or from a walled city during these two days should ask a rabbi as to how to observe Pu-rim).
Inhabitants of cities where there is an uncertainty whether their city was walled at the time of Y’hoshua Bin Nun or not, (be they in Israel or the Diaspora), read the Megillah on both the fourteenth and the fif-teenth. Their main celebration, though, is on the fourteenth, on which they read the Megillah with a blessing, read the Torah portion for Pu-rim, say “Al Hanisim,” and fulfill all of the mitzvot of Purim. On the fifteenth they read the Megillah without a blessing, do not read the Torah nor say “Al Hanisim,” however they do have a festive meal, send Mishlo’ach Manot and give Matanot La’evyonim, but to a lesser degree than they did the previous day.
ARVIT THE NIGHT OF PURIM
Before Arvit the Sepharadim say Lamnatzei’ach Al Ayelet Hasha-char and then pray Arvit as usual (with the addition of Al Hanisim in Modim), and after the Amidah say Y’hi Sheim, half-Kaddish and then read the Megillah with blessings before and after the reading. After-wards, we say V’attah Kadosh, and then conclude Arvit as usual.
If Purim begins on Motza’ei Shabbat, then we say Y’hi Sheim and half-Kaddish, then Shuva Hashem etc. until V’ar’eihu Bishu’ati then bless Borei M’orei Ha’eish and read the Megillah, then we say V’attah Kadosh and Aleinu and then say Havdala on wine; Borei P’ri Hagefen, then the blessing on the spices, and then Birkat Hahavda-la.
SHACHARIT OF PURIM
On the day of Purim, one prays the weekday Shacharit with the addition of Al Hanisim in the Amida. After the Amidah, the chazzan says half-Kaddish, we take out the Sefer Torah, and three people are called to the reading of B’shalach. In order to read ten verses we re-read the final verse, Vayomer. However, Ashkenazim follow the R״ma and do not re-read the final verse. Then the chazzan says half-Kaddish, all continue with Ashrei and Uva l’tzion until Mei’attah v’ad olam, and then we read the Megillah. It is good to say L’sheim Yichud before reading the Megillah. In the day the first two blessings before the Megillah are said (see paragraph 13 concerning Shehecheyanu). After the reading Harav et riveinu is said by the reader. Note that according to the R״ma Harav et riveinu is said only in the presence of a minyan. After the Megillah we say V’attah Ka-dosh, then Kaddish with Titkabal, then Y’hal’lu and return the Sefer Torah to the holy ark, then Beit Ya’akov, Shir shel Yom, Hoshi’einu, Lamnatzei’ach Al Ayelet Hashachar, Kaddish with Y’hei sh’lama and then conclude Shacharit as usual on weekdays.
Inhabitants of cities where there is an uncertainty as to whether their city was walled follow all of the above directives for Arvit and Sha-charit on the fourteenth of Adar. On the fifteenth of Adar they do not say Al Hanisim, do not read the Torah portion of Purim (but if it’s a Monday or Thursday they read as usual), and read the Megillah after the conclusion of Shacharit without blessings beforehand, and after the Megillah they say without Hashem’s name or kingship at the be-ginning of the blessing, as follows: Baruch harav et riveinu etc.
BLESSINGS OF THE MEGILLAH
The reader of the Megillah at night says three blessings: [1] Al mikra megillah, [2] She’asah nisim, [3] Shehecheyanu. After the reading the blessing Harav et riveinu is said.
It is appropriate that two people stand next to the reader, one to his right and one to his left, and that the congregation stand while listen-ing to the blessings. Before the blessings the chazzan says L’sheim Yichud etc, Birshut Morai V’rabotai. After the reading, all those who have a Megillah should roll it up (chazzan and congregants), and sub-sequently the chazzan says the final blessing.
If one has a kosher Megillah from which he reads along with the chazzan, he may say the blessings quietly himself instead of listening to the chazzan say them, if he so wishes.
Shehecheyanu: According to the Shulchan Aruch, one does not bless Shehecheyanu when reading the Megillah in the day, since he already has read it at night. Ashkenazim follow the R״ma whose opinion is to say Shehecheyanu on the reading of the day, as well. A Sepharadi who did not read the Megillah at night should hear the blessing of Shehecheyanu from an Ashkenazi in the day, or wear a new piece of clothing and have it in mind when he blesses Shehecheyanu.
If the reader forgot to say Shehecheyanu and remembered (or was reminded) during the reading, he should bless Shehecheyanu on the spot, and resume the reading. This is true until he reads the verse mentioning the ten sons of Haman (Esther 9, 12), but from then on he cannot bless Shehecheyanu.
It is appropriate when hearing the blessing Shehecheyanu to have in mind that it applies to the festive meal and Mishlo’ach Manot. Those who bless Shehecheyanu during the day should have them in mind during the Shehecheyanu of the day.
The reader of the Megillah stands while blessing all of the blessings before and after the Megillah, however, there’s no obligation to stand during the reading itself. Out of honor of the congregation, though, the reader customarily stands.
Reading without a minyan: If one reads the Megillah in the absence of a minyan, according to the Shulchan Aruch he says all of the blessings, but according to the R״ma he must omit the blessing after the Megillah. The Ben Ish Chai wrote, “He who reads the Me-gillah alone says the blessing afterwards as well. That is the cus-tom of our city (Baghdad), and that indeed should be the practice eve-rywhere — let not an individual lose such a precious blessing.
Opening the Megillah: Before the first blessing, one opens the Megil-lah “like a letter.” One should open it over or on the bimah, a chair or the like only, so that the Megillah will not drag on the floor. Some say that one doesn’t have to open the entire Megil-lah before reading, rather unrolls along with the reading, and only shouldn’t roll it up until after the reading. The custom is that on-ly the reader opens his Megillah but not all of the congregants, be-cause generally they don’t have sufficient space to open it.
One may not say the blessing after the reading of the Megillah until it is rolled up.
READING OF THE MEGILLAH
Both men and women are obligated to hear the Megillah. Women should hear the reading from a man, even if they know how to read themselves. If a woman didn’t hear the reading (or heard only partial-ly, see paragraph 22), then even a man who already heard it can and should read it for her.
A man who already heard (or read) the Megillah does not say the blessings when he reads for women, and they don’t say the blessings, either. However, there are Ashkenazi authorities who say that in this case he should say the blessings, and make a minor change in the first blessing: lishmo’a m’gillah (instead of al mikra m’gillah).
If there is no man who can read for a woman, she should read the Megillah herself, without blessings.
The time for reading of the Megillah at night starts from tzeit hakochavim (when three stars are visible) and lasts until dawn. The time for the day reading is from sunrise until sunset. If this time span is very difficult (e.g., a traveler who can obtain a Megillah only early in the morning), then it can be read from dawn.
If the reader omitted some words, no matter what they are, neither he nor the listeners fulfilled their obligation. If one has a Megillah that is not kosher (e.g., a printed Megillah, or a copy in a book), then he should be silent and listen to the reader. If, however, he did not hear a few words from the reader, for instance because of noise, then he should say them by heart or read them from his non-kosher copy, and thus fulfill his obligation.
The custom is that the whole congregation says the four verses of re-demption out loud. These verses are Ish Y’hudi (Chapter 2 verse 5), Balailah hahu (6, 1), Umordechai Yatza (8, 15), La’y’hudim Hay’tah Orah (8, 16). In Ashkenazic communities, the congregation doesn’t say Balaila hahu out loud. When one reads the verse Balailah hahu one should raise his voice, and say it with a tune, and the word Hamelech in that verse should be said even more loud-ly. Some have the custom to read the last verse of the Megillah out loud, as well. Each time the congregation recites one of these verses, the reader must re-read it after the congregation finishes.
The words chameish mei’ot ish v’eit parshandata until and including the word aseret should be said in one breath (Chapter 9 verses 6 to 10). The letter Vav of the name Vaizata (in that passage) should be lengthened. If not said in one breath, though, one still fulfills the mitzvah of reading the Megillah.
When reading the aforementioned verses in one breath, one should pay attention to read the words v’et also from the Megillah. Some people forget this in their rush to say all of those verses in one breath and say v’et from memory.
When he says igeret hapurim (Chapter 9 verse 29) he should shake the Megillah on the word Igeret. At Shacharit, when he reads the word Vikar (Chapter 8 verse 16) men should place one of their hands on their head-t’fillin and kiss his hand, as though he’s kissing his t’fillin. When the reader says La’y’hudim Haitah Orah one should touch the Sefer Torah.
The Gaon Rav Ya’akov Emden Z”L wrote that his father (the famed author of Shu”t Chacham Tzvi) stamped with his foot and his shoe when he heard the name “Haman” in the Megillah. The Ben Ish Chai wrote that he usually stamps his foot on the first mention of Haman (“After these events, King Achashverosh promoted Haman son of Hamdata of Agag,” Esther 3, 1), and similarly at the last mention of Haman (“For Haman son Hamdata of Agag, antagonist of all Jews, thought” etc. Esther 9, 24). The Megillah reader must wait until the noise stops before continuing.
After reading the Megillah with its blessings, Sepharadim say V’attah Kadosh and then Kaddish with Titkabal. The Ashkenazim say Asher Heini, Shoshanat Ya’akov, V’attah Kadosh, and then Kaddish without Titkabal.
It is forbidden to eat before hearing the Megillah, both at night and in the day. However, some authorities permit eating a little fruit or cake.
MATANOT LA’EVYONIM (PRESENTS TO THE POOR)
Every adult is obligated to give at least two presents to two needy people (one to each) on the day of Purim, and blessed is he who gives more. The presents are given in the day, not the night, and can be either food or money. The minimum amount of food is the size of 3 eggs (measured as 163 grams) per present. The minimum amount of money per present is the price of bread weighing 163 grams, and some say it must be at least enough to buy 163 grams of bread and something to accompany it (a dip or spread). As aforemen-tioned, anyone who gives more is blessed.
Even someone impoverished who lives on charity is obligated to give Matanot La’evyonim. There are some, though, who exempt such a person. In the sefer (book) Torah Lishma it is written that a poor person can give a present to another poor person, and after acquisi-tion the receiver can return it, and thus both people fulfill the mitz-vah.
The Rambam (Maimonides) wrote: “It is better to give more Matanot La’evyonim than to enlarge one’s festive meal or send more Mishlo’ach Manot to his friends. There is no greater or more glorious joy than cheering the hearts of the poor, orphans, widows and con-verts. He who gladdens the hearts of the unfortunate is akin to the Shechinah (Divine Presence of Hashem), as it says “to enliven the spirit of the lowly, and to invigorate the spirit of the downtrod-den.”
MISHLO’ACH MANOT (SENDING PORTIONS)
Every person is obligated to send to a friend at least two portions of food on the day (not the night) of Purim. It must be “real” food, not sweets such as biscuits or candy, as the Rambam and Shulchan Aruch write, “One is obligated to send to one’s friend two portions of meat or other kinds of food,” so at least one Mishlo’ach Manot should include two such “real” portions. Each portion should be in a separate container. To fulfill the mitzvah of Mishlo’ach Manot they must be sent to an adult (i.e., at least age bar/bat mitzvah), whereas Matanot La’evyonim can be fulfilled by giving to a mi-nor. Women are also obligated to give Mishlo’ach Manot and Matanot La’evyonim. Men should send Mishlo’ach Manot to men and women should send to women, but Matanot La’evyonim can be given without distinction between men and women.
THE FESTIVE MEAL
It is a mitzvah to have a big festive meal on Purim. The main meal is on the day, and cannot be fulfilled by eating at night. According to the kabbalah, it is appropriate to eat the Purim meal in the morning, be-fore midday . Those who eat it after midday should remember to pray Minchah beforehand, since it is forbidden to eat a large meal be-fore Minchah.
It is a nice custom to eat seeds on Purim, in memory of the legumes and seeds that Daniel and his companions ate, through which mira-cles occurred.
A person should become inebriated on Purim until he doesn’t know the difference between “blessed be Mordechai” and “cursed be Haman.” Let us note that this is until this stage, not including this stage.
It is a proper custom to write “Amalek” and “Haman” on something and then wipe them out. Before wiping them out one should stamp on them and whack them with his shoe. Do not erase them with saliva, but with dirty water, and if he has beer then he should use that, as it says, “Give beer to the doomed.”
WORK
One shouldn’t work on Purim; women shouldn’t wash clothes, etc. One shouldn’t have a haircut from a Jewish barber even if it is Fri-day. The Shulchan Aruch writes that one should conform to the prevalent custom of his locale, and in any case if he makes his meal before midday then he should refrain from work in the morning. If he eats his meal during the afternoon (from the time of Minchah G’dolah and on) then he should refrain from work during those hours.
On Purim we wear Shabbat clothing or other fine clothes, not week-day clothes, because “on this day Hashem did a great feat, we will be happy and rejoice in Him.” One should take care to wear them before the evening of Purim, so that he’ll already be dressed nicely when the holiday starts.
MOURNING
A mourner for his (or her) father or mother sends Mishlo’ach Manot, even if he is within shiv’ah. Unlike others, though, he should not send to many people, but just to one person, and nobody should send to him. If somebody sent him Mishlo’ach Manot anyway, he is allowed to receive them, but it is preferable that his spouse who is not mourning receive them instead. These laws are also applicable to a mourner for other relatives (besides father and mother) within the first thirty days of mourning.
It is permissible to send a poor mourner Mishlo’ach Manot, even if they are very large.