B’H
The holy days of Purim are here! Harav Arush stresses that all 3 days of Purim have special holiness and the ability to bring down special salvations – the Fast of Esther, Purim, and Shushan Purim. The very best thing is to do 6 hours of hitbodedut on all 3 days, and especially the Fast (all fasts are days for teshuva and he holds that on every single one a person should do 6 hours, and this one is certainly no exception) and whichever Purim you do not celebrate ie you more time without running around fulfilling all the other mitzvot of Purim.
The holy days of Purim are here! Harav Arush stresses that all 3 days of Purim have special holiness and the ability to bring down special salvations – the Fast of Esther, Purim, and Shushan Purim. The very best thing is to do 6 hours of hitbodedut on all 3 days, and especially the Fast (all fasts are days for teshuva and he holds that on every single one a person should do 6 hours, and this one is certainly no exception) and whichever Purim you do not celebrate ie you more time without running around fulfilling all the other mitzvot of Purim.
Now, let’s get into the details of what to do and remember on Purim itself – whichever one you celebrate. First off, it is absolutely ussur to drink at night! Rabbi Arush said “One who drinks at night breaks the entire Torah, and it is forbidden. He drinks out of his lust and his idol worship.” The evening of Purim should be very simple – after Megillah, a simple, quick meal and then off to sleep for a few hours. Then wake up at midnight and recite Tikkun Chatzot and go out to the field to do hitbodedut until Netz/Shachris. Remember that you must go to the field happy! Praising Hashem and singing – not crying!!!
Hearing the Megillah – every single word of the Megillah is emuna. After Moshiach comes all the texts will be cancelled except this Megillah. Even more than the Torah itself, every single word is emuna!
Now we come to the Feast itself. First of all, the mitzvah is only to drink WINE. That is why it is called “The Feast of Wine” in Hebrew. Absolutely no other alcohol can be consumed! In fact, Rebbe Nachman warned very much about alcohol for the entire year, and it is a Breslev custom to drink wine only at Purim because Rebbe Nachman commanded us not to!!! (and some drink wine for the 4 cups on Pesach).
Secondly, Rabbi Arush asked – Is it possible that of all days, on Purim Hashem wants a person to lose his seichel, his mind/intellect? Most certainly not! The point of the wine is to receive daat – holy knowledge. You cannot get that if you have lost your seichel getting drunk! Therefore, you must say the special prayer (I have it attached here in Hebrew, and in English which is a rough translation and slightly different since every year Rabbi Arush changes the wording slightly) before every single cup. And if you notice that you are losing your moach, your mind, your hold on yourself – stop drinking! Tikkun habrit – rectification of the brit – is tied to Tikkun Hadaat – you cannot risk losing your daat! What you ARE supposed to be receiving, as I said, is daat. The daat to know that everything is for the very best and to say thank you. The daat to know that suffering is good. The daat to say Cursed is Mordechai – sadness is not the path to teshuva! (RT adds here – see my previous emails if you have not yet already for explanation of this) No sackcloth! And the daat to say Blessed is Haman – even the most evil have no free will, and it was through him that the Jewish people were saved and came closer to Hashem! So everything is good!!!
Finally, I also attached the Shabbat lesson from Rabbi Arush which also summarizes all these concepts from last week’s lesson.
FREILECHEN PURIM – it should be filled with meaning and salvations!
*Side note – this advice is all for men. Us women, we have to adjust accordingly. Chassidim hold that it is always forbidden for women to drink, because for women the moach/mind is tied up with tzniut, so drinking always lets a woman become loose, which she can never let herself do c”v. So Purim is definitely no exception, especially when sadly there are a lot of honestly drunk men out there. Nor is a woman expected to be able to do 6 hours each day, especially with her husband not around to help, nor is she generally going to be waking up at midnight. But for sure at least a solid hour of hitbodedut every day, and as much as possible in general are certainly in order.
**Side note number two – Harav Arush again stressed that fireworks and the like are strictly forbidden, especially since they scare people. In previous years he has gone into some length about the terrible suffering awaiting someone in Gehinnom who scared people. It is very important to make sure that one’s children are not involved in this very serious sin.
FREILECHEN PURIM – it should be filled with meaning and salvations!
*Side note – this advice is all for men. Us women, we have to adjust accordingly. Chassidim hold that it is always forbidden for women to drink, because for women the moach/mind is tied up with tzniut, so drinking always lets a woman become loose, which she can never let herself do c”v. So Purim is definitely no exception, especially when sadly there are a lot of honestly drunk men out there. Nor is a woman expected to be able to do 6 hours each day, especially with her husband not around to help, nor is she generally going to be waking up at midnight. But for sure at least a solid hour of hitbodedut every day, and as much as possible in general are certainly in order.
**Side note number two – Harav Arush again stressed that fireworks and the like are strictly forbidden, especially since they scare people. In previous years he has gone into some length about the terrible suffering awaiting someone in Gehinnom who scared people. It is very important to make sure that one’s children are not involved in this very serious sin.
