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ליהודים היתה אורה ושמחה וששון ויקר (אסתר ח:טז).

The Jews had light, happiness, fulfillment and preciousness (Esther 8:16).

The Gemara (Megillah 16b) tells of the greatness that the Jews achieved upon their victory from their enemies. Each word of this verse hints to one specific aspect of their lives:

“The Jews had light”, this is Torah,

“happiness”, these are the festivals (many explain this to refer to Shabbos and Yom Tov),

“fulfillment”, refers to circumcision,

“and preciousness”, refers to Tefillin.

Three Simple Questions

There are numerous questions that beg to be asked on all of this:

1-If the verse wished to express that the Nation achieved the ability to freely practice all of these Jewish rites, why does it not say them explicitly?! Why must Chazal perform detective work in order to properly decipher the hidden references of the verse, could it not have just read, “The Jews had Torah and festivals, etc?!

2-When the Megillah is read in Shul on Purim, there are four verses which the reader stops before reciting them and the entire congregation reads them out loud first (see Shulchan Aruch O”C 690:17. There is one additional verse read this way, but it is subject to a different discussion). This is done in order to stress the miraculous redemption which Hashem brought as expressed in these verses. The significance of each verse is clearly seen and it is apparent why they are given this special attention. They include the introduction of the great and heroic sage Mordechai and the recounting of the distinguished respect he received in the end. There is one verse whose presence on the VIP list is greatly perplexing… our verse! Why is it deemed so significant? Why should it be read out loud by the entire congregation?! What is so special about the four cryptic descriptions it contains?

3-During the recitation of the Havdalah, we have a custom that dictates that the one reciting stops and everyone declares one sentence. That sentence is our exact verse, ליהודים היתה אורה, the Jews had light etc., with an added phrase at the end, “Kain Ti’hyeh Lanu, so may we merit this as well!” What is the source for this custom? After searching through numerous texts and speaking to great Halachik authorities, it was established that, to the best of our knowledge, there is no known source for this custom! Perhaps through our understanding of this mysterious verse we will gain insight as to how the verse became a weekly ritual, emanating deep from the Jewish psyche.

Why Were They Decreed To Die?

The Gemara (Megillah 12a) tells us that the Jews were deemed deserving of death on account for their partaking in the feast of Achashveyrosh. The Gemara quotes Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai who counters this understanding by stating that this cannot be so, for only the inhabitants of Shushan attended the party and thus how could this have affected the Jews elsewhere? A strong question indeed. The Gemara appears to reject that explanation and then states an alternative reason. R’ Akiva Eiger points out a blatant contradiction here. The Midrash (Shir HaShirim Rabbah 7:14) states the Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai himself explained that the reason why they were decreed destruction was on account for the party which they partook of?! How could he use an idea that he himself disproved?!

The answer lies in the very Midrash itself and this is precisely what R’ Akiva Eiger is drawing our attention to. Rabbi Shimon’s students asked him how the sin of the feast in Shushan could affect the Jews everywhere else? He answered them that this is understood through the concept of “Kol Yisrael Arayvim, all Jews are responsible for one another!” This needs to be understood better.

Unmotivated and Unexcited

Chazal tell us that at the time of Purim the Jews reaccepted the Torah willingly. At Mount Sinai they had accepted the Torah but it had not been whole-heartedly (see our full explanation in Introduction (Part 1 of 2)).  Hence, that commitment waned and faded over the years until in the time of Achashvayrosh it was nearly forgotten.

When we think of the story of Purim it is often not realized just how low the Jews had fallen. Chazal (Esther Rabbah 1:9) tell us that Hashem was outraged at the Jews because many of them were not keeping Shabbos! Additionally, Chazal tell us astonishing words that came out their mouth’s upon seeing the lavish feast of Achashveyrosh. They declared, “with  a feast this great and luxuriant, what more can Hashem offer us in Olam HaBah, the future world?! These blasphemous words are astounding!

They did not really mean or believe what they were saying, rather, the problem was one of feelings. The Jews had slowly forgotten about their passion in life. They had forgotten about their love and special bond with Hashem and the great mission which they had been given. Monotony, complacency and mediocrity had become their daily routine. They were going through life habitually and missing out on the true excitement in life called Avodas Hashem!

Good Morning Dear Jews!

It was time to wake them up! So Hashem sent one of the most evil men in all of history, Haman, to do the job. He was rich, powerful and he hated the Jews! A deadly combination. Suddenly, he got his plot off the ground and he was going to wipe out every single Jew from upon planet Earth. The Jews were jolted to an abrupt awakening. Suddenly, it didn’t matter if you kept Shabbos, learned Torah or didn’t, if you were a Jew, you were dead! Even the most secularized people of our Nation were forced to rethink their life’s course. The Jews gathered and repented and began to once again embrace their forgotten legacy. Day by day, more people returned; sincerity and passion returned. As the repentance increased, Hashem began to show His great hand more and more. One hidden miracle after another, and Esther was in the palace, Mordechai was a powerful governmental leader and the head enemy, Haman, was killed. The fear of the Jews fell upon the nations and the Jews regained their freedom!

Imagine how inspiring and emotionally charging the entire experience must have been. They regained their Jewish pride and most importantly they reaccepted the Torah, only this time out of complete love and total commitment.

Now we have the keys to answer everything.

The Solution

The sin of the Jews was that they had lacked passion and excitement in their Avodas Hashem. They veered away and stopped appreciating Hashem and His Torah. Thus, just as their service was dead, Hashem decreed death upon their bodies. When they rejuvenated and animated their daily service, this brought them back to life in a physical sense as well!

The Party

When they ate from the feast it represented the collective feelings of the whole Jewish public. They were stating, “Achashveyrosh has more fun and enjoyment to offer us than Hashem does!” This was the sin of the entire Nation! The Shushan incident was just one illustration of this!

They always knew that Torah was true, but they viewed it as bland and dead. It was only when they realized the greatness and excitement of Torah and Mitzvos that they were granted new life!

Light and Happiness

This is why the verse uses only adjectives to refer to the four Mitzvos that they rededicated themselves to. It was not enough just to bring back Torah and Mitzvos into their lives. It was a recognition of how exhilarating and invigorating Torah and Mitzvos are that was necessary. Their hearts were ignited to truly feel:

The only light is Torah!

The only happiness are the festivals!

The only fulfillment is through circumcision,

The only  preciousness is Tefillin.

A life of passion and dedication to Hashem!

A Powerful Illustrative Verse Indeed

Now we understand why this verse is so significant in recounting the great Jewish salvation. The recognition and appreciation expressed in this verse was the exact understanding that gave them life!

Recalibration

So too as we begin every new week, during the recitation of Havdalah, we concentrate upon this beautiful and fundamental verse for spiritual alignment. We pray that our hearts too should be opened to appreciate and truly feel just how meaningful and rich our relationship with Hashem is! We are blessed with the opportunity to live this every day!