Holy Purim Night

We are very close to the holiday of Purim. All the holidays require preparation,  especially  the holiday of Purim. We need the preparation in order to succeed to receive the spiritual light of Purim, with all its blessings and benefits, like we should. The Evil Inclination also knows that Purim is so incredibly high and powerful, so it does its work to try to grab people away from this incredible holiday.  

Chazal, our sages, say that in the time of Mashiach, all of the holidays will be canceled. That is, all of them except Purim. So we see that, specifically, this holiday of Purim is the highest day of the year. First of all, this is the only holiday that has a fast day before the holiday – the Fast of Esther. And the fast is a day of teshuva (repentance and self-accounting). Because if a person just simply refrains from eating and drinking during the day…that’s not enough. The main point of the fast is for a person to do teshuva.  

Purim is a Day of Prayer

Whoever knows what Purim really is, knows that he needs to do his best in these days of Purim (beginning with the night before the Fast of Esther until sundown Shushan Purim, 3 full days sunset to sunset the 13 through 15 of Adar – no matter where you live) to take advantage of this time as much as they can. Someone who does not know what Purim really is, thinks that it’s a cute day, a day of silliness, a day of fun without any real purpose, or a day for getting drunk (G-d have mercy). Okay, they may do all the mitzvot of Purim, but overall they totally lose out on this incredible day. 

There is also a special gift given on Purim, and especially during the Purim feast. It is written “everyone who extends their hand, you must give them.” This means that all 24 hours of Purim are 24 hours of Divine favor, the most powerful time for prayers being answered, that what you ask for and pray for – you will receive! Everyone who extends their hand in prayer, they are given. Whatever a person requests from Hashem on Purim – they receive! (Read more about this in my other article on Purim: You Too Can Have a Purim Miracle.)  

So we want to learn how to take full advantage of this day. How do we get everything we want? With long, focused prayers! 

I always say that “not every day is Purim.” This isn’t for nothing. On the holiday of Purim there is an opportunity for us to create miracles and salvations! Someone who comes after Purim and does long prayers and makes requests, in Heaven they say, “Now you ask? Why did you not ask during Purim?!” Not very day is Purim. If you ask on the day of Purim, you will receive, because during Purim there is a heavenly guarantee of “everyone who extends their hand, you must give to them.”  

Grab Every Moment 

Not every day is Purim! We need to take advantage of this day! Do long prayers! There’s a guarantee from heaven that everyone who extends their hand are given! Especially during the night of Purim!!! 

Someone who does not know what Purim really is gets drunk at night, and we’re not supposed to drink at night. It’s absolutely forbidden, not allowed! We are not allowed to drink any alcohol on Purim at night! The mitzvah is only during the day, only the day, and only at the Purim Feast! And at the feast – only wine! Just wine, and nothing else with alcohol. The miracle of Purim happened with wine, the feast in the Megillah is called “the Wine Feast,” and with wine there are a lot of mystical secrets and other aspects. 

Those who drink at night, they dance and are happy, but it’s not the right way. Now they sleep in late, they don’t wake up in the morning of Purim for morning prayers. Rebbe Nachman of Breslev says that everything starts from Purim, so we want to make sure to have a good beginning! There’s a spiritual law that everything happens according to how the beginning is, so it’s very important to have a good beginning on Purim, in every way possible. 

Plus, when is the time to extend your hand in requests and prayers? At night! Because we’re busy during the day…food baskets, gifts to the poor, also we need to learn a little, and afterwards in the afternoon we need to do pray Mincha and then eat the Purim meal. So when do we possibly have time to do long hitbodedut? At night!  

What did we say? All beginnings are from Purim! This is the day to make a new start!  

If all beginnings are from Purim, we want to wake up at midnight on Purim, and to have the merit all night long, until morning prayers at sunrise, to do hours of hitbodedut. That’s what we do on Purim, this is the absolute best time that a person can invest hours in hitbodedut, hours to pray about something. Seriously.  

Rebbe Nachman of Breslev writes that the dancing that we do on Purim causes very powerful things to happen! All the miracles that we have seen with Mordechai and Esther are renewed due to the dancing that we do on Purim, including erasing the memory of Amalek [one of the meanings being that which holds us back from achieving our true potential] and also what is revealed on Purim, that we see the light of Mordechai and Esther. 

In all cases, this year, I’m requesting of all of you, and also I’m asking you to  publicize this – this Purim we all need to be stubborn and insistent in our prayers that  Mashiach comes! 

Every year I say to everybody: You’re having trouble finding your soulmate? Be tenacious in prayers on Purim! You have a problem with your health? Be tenacious in prayers on Purim. In all matters, including children, income, etc… during Purim be stubborn and insistent in your prayers, and things will happen. 

But this year, I’m asking all of you! That this year, everybody should pray that  Mashiach  comes. 

Everyone must ask for it! Beg Hashem: “Creator of the world…reveal Your dominion! Bring the reign of the house of King David! Build the Holy Temple!” 

Of course, everybody has their own personal issues, we can pray on those, but the main thing is to ask for the Geula, the redemption, for all people, and for Mashiach. And all of this sweetly, with mercy.