Purim is (finally) upon us! A day of cheer and camaraderie, a day to reestablish our relationship with God and accept the Torah from a place of love and excitement. Purim is actually a really deep day, with the potential to set the tone for the entire year until the next Purim. We know that there is a mitzvah to drink wine, for the men to get so inebriated that they cannot tell the difference between “blessed is Mordechai and cursed is Haman ”.
There is another, more profound reasoning for getting drunk on Purim-we say in hebrew: “nichnas yayin, yatza sod” when wine goes in, the secrets come out. Wine cools our composure and allows for the real person inside of us to emerge. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. There is a profound sense of freedom in allowing oneself to lose control, to be completely honest with who they are without the restrictions of sobriety or the constraints of society; on Purim, there is logorrhea of the soul. This is an opportunity not to be squandered. For those of us not engaging in the alcoholic method of release, there are other ways to let loose and experience the Torah and the power of Purim. Personally, I find that watching the children get all dressed up, the music and songs of purim infiltrating my mind and the giving sense is enough for me.
On Purim everyone has a mitzvah to give, from the richest to the poorest-everyone has something to give. Most holidays come with lots of preparation, lots of angst and planning. Purim isn’t quite like that. We don’t need to build a sukkah, bake matzos, set up a menorah or prepare for kabbolas haTorah. On Purim, we simply bask in the decision we made centuries ago to be mekabel the Torah, to live as a Jewish nation with all of the responsibilities and joys that go along with that. On Purim our national decision becomes personal, as we strive to reaccept Hashem as our G-d and reassess how forward He is in our minds.
This year, let us take that to a new level that far surpasses prior years and use our newfound closeness with one another and with Hashem to bring the redemption home.