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Purim Esther became Queen to King Ahasuerus of Persia after his former wife, Vashti, disobeyed him and was beheaded. Esther's kinsman Mordecai suggested that she enter the contest for a new queen, and Esther was chosen from among many beautiful maidens in Ahasuerus' harem. Esther's real name was Hadassah but she took the name Esther to hide from the King the fact that she was a Jew. When the evil courtier Haman plotted to annihilate all the Jews of Persia, Esther risked the wrath of the King, and the penalty of death, to plead for her people. Mordecai was a kinsman of Esther. Mordecai discovered a plot against the King and told Esther, who warned the King. Thus Mordecai saved the King's life. Haman, evil courtier to the King, became incensed when Mordecai refused to bow down to him, and Haman convinced the King that all the Jews in the kingdom should be killed. Mordecai persuaded Esther to intercede with the King on behalf of the Jews. After fasting for three days, Esther invited the King and Haman to a feast. On the following evening. Esther exposed Haman's plot, and the King ordered him hung. Ahasuerus, the King of Persia, was apparently a vain and stupid man, dependent on advice from others. To show off, he demanded that his beautiful Queen Vashti dance naked before his court. When she refused, he banished (some say, beheaded) her. He then selected Esther, whom he did not know was a Jew, to become Queen. When Haman convinced the King to kill all the Jews, Esther pleaded with Ahasuerus for her people, and the King relented. He ordered Haman to be hanged, and permitted the Jews to defend themselves against their enemies. The Jews were successful. Vashti was the greatgranddaughter of King Nebuchadnezzar, the man who destroyed the first Temple in Jerusalem. She became Queen to King Ahasuerus of Persia. Some sources say Vashti was a vicious Queen who forced Jewish girls to work for her on Shabbat, stripped of their clothing. King Ahasuerus ordered Vashti to appear naked before his court at a banquet so that he could show off her beauty. Vashti refused, and Ahasuerus had her banished (some sources say beheaded). The King then began a search for a new Queen. Haman was an evil courtier to King Ahasuerus of Persia. Angered by the refusal of the Jew, Mordecai, to bow down to him, Haman persuaded the King to order the death of all the Jews. He drew lots, or purim, to determine the date on which the Jews would die. Ahasuerus did not know that his beautiful wife, Esther, was a Jew. When Mordecai, Esther's kinsman, heard of the plot, he persuaded her, at the risk of her life, to plead with the King on behalf of her people. Esther's plea was successful, and Haman was hanged on the gallows he had built for Mordecai. On Purim it is customary to deliver gifts to family and friends (mishloach manot), and to people in need (matanot l'evyonim). To friends and family, it is traditional to send, through a messenger, a basket with at least two kinds of ready-to-eat food; most commonly, fruits, wine, and baked goods are included. “Simchat Purim” means “Happy Purim.” It is traditional on Purim to drink enough wine so that one cannot tell the difference between "Blessed be Mordecai" and "Cursed be Haman." To people in need, it is customary to give two gifts, which may be food; even a poor person who receives tzedakah is required to perform this mitzvah. Maimonides said, “It is better… to increase gifts to the poor than to enlarge [one's] feast and to increase gifts to [one's] friends.” |
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