Sacred Sanctity
Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
The Zohar tells us that Yom Hakipurim is related to the holiday of Purim, that that lofty day is a day kiPurim/like Purim. How can we compare these two holidays and appreciate their connection?
One of the major themes that runs through both of these special days is the theme of teshuvah/return to Hashem/repentance and atonement. We can begin with the central word in the names of these festivals, purim, drawing lots. Drawing of lots is a major component of both of these days. The fact that we call our holiday Purim, the plural of pur/lottery, alludes to the Yom Kippur service, the other drawing of lots. In that ritual, two goats are brought to the Temple. Through a drawing of lots, one will be designated for Hashem and the second will be destined to Azazel, the scapegoat to be thrown off a cliff in the wilderness. This ritual would atone for the sins of Bnei Yisroel and remove the bad decree against the people.
Drawing lots is also central to the Purim narrative. Haman decided on the day to carry out his plan to annihilate the Jews by drawing lots from the pool of all the months and all the days of the month. The "winner" was the fourteenth day of the month of Adar, the day we now celebrate Purim as the day of our salvation. After this drawing of lots, Mordechai and Esther also effected the removal of this decree against the Jewish people, as does Yom Kippur, noted Rabbi Strickhoff in Inside Purim.
It is not two completely different lotteries that were cast in our history. The Shvilei Pinchas draws on the writings of the Bnei Yissaschar to add a deeper understanding to the double lotteries. Rabbi Pinchas Friedman notes that when Haman cast his lots down below, Hashem was casting parallel Yom Kippur lots above. Symbolically, which goat will be dedicated to Hashem and which goat to destruction, Mordechai or Haman. Mordechai was an Ish Yemini, not simply from the Tribe of Binyamin, but especially on the right, the hand receiving the lot designated for Hashem, while the left hand would pick the "goat" for Azazel. Haman's decree and Ahashuerosh's sealing the deal by giving Haman his signet ring achieved greater teshuvah than forty eight prophets were able to achieve.
It was this teshuvah that Esther was counting on to help her when she formulated her plan. Her request, although ostensibly to Ahashuerosh, was a veiled plea to Hashem to accompany her -- יבא המלך והמן היום /May the King and Haman come today [to the party I will host]. Within this invitation we have hidden the four lettered name of Hashem as the first letter of each word.
But the Torah states Hashem's name is incomplete as long as Amalek exists. Even Ahashuerosh could not give Esther the complete Name, only half the Kingdom. But with the death of Haman, Hashem's name would now be complete. Mordechai named the holiday Purim, concludes the Shvilei Pinchas, al Shem hapur/for the Name of God written on the lots.
We know that Yom Kippur was a day of forgiveness for Bnei Yisroel after the sin of the golden calf. It was on Yom Kippur that Hashem gifted us with the second set of luchot, the unbroken set signifying our eternal connection to Hakodosh Boruch Hu and the proof of Hashem's accepting our teshuvah. But Yom Hakipurim is a day of awe and fasting in spite of the great joy and celebration. On Purim, we accepted the Torah anew, this time out of great love. While both Yom Kippur and Purim are days of complete joy, Yom Kippur is dedicated totally to Hashem, while Purim is the day we include physical celebration with food and drink, the celebratory meal we cannot observe on the awesome fast day of Yom Kippur, notes the Gra.
Just as we received the second set of luchot after deep teshuvah, so were we also saved on Purim after deep teshuvah, writes the Sifsei Chaim. When we accepted the Torah at Sinai, we accepted it under duress. But that duress was not physical force. It was the force of clarity, of absolute knowledge that nothing else exists except Hashem. How could we not accept the Torah! On Purim, we saw with that same clarity that Hashem is always with us in all circumstances, even when we have failed. With this insight, we accepted the Torah anew, this time out of the deep love we were reciprocating to Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
In Removing the Mask, Rabbi Bernstein picks up this thread. He explains that the miracle of Purim differed from the earlier miracles we had experienced. Hashem performed the earlier miracles for us when our relationship with Him was relatively intact, when our covenant was unbroken. At this point in our history, even if we dutifully observed the mitzvoth, we felt no love, connection or passion while observing them by rote. This was part of Haman's argument. that the Jews ישנו /were asleep, only going through the motions [and therefore their God would not save them]. But Hashem proved Haman wrong. Hashem's love for us is eternal, even if we have lapsed.
These two aspects of Hashem's love for Bnei Yisroel is reflected in the two versions of the blessing immediately preceding the recitation of Shema. In the morning, when things are bright and full of promise, we are aware of Hashem's great love אהבה רבה. However, when times are dark, even in the night of our exile, Hashem's love for us is eternal אהבת עולם . And that promise sustains us in every generation.
This realization led us to accepting the Torah anew, out of love, knowing that Hashem loves us unconditionally, even when we are undeserving, even if we do not observe His mitzvoth properly. This is the concept embedded in the name of the scroll we read, Megillat Esther, revealing the hidden [aspect of Hashem's love], buried deep within the connection. And the threat of annihilation equally revealed the hidden nature within the Jews themselves, that although our sense of connection to Hashem may be dormant, it continues to exist, and will be awakened to a desire to reconnect to Him through prayer and repentance.
This, too, is the essence of Yom Kippur, to wipe away the layers of wrongdoing and reveal our deepest, pure inner essence, and connect to our reciprocal love of Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
That realization led to our accepting the Torah from our sense of pure love, and a need to celebrate with an external demonstration of that love and inner joy, writes the Sifsei Chaim.
When Bani Yisroel entered the Sinai Desert to receive the Torah, and when they left Refidim after the sin of the golden calf, they were in a state of repentance. So too were Bnei Yisroel in a state of repentance when they re-accepted the Torah on Purim, accompanied by great joy.
Rabbi Strickoff quoting Ta’ame Minhagim notes a fascinating inversion in our celebrations of Yom Kippur and Purim. Yom Kippur establishes the day Hashem forgave us for the sin of the golden calf, a sin that was accompanied by feasting and drinking. To atone for that sin, we now celebrate by fasting. Purim, on the other hand, was preceded by fasting, and so we celebrate by drinking and feasting.
Our holidays are meant to be half dedicated to Hashem, and half remaining for our enjoyment [with Hashem].Yom Kippur and Purim are two halves of this one whole. The Yom Kippur half is totally dedicated to Hashem, while Purim is for us, each bringing purity in different ways.
On Yom Kippur, when we are totally immersed in prayer and connection to Hashem, it is relatively easy to maintain a state of sanctity; on Purim, when we are feasting and drinking, it is a more difficult process. It is easy to fall into gluttony or drunken behavior. Our goal is to elevate the physical elements of Purim to a state of sanctity, to an expression of love and gratitude to Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
Rabbi Strickoff quoting the Yid Hakadosh notes that Yom Kippur and Purim never fall on the same day of the week. Yom Kippur can only fall on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Shabbat. These are days of purity in creation. On the other days of creation, things that can become impure were created. On Sunday, Hashem created the earth, and earthenware can become impure; on Tuesday, Hashem created the trees, and wooden vessels can also become impure. Finally, on Friday, Hashem created Man and animals, and both can become impure. Since Yom Kippur is a day of total sanctity, it cannot fall on these days. In contrast, Purim is a day to extract purity from impurity. Therefore, Purim will only fall on the days which have an element of impurity. We are meant to extract the purity from within the impurity, to reveal the hidden sanctity.
Rabbi Kluger sees the connection between Purim and Yom Kippur manifested through the mitzvah of mishloach manot. On Yom Kippur we are sustained spiritually by the ‘manna’ created from the spiritual power of our tefillot. The man that fell in the desert had a layer of dew underneath and was covered with another layer of dew. In commemoration of the man, we send our mishloach manot in some container that is also covered below and above.
Our sending of mishloach manot is meant to create a sense of achdut/unity within Bnei Yisroel. Rabbi Rivlin notes that creating achdut among Bnei Yisroel was one part of Esther's plan. First, gather all the Jews together, and then follow with the preparation of prayer and fasting, the elements of teshuvah most closely associated with Yom Kippur.
The Torah itself has further allusions to a connection between Yom Kippur and Purim. The Netivot Shalom finds such an allusion in the text outlining the Yom Kippur service. The Torah says Aharon will enter the Holy of Holies only one day in the year, on the day he brings the atonement offering, one day a year he will bring atonement for your generations. The Slonimer Rebbe suggests that the first "one day" refers to Yom Kippur and the teshuvah and service in the Beit Hamikdosh to effect atonement for Bnei Yisroel. But the second "one day" for all generations refers to the atonement one can receive through his teshuvah on Purim. On Yom Kippur, the teshuvah is a result of awe and fear; on Purim the teshuvah is the result of love.
But the Netivot Shalom finds a compelling difference between the possible outcomes of the two days. When the verdict is sealed on Yom Kippur, it can no longer be overturned. On Purim, however, even when the edict is sealed with the seal of the King, as Haman's edict to kill all the Jews, the edict can still be reversed. On Purim, love opens a new pathway in spite of opposition. Love overcomes all decrees.
How can we reconnect to someone when we have done something hurtful? We can acknowledge our sins as we do on Yom Kippur. But saying, "I'm sorry," is difficult and may not eliminate resentment. On the other hand, going over to the other, perhaps beginning with a hug, and saying, "I love you. I'm so sorry I hurt you," usually melts the differences. It is this power of love that we can access on Purim.
Our mitzvah observance is what we do for Hashem Whom we love, and we should do it happily, as a way of filling our lives with meaning and with joy.
Rabbi Kluger offers further insights to consider as we read the Megillah. He notes that the number that appears most frequently in the Megillah is thirteen, and the word found most frequently is חן /grace, favor. Thirteen reminds us of Hashem's thirteen attributes of mercy, so dominant in the Purim story, as does chen, finding favor in someone's eyes without necessarily earning it.
On Purim, the gates of heaven are open wide as we extend our hands in prayer. Similarly, we are told to accept the request of anyone who extends his hand and asks for our help on this day.
The holiest moment on Yom Kippur is when we recite Kesser in the Kedushah of Mussaf. [nusach Sefard] Every moment of that sanctity is imbued in the entire day of Purim, notes Rabbi Biederman. Hashem wants to bring that crown down to earth for us. To deter "thieves", the Satan, He will put this holy and expensive crown in unimposing containers, like gaiety and feasting, costumes and drinking so that the Satan will not suspect the love that is contained within. But Rav Schlesinger cautions that we should not let the outer frivolity take our focus off the deeper message and connection to Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
When Purim comes, let us rejoice in this special opportunity to connect to our Maker and express this love in ways which gladden both the body and the spirit. May Hashem grant each of us LOTS and LOTS of joy.