Purim

Recorded live on Zoom in the midst of war here in Eretz Yisrael, Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David enter Ta’anit Esther with open hearts and trembling emunah. We begin with niggunim — Kulanu Ke’echad , Ayeh Mekom Kevodo , Avo El HaMelech — and move into the deeper battlefield of Purim: not just the destruction of Haman, but the removal of machshevet Haman . What is the “thought of Ham...

Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David continue Rav Kluger’s journey into the pnimiyus of Purim, this time through Matanos La’Evyonim and the question: Who is an “evyon”? Rav Shlomo explains why Mordechai specifically established this mitzvah — to remind every Jew that a רגע לפני הישועה, we were all in a state of “evyon,” totally dependent on Hashem’s saving grace. From there, the shiur op...

Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David continue Rav Kluger’s gorgeous ma’amar on Purim, and  go deeper into the pnimiyus of Mishloach Manos as a preparation for Beis HaMikdash Sheini . We open with “Shoshanat Yaakov,” then step right back into the sugya: Achashveirosh’s feast isn’t just a party — it’s temple-consciousness. Esther’s “ לך כנוס את כל היהודים ” is not only about survival; it’s...

Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David officially start the march toward the Megillah. Purim is coming, and we’re opening with a deep beginning: the pnimiyus of Mishloach Manos (and Matanos La’Evyonim) through a powerful מהלך from Rav Avraham Tzvi Kluger , built on a יסוד from the Maharal (Netzach Yisrael) . Why did Mishloach Manos become the mitzvah people naturally ran to first, even bef...

A brief and wild 18 minutes of learning after Hallel, discussing the origins of Mishenichnas Adar and a wild twist connecting to Bob Saget. Good Purim.

Rebbe Nachman said that all beginnings used to begin from Pesach, but now....(and he didn't complete the sentence). In Breslov tradition, the Rebbe was speaking about how today, from then and now, Purim is the real beginning of all beginnings In this 15-minute learning, we try to understand what the Rebbe meant by this, and how it is more relevant to our lives today than ever.

A class given in Nachlaot, Yerushalayim, discussing the concept of putting trust back into the game of humanity

Purim often looks like the most playful, physical, even chaotic day in the Jewish year. But beneath the mask lies one of the deepest teachings of our faith: that Hashem is present, especially when He seems most hidden. Rav Shlomo Katz shares teachings from Rabbi Erez Moshe Doron, exploring the paradox at the heart of Megillat Esther : a miracle so deeply clothed in nature that God’s Name doesn’t a...

A short piece from Reb Meilech Biderman on Purim and Adar, discussing the usage of the word Mishenichnas

When one has a mitzvah to fulfill, they are usually exempt from having to do another mitzvah that would have to be done at that exact time. Is this the case when one is drunk on Purim and may not be able to daven? Leave it to the kohen hagadol to bring us to a deeper look at this question?

The last in a four part series on the Alter Rebbe's Purim Ma'amar חייב איניש לבסומי

What needs to take place before a G-dly revelation?

First part of the Alter Rebbe's Ma'amar 'Chayav inish Lebesumei'

intro to the ma'amar Chayav Inish Lebesumei

Why do we celebrate Purim with feasting and drinking, and not just with saying thank you like on Chanukah? Because Purim isn’t about gratitude for a miracle. It’s about the miracle of still being here . It's the simcha of existence itself . The decree wasn’t just exile or slavery. It was total annihilation . And when that gezeirah was flipped, the soul of Am Yisrael danced with a joy that had no w...

From the teachings of Reb Yakov Meir Shechter on Purim

On Purim, we drink to blur the lines. But maybe that’s just to uncover what’s been true all along: Hashem is always talking to us. Through people, through circumstances, through the exact words that happen to hit your ears when you weren't expecting them — it's all Him. Inspired by the teachings of Reb Shlomo Carlebach ztz”l, Rav Shlomo Katz opens our hearts to the Purim avodah of being doped up o...

Based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter for Purim

There’s one day a year where the gates are thrown wide open, and Hashem asks each of us: “מה שאלתך וינתן לך — What is it that you truly want?” That day is Purim. Not just a day of costumes and joy, but a sacred invitation to dream big, to daven from the deepest places in our hearts, and to stop limiting what we think is possible. In this shiur given in Modiin (Feb 2018), we explore how Purim is a...

Every year, a dear friend calls me before Purim with the same question: "What’s your avodah this year?" And the truth is, that’s exactly how we have to look at Purim: as an avodah , a holy service, no less sacred than the work of the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur. Drawing from the wellsprings of Reb Ya’akov Meir Shechter shlit”a, this shiur reveals how the four mitzvahs of Purim — Mikra Megillah, Mish...

Rav Kook's approach to the encounter we have with Amalek today.

What kind of drinking were our sages referring to regarding the holiday of Purim?

What was it like to be in Rav Kook's Presence on the night of Purim? March, 2017 Efrat, Israel

The build-up of the month of Adar, toward the month of Nissan, the month of redemption.

Feeling that you are the crown of creation, and that the whole world was created just for you, occurs during the Seuda. How does one get there? purim, kluger, adam harishon, gan eden, shlomo katz, torah , shirat david, efrat