Living in an Olam Hafuch – When the World is Upside Down

We have entered Adar, a month about which the Talmud teaches, אדר מרבין בשמחה משנכנס Mi Shehnichnas Adar Marbim B’Simcha “When Adar enters, our joy increases” (Taanit 29a). The Talmud (Taanit 29a) states it as a mitzvah to be joyous. The peak of this month is Purim, a holiday that’s coming up very soon, on the (14th of Adar)! On Purim, we read Megilat Esther (the Scroll of Esther), and we commemorate the overturning of Ahasuerus and Haman’s royal decree and the survival of Jews in the Persian Empire. We’re happy that we survived – so happy, in fact, that the whole month becomes about joy.

Yom Hafuch is another name given to the holiday of Purim. הפך hapuch comes from the root that means to turn, to change, to reverse, and to subvert. Hafuch means something like “upside down.” If you order a “café hafuch” in Israel you’ll get the Israeli version of a cappuccino. From the same root, we get the expression mamash l’hefech “exactly the opposite.”

Many of us feel as though we are living in an Olam Hafuch, a world turned upside-down. What is the world that we live in? Is it the world of hate and violence and mass murder, anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia? Is it the world in which governments are seemingly doing the opposite of protecting their citizens, where the balance of power is upside-down?

It can feel strange and hard to rejoice amid feelings of chaos and uncertainty. How and why do we keep this mitzvah – costumes, the wackiness, the happiness of it all – when we just don’t feel up to the task?

Purim times are also topsy-turvy times. And although we often celebrate this holiday as if it were a holiday for children, Purim’s message is not just for kids.

Of all the books in the Bible, the book of Esther resonates strongly currently: God is hidden. Vashti speaks up as a proto-feminist. Esther, our heroine, denies public acknowledgement of her Judaism until finally she finds her voice. And part of the megillah that doesn’t often make it into the shpiel, because we are often uncomfortable with the part of the story when we fought back, is also an important lesson from our Purim narrative.

On Purim, we read aloud a story where the fate of the people of Israel is reversed. We can use this story about the day everything turned upside down as an opportunity to empower ourselves and look toward making changes for our future. We read in the ninth chapter of the Megillah, “when the king’s command and decree were to be executed, the very day on which the enemies of the Jews had expected to get them in their power, the opposite (also from הפך – ve-nahafoch hu) happened, and the Jews got their enemies in their power.”

If the story of Purim is about chaos and vulnerability, it’s also about light and relief. Purim is a permanent reminder of when Haman’s plot to destroy us thousands of years ago, was transformed by Esther and Mordecai into a day of celebration. At the heart of our tradition is the belief that justice and joy will prevail, and that darkness will be followed by light. When the world is upside down, לֹא עָלֶיךָ הַמְּלָאכָה לִגְמֹר, וְלֹא אַתָּה בֶן חוֹרִין לִבָּטֵל מִמֶּנָּה Lo alecha hamlacha ligmor, v’lo atah ben chorin l’hibateil mimena. “It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it.” (Pirke Avot 2:16) Our job is to work to turn the world right-side-up again.

As Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg writes, “you are not obligated to do everything, but you are obligated to do something.” We never know when our actions, however small, will be the ones to tip the scales towards justice, chesed – compassion, and shalom – peace.

This teaching is implicit in the messages Mordechai gives to Esther:

“Do not imagine that you, of all the Jews, will escape with your life by being in the king’s palace. For if you keep silent during this time, relief and rescue will come to the Jews from another place (makom), while you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows if for such a time you reached the monarchy.” Esther 4:13-14

Don’t despair; Don’t disengage; Don’t underestimate your power.

We might think there is no point trying if we may not affect the ultimate outcome, but you still must try. This is Mordechai’s lesson to Esther, when he prevails upon her to go to the King, and when he refuses to bow down to Haman. Their engagement and speaking out sets the stage for future generations to do so.

When you overcome despair and disengagement and move forward to take action, – you never know what power you may have and when your actions might be the ones to make a critical difference. “And who knows” becomes not an excuse but an invitation to consider the possibility, that you are here for a purpose, that there is something greater than your fear. If you do so, you may find that you have more power than you imagine. The little difference you make ripples outward to be multiplied by all the other people doing their part to help. And in that small action, rather than despair, you will find purpose and bring a tiny bit of joy into this world, which is not a small matter, it is a spark of light and hope and joy.

Let us find joy on this Purim. May we find joy in dressing in silly costumes, in spinning our groggers and blotting out the name of the one who sought to destroy us, in eating hamantaschen, in caring for one another, in sending treats to our friends and neighbours, and in giving matanot l’evyonim gifts to those in need. In these small acts we find light and hope, and joy even in the midst of uncertainty. As it is written in Esther 8:16: לַיְּהוּדִ֕ים הָֽיְתָ֥ה אוֹרָ֖ה וְשִׂמְחָ֑ה וְשָׂשֹׂ֖ן וִיקָֽר LaYehudim hai-tah orah v’simcha v’sasson vicar “The Jews enjoyed light and gladness, happiness and honor”. כֵּן תִּהְיֶה לָּֽנוּ Kein tih’-yeh lanu “May it be so for us too.”

Chag Purim Sameach!
Rabbi Audrey Pollack

Filed under: Rabbi's Message

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