08 Mar LET’S START THE PARTY
LEARNING FROM A UNCOUTH DICTATOR HOW TO CELEBRATE LIFE
The Farmer
A Texas farmer
was touring
England. He
happened to
meet an English
farmer and asked him, “What
size farm do you have?”
The Englishman proudly announced,
“Thirty-five acres!”
“Thirty-five acres?” the Texan
scoffed. “Why I can get in my
truck at 8:00 AM and start driving
and at noon, I am still on my farm.
I can eat lunch and start driving
again and at 5:00 PM I am still on
my farm.
“Ah, yes,” the Englishman nodded
in understanding. “I had a
truck like that once.”
The Party
In the opening of the story of
the book of Esther, the Persian
Emperor, King Achashverosh,
throws a massive feast to celebrate
his consolidation of power on
the Persian throne. It is a lavish,
completely over-the-top party, a
drunken, decadent bacchanal that
lasts for a full 180 days.
And then, when the 180 days are
over, he throws yet another feast,
lasting seven days. The celebrations
continue for 187 days, nonstop!
It seems strange. Although the
only aspect of the party of any obvious
relevance to the plot of the
Purim story is that the King has
his wife killed for not entertaining
his drunken guests, the Megillah
provides us with verse after verse
of vivid description of the party
itself.
We learn of the setting of the
party, the guests, the vessels and
utensils used, and the materials
and fabrics used to dress up the
banquet:
There were hangings of white,
fine cotton, and turquoise wool,
held with cords of fine linen and
purple wool, upon silver rods and
marble pillars; the couches of gold
and silver were on a pavement of
variegated marble.
And they gave them to drink in
golden vessels, and the vessels differed
from one another, and royal
wine was plentiful according to
the bounty of the king.
Why does the book of Esther feel
the need to familiarize us with all
the opulence of Achashverosh’s
banquet? Do I really have to know
how many fabrics were used at the
feast and what was their type? Do
I really have to know the types of
goblets used? How does that help
me understand the story?
Rarely do the Torah and the
Tanach give vivid descriptions
of events unless it is important
to grasp the story. The Torah is
not a classic history novel; it is,
as its name indicates, a book of
lessons and teachings. It wants
us to learn something. Why on
earth would the king’s notorious
decadence be relevant to us?
In a Purim address, on Purim
1973, the Lubavitcher Rebbe
suggested a beautiful explanation.
All In
The message of the Megillah
is a simple one, though in a way
surprising. When King Achashverosh
throws a party, he knows
he must go all in. Not for him
was a mere hundred-day feast,
or goblets from silver instead of
gold. He makes a serious party
and throws everything he has at
his disposal at the party.
This king will not settle for
mediocrity or even normal standards
of a feast. He will not just
get away with doing a fine job.
If he can do it over the top, he
will have it just that way! If he
can drink for 187 days, so be it.
If he can give his people a memory
of a lifetime, this is what he
will do. No less.
Now, as the Talmud states, this
king was a fool. He wasted his
money and creativity on a foolish
endeavor. Achashverosh’s
motives in throwing his bash were
far from holy. But the Torah is telling
us the story, the Rebbe suggested,
to teach us an invaluable lesson.
Even this paranoid, foolish king
understood that in life you got to
give it all you got! You ought not to
live a life of “quiet desperation.” Do
not settle for smallness. You got to
suck the marrow out of life. Carpe
Diem! Life calls on us to live it to
the fullest.
If even the Persian dictator understood
this, how much more do we—
G-d’s people—need to understand
this! Do not settle for smallness.
Give life all you got. Utilize every
potential, every resource, every opportunity,
every faculty, and every
talent. Do not squander a moment,
and do not squander any aspect of
your soul.
Show up to life and to love with
every fiber of your being. Hold
nothing back. Dance to the end of
love. Celebrate to the heavens. Flex
all your spiritual, physical, and emotional
muscles—let your infinite
light radiate and inspire every person
you encounter.
Don’t be stingy with your love and
passion. Be who G-d meant you to
be and you will set the world on fire.
If someone is blessed with the ability
to write, continued the Rebbe,
then he or she must find a way to use
that to change the world for the better.
If you can raise 18 million dollars
a year for Jewish education, do
not be content with 17 million. Do
not let fear or too much logic stifle
you. Aim for the top. Do not make
your target close and easy just to
avoid fear and shame.
The days of an impersonal, restrictive
Judaism must remain behind
us. The Torah wants our youths,
and each of us, to develop wings—
wings that will propel them upward
to reach their maximum potentials
and change the world!