Torah
Happiness from Within
By: Jen Goldsmith and Julia Lebovic
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On Purim there is an obligation to rejoice. What does it mean to be happy how do we achieve the happiness of Purim? Is there a mitzvah to get drunk and if so what does this have to do with happiness?
Rava says in Gemara Megillah you should be drunk enough to not know the difference between Haman and Mordecai. The Rambam says drink until you fall asleep.
Maybe the joy on Purim is just on the outside not on the inside. Maybe we act happy but we are not actually happy. Wearing costumes emphasizes the outward nature of Purim.
On the other hand, on the chagim, we actually have a commandment to be happy. The happiness on the shalosh regalim is different than the happiness on Purim. It's more inward and about connecting with Hashem. On Purim we have the command to have a "mishteh". The happiness of Purim is external and connected to things. How can we combine both types of happiness to carry us through the year?
The internal happiness builds up our connection to Hashem until we get to the point on Purim where our happiness can be exposed but only for a short amount of time. Our public happiness is only healthy is a short spurt, to build true happiness one has to build from within.
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| Uploaded: | Friday, March 10, 2017 |