Page 53 - HaMizrachi Purim Australia 5781

PURIM READING

comes to the king, into the inner court, this decree, and that is why he was furi- expression ‘Shushan HaBira’ in the
who is not summoned, there is but one ous when he found out at Esther’s party Megillah, it refers to the castle of the
law for him, to be put to death, except that Haman had exceeded the authority king… since bira is a castle” (Kad HaKe-
the one to whom the king extends the given to him. mach, Purim 130). Bira, the castle of the
golden scepter” (Esther 4:11). When Eventually, Mordechai’s plan succeeded. king, is the source of the power of the
Achashverosh graciously offers Esther “Then the work of the House of G-d… kingdom. For that reason, in modern
half of his kingdom, he is unwilling to was stopped, and it was suspended until Hebrew bira means the capital city.
give her the second half, which was the the second year of the reign of Darius, The words of Nechemia are a strong
Beit HaMikdash: “‘Half of the kingdom’ the king of Persia” (Ezra 4:24). Who was reminder that we have only one bira:
but not the whole kingdom, and not a Darius? Rashi explains: “After Cyrus, Yerushalayim. This is what the Jews
thing that would divide the kingdom. Achashverosh, who married Esther, in Persia forgot. Their comfortable
And what is that? The building of the reigned, and after Achashverosh, life caused them to become confused
Holy Temple” (Megillah 15b). Darius the son of Achashverosh, who regarding their capital city. For this

One more significant detail is required was the son of Esther, reigned” (Rashi reason, our Sages designated a spe-
to complete the picture. Achashverosh ibid). Darius, the son of Esther, was the cial celebration date for Yerushalayim,
tried to be friendly to the Jews. He did person who renewed the permission to Shushan Purim, “to honor the Land of
not oppose the rebuilding of the Beit build the Beit HaMikdash. Israel, which was in ruins at that time.”
HaMikdash overtly but rather used Despite this permission, all the Jews, Shushan Purim is a reminder that
messengers, the descendants of Amalek, including Mordechai, remained in Shushan is not our bira, nor Washing-
Haman and his 10 sons: “Achashverosh Shushan HaBira, enjoying full civil ton DC. We have only one capital city:
wondered saying: Mordechai seeks to rights and royal protection. This is one Yerushalayim HaBira.
build the Temple; it is impossible to of the reasons that we do not recite According to Rava, we forgo saying
build… Rather I will incite Haman Hallel on Purim: “Why don’t we say Hallel on Purim because we forgot the
against him; one will build and the other Hallel (on Purim)? …Rava said: ‘Since importance of dwelling in the Land of
will destroy” (Yalkut Shimoni 1053). We we are still the servants of Achash- Israel. Instead, that lost Hallel has found
see that the sons of Haman were the verosh’” (Megillah 14a). The Jews got its place on Yom HaAtzmaut and Yom
ones who wrote the accusation against confused and regarded Persia as their Yerushalayim, the days on which we
the Jews of Yerushalayim in the first year homeland, with Shushan as their capital were blessed to restore the honor of
of the reign of Achashverosh, as Rashi city. the Land of Israel and Yerushalayim as
explains: “I saw in Seder Olam (chapter There is only one other place in Tanach its capital city.
29): ‘These are the 10 who wrote a false where the word bira appears. When
accusation against Yehuda and Yerusha- Nechemia appealed to Darius: “And I
layim…Now what was the accusation? said to the king, ‘If it pleases the king,
To stop those who ascended from the may letters be given to me…that he
exile …who had commenced building gives me wood to make beams for the
the Temple’” (Rashi, Esther 9:10). How- gates of the bira that belongs to the Rav Ronen Neuwirth, formerly Rav of the
Ohel Ari Congregation in Ra’anana, is author
ever, Haman took his mandate much Temple’” (Nechemia 2:7–8). Rabbenu of “The Narrow Halakhic Bridge: A Vision of
further and decided to annihilate all the Bechaye explains the meaning of the Jewish Law in the Post-Modern Age”, pub-
Jews. Achashverosh didn’t know about word bira: “Anywhere you find the lished in 2020 by Urim Publications.

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