We are in Adar where two very important dynamics come into play:
Firstly:
מי שנכנס אדר מרבין בשמחה
Whoever enters Adar, has to increase their joy. This is very strange, because all of us enter the month of Adar, so by default you really don't have any choice but to rejoice.
On the other hand, if you are not aware that you are entering the month of Adar, without that consciousness, you are in effect not really entering into the potential of what this month holds and can offer you. Therefore, we have to be aware of this great gift and dynamic and then need to culitvate a consciousness to mindfully enter into and harness the gifts of this auscpious time.
Secondly:
וְנַהֲפוֹךְ הוּא
Esther 9:1 speaks of how the whole threat of eradicating the Jewish people turned on its head and the Jewish people became the threat to those who threatened them. The chapter goes on in verse 22 and says:
וְהַחֹדֶשׁ אֲשֶׁר נֶהְפַּךְ לָהֶם מִיָּגוֹן לְשִׂמְחָה, וּמֵאֵבֶל לְיוֹם טוֹב
"...and the month which was turned unto them from sorrow to gladness, and from mourning into a good (blessed and festive) day.
In short: the Jews received rest from their enemies and things amazingly turned out in their favor. It sounds like a dream.
I have always loved the Purim story. It has a building plot and twist that trumps the best novels. A perfect setup. It comes as no surprise that two days ago, on the 19th of Feb just as the month of Adar was about to enter, the Iranian nuclear narrative bubbled up like clockwork. Iran, the seat of ancient Persia, is where our Purim story originally took place. I say originally, because like all Biblical narratives, it is not over yet, and is still unfolding in its time to this day.
Haman was hanged by the gallows he made. Iran will probably blow itself up. OR it will send its nuclear missile, and in true Purim style and according to some of the sages, the thing will turn mid-air and return to its sender. K'pow!
The Iranian threat is at least tangible. They say they will do it. Most of the world however is under a constant hidden threat from a global money-hungry system that wants to erase most of mankind and have a good autocratic grip on the rest. We've been in an invisible fight or flight mode for most of our lives, as the workplace keeps you just alive enough to keep on running in your tailor-made hamster wheel fearing that your world will collapse if you try to exit it. You know there's more, but as always - and by design, it remains just out of your reach.
Adar tells you that you can get out. That you can turn this thing around. But the trick is that it is you who has to do it. How? Whoever enters Adar, has to increase their joy. Joy shatters the prison bars. Joy cuts a path of light for you to escape. In a true joyous state, you suddenly see the way out. Joy ups your spiritual perception. It raises you to Binah - that place where you can see between dynamics, between and through the wall of confusion.
And this is where we throw the chicken-or-egg-first idea out the window. If you believe that your happiness depends on an outside impetus that will make you happy, then you will stay stuck. You have to generate that happiness from within.
Inside out, upside down.
Once you do that, you can flip your threats and fears on its head. There is a redeeming aspect to this. The negative energy is not discarded - it's redeemed. The negative and all its potential turn into light itself.
Adar slows the hamster wheel down. It is an auspicious month in which you can actually slow things down and safely exit the rat race.
Another very important dynamic of Purim that is pivotal to this process is that the Jews accepted the Torah upon themselves voluntarily and willingly during this time. Yes, we stood at Sinai and we took it upon ourselves, but during Purim we did it without the smoke and fireworks. That conscious willingness to serve Hashem according to His Word is what drives this month.
So start with the Book of Esther. If you can, read the story of the Exodus out of Egypt in tandem. Read it a few times. SEE how Hashem turns the tables. SEE the victory, and rejoice in it as this month is a portal to all that was and will be during Adar. The victories that were already won and the future, where according to the sages, Purim will be the only festival that will remain during the time of the Full Redemption. Pull that victory into your here and now, and do it with joy! Dance on the Hamans of your life, those who threaten and bully you and keep you on an invisible leash. Stand up for what you believe. Like Mordechai, refuse to bow down another minute to that which is slowly suffocating you.
Joy, true and deep soulful joy, will show you the way.
Chodesh Tov y'all
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