Esther

Chapter 1

It was in the days of Achashverosh. He was the Achasverosh who reigned from Hodu to Kush, 127 countries. In those days King Achasverosh sat on the royal throne in the Castle Shushan. In the third year of his reign he made an orgy for all his noblemen and servants; the army of Persia and Madai, the royalty and nobility of the countries were in his presence. He displayed the wealth of his glorious kingdom and the honor of his royal majesty for many days - 180 days! And when these days were over the king made a seven-day orgy for all the important and ordinary people of Castle Shushan, in the court of the garden of the king's palace. There were hangings of white, finest cotton, and blue, fastened with cords of the finest linen; and purple on silver rods upon pillars of marble. The divans were of gold and silver; the floor of alabaster, marble, pearl and precious stone. Drinks were served in goblets of gold and in unique vessels; royal wine in abundance, as befits a king's bounty. And the drinking was according to the law that no one force [anyone to drink]; for the king had instructed all the ministers of palace protocol to do as each person wished.

Queen Vashti also made an orgy, for the women, in the palace of King Achasverosh. On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he ordered Mehuman, Bizeta, Charvona, Bigta, Avagta, Zetar, and Karkas, the seven chamberlains who served in the presence of Achasverosh the king to bring Queen Vashti, wearing the royal crown, to the king to show the people and the noblemen her beauty, for she was the most beautiful woman in the world. But Queen Vashti refused to heed the king's command that had been delivered by his chamberlains. The king became enraged and his fury burned within him.

The king spoke to the wise men who knew the times. (This was the king's procedure: To present questions of law to his legal staff.) Those closest to him were Karshena, Shetar, Admata, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memukhan, the Seven Princes of Persia and Madai, who had access to the king and who were extremely prominent in the kingdom. "What is the law regarding Queen Vashti who failed to perform the bidding of King Achasverosh as delivered by the chamberlains?" And Memukhan answered before the king and the princes, "Queen Vashti has not wronged only the king, but also all the princes and peoples who are in the countries of King Achasverosh. For the queen's deed will become known to all the women and they will denigrate their husbands when they say that King Achasverosh commanded Queen Vashti to be brought before him, but she wouldn't come. And the noblewomen of Persia and Madai, who have heard of the queen's deed, shall be telling it today to all the king's princes. There will be plenty of contempt and anger. If it pleases the king, let him issue an irrevocable, royal decree, and let it be entered in the laws of Persia and Madai, that Vashti come no more before King Achasverosh; and let the king give her throne to another who is better than she. And when the decree that the king makes shall be publicized throughout his entire great kingdom, all wives shall give honor to their husbands, whether of high social station or low." The suggestion pleased the king and the noblemen; and the king did as Memukhan advised. He sent copies of the decree to all the king's countries; to every country in its alphabet and to every people in their language: "Every man shall rule in his home and his language shall be the language of the house."

* * *

WHY WE WOE

In the days of Achashverosh, everyone wailed: "Vay- hi! - Woe to us!" (Megillah 11a; Esther Rabbah Introduction:11).
We all have days which are good, when our Jewishness goes well and we know God is helping us along the way.
And we all have days which we think are bad, when we feel as if God is rejecting us, that the difficulties we experience are His way of blocking our way. As if our efforts toward Jewishness have no meaning to Him (Likutey Moharan I, 33:1-3).
But this "bad" is really good.
It's God's way of refining our intentions, of rousing our desire to follow His way. Because we need a burning resolution to get through the challenges He puts in our way (Likutey Moharan I, 66:4).
And sometimes temptation is the "bad." We feel as if God is pushing us away. As if He's telling us: "Go be a gentile! You'll never be a good Jew anyway!" >(Rabbi Nachman's Wisdom #7, 69).
God forbid! that's not His intention. He'd never push any Jew out of the way. It's just that sometimes our souls are so sullied, that justice requires He put those thoughts in our way (Likutey Moharan I, 115).
But in the days of Achashverosh, before we had learned this lesson, we thought that God really didn't want us. So we attended the orgy, not withstanding temptation. God saw we weren't yet ready for Him to give us a really good day, so He sent us Haman to give us a really "bad" day.
And Haman's Decree of Extermination was bad - but only if we see it that way. Because rather than lose heart, we sought God, since Mordekhai the Tzaddik rose to show us the way.
So it all depends on our perspective - do we see cause to take courage or to despair? And if we despair, the first three letters of the Tetragrammaton are inverted, which reads: "Hoy!" (Zohar III, 74b; Likutey Moharan II, 82).
And that is why we woe. God! God! Show us the way to the Tzaddik who will give us the proper perspectives. Grant us the courage to seek You despite those thoughts You put in our way! *

INSANITY

He was the ACH-ash-ve-ROSH* - the brother of the grandiose one (Megillah 11a). He was the Achashverosh who reigned from Hodu (India) to Kush (Ethiopia) - over the entire world(ibid.).
Madness!
But we still don't see it.
The ultimate insanity!
But we have yet to look.
In fact, we consider it "normal" - the way things are. The idea - the delusion - that one of us is "better" than the other, or the very idea that we can be compared. Can we say that an adult is better than a child, or that one person's God-given talents should be compared to another's? It's like comparing two colors or two fruits - is blue better than beige, are plums better than pears?
But in our distance from God, in our feeling apart from Him, we feel an inner vacuum, a loss of true self. So the inner question "Who am I?" is answered: "I'm better than he is" or "I'm not like that." And we never stop to wonder how out of touch we are if we think and espouse insanity like that.
Now, Haman was a nothing, a real nobody. He had been a village barber and a bathhouse attendant (Megillah 16a). But, over- inflated by ACH-ash-ve-ROSH to grandiose proportions, he tried to allay his feelings of no-self.
The "Haman" of the soul comes from the Vacuum - the realm of existence "vacated" by God. So whenever we enter the Vacuum, we feel like nothing and feel compelled to compensate by aggrandizing our selves. And sometimes we fill the inner Vacuum with vicarious pride by "bowing to Haman," by idolizing the misperceived "betterness" of someone else's self (Likutey Halakhot, Tefillin 6:23).
So ACH-ash-ve-ROSH's airs are all-permeating. He reigns not only from India to Ethiopia, but from Hodu, the majestic, to Kush, the lowly. Because when we "live" in Hodu we are externally "better" - by virtue of our talents or possessions. And when we "live" in Kush we are externally "lesser" - by virtue of our lack of talent or possessions. Yet, wherever we "live," we are unequalled - by virtue of simply being our very own selves. And to see one another as "better" or "lesser" is insanity and a negation of our own selves (Likutey Halakhot, Orlah 5:16).
But to let go of this madness and leave the Vacuum, we need a "Mordekhai the Tzaddik" to show us the way. Because Mordekhai the Tzaddik personified greatness, not an external greatness, but a greatness which stemmed from a humble self. Since he knew the secret of true humility, he was not compelled to aggrandize himself (Rabbi Nachman's Wisdom #140). And he shows us how to let God in, leave the Vacuum and find our true selves.
Then we have no need to compare ourselves with others. We are even humbled before our own selves (Likutey Moharan I, 14:5; ibid. 79). Because we then know that our self is not ours to compare with another's - it is our essence, our Eternal Spark, our Godly self (ibid. 22:5; see Crossing The Narrow Bridge, Chapter 17).
So on Purim we exchange courses of food with one another to show that we are all equal. To those who have nothing we also give, so that they too should know they are equal.

THE THRONE OF WILL POWER

Not being of royal descent, Achashverosh bribed his way and "bought the throne." But then he saw he was unable to sit on King Solomon's throne (which had been plundered at the beginning of the Exile). So he ordered an imitation made (Megillah 11a; Esther Rabbah 1:12).
It doesn't take much to order people about. Anyone can do that. But many of us think we have the right.
And it takes even less to expect that others will comply, but we somehow mistake wielding power for Malkhut/Kingship, for Power.
Because forcing others to obey us is really an empty win, the desire to do so coming from the emptiness within - from the feeling we are nothing unless others fulfill our will. But when we are aware of our Godly souls - and of others' - of the dignity that lies within, we seek only to serve God, to help others do so, with no need to control.
And God's purpose in Creation - to manifest His Malkhut, His Kingship, His Power - was surely not out of a need to control or wield power. It was to give us the pleasure and joy of serving Him. And when we accept that and see it as such, then God will have revealed His Power.
Because Power is to inspire others to do what is in their own best interest (Likutey Moharan I, 34:2). To tell them in such a way that they listen and comply willingly. So when God inspires us to serve Him - to serve Him of our own free will - then we have fulfilled His purpose by carrying out His Will. But would God seek to control us, deny us free will, He would make us into puppets and foil the fulfillment of His own Will.
And this itself is our reward, the best thing for us: To experience His Malkhut, His Kingship, His Power. To experience our will as an expression of His, to know that we are integral to its fulfillment. To dissolve all inner resistance to following His Will and then to experience the joy - the reward - in serving Him.
Yet, even in our daily lives, God has invested us with His Malkhut, with His Power: Family, friends and those dependent upon us - they are ours - our responsibility - to guide and inspire. But when we think they exist only for us to wield power, then we have failed to make proper use of God's Malkhut, of His Power. We have taken Malkhut and made it our slave, to fulfill our whims and wishes, so that we may feel "in power" >(Likutey Moharan I, 56:1-2). And those whom we controlled may become our lifelong "puppets" - because rather than guiding and inspiring, we wielded power.
And this was Achashverosh: His life goal was power - he bought the throne to gain power. He killed Queen Vashti, his wife, for defying his power. He had an imitation of King Solomon's throne built for himself, thinking that that would consolidate his power. What Achashverosh didn't realize was that he lacked King Solomon's Power which is why he couldn't sit on King Solomon's throne. Because that throne symbolized the Divine Throne through which God emanates His Power, and only those who control themselves and inspire others can sit on such a throne. But Achashverosh's throne was a sham. It simply showed his lack of Power.
And Mordekhai the Tzaddik exemplifies Power. He nurtured Esther from her infancy (2:7) and continued to do so even after she reached power. Every day of Esther's reign Mordekhai passed by her court to encourage her (Me'am Lo'ez 2:11). And with his Power, he inspired the Jews to return to God and avoid Haman's evil power. He spoke to our hearts, he addressed our free will - Mordekhai wielded his "Will Power."
So MoRDekhai is called MaR Dror/free Power, because he had no need to control others, to wield power. His Malkhut was coercion- free, capable of inspiring others to use their own will power.
Mordekhai - the Tzaddik - shows us how to sit on the Throne of Will Power. *

UNIQUENESS

Achashverosh wanted to flaunt his grandeur, so he donned the magnificent robes of the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) which had been looted from the Temple (Megillah 12a).
The priestly robes were extremely magnificent, its threads woven from five unique colors (Exodus 28:6). These robes symbolized the uniqueness of our people - and the uniqueness of each and every one of us (Likutey Halakhot, Hashkamat HaBoker 1:10).
Because Tiferet/Magnificence shines forth from contrast, while sameness and conformity tend to be dull. So God is extolled by our uniqueness, by the entire tapestry of all Jewish souls (Likutey Moharan I, 17:1).
But Haman and Achashverosh sought to destroy us, they wanted to homogenize us. Haman told Achashverosh, "There is one people" (3:8) - "Those Jews are all the same," negating our individual uniqueness (Likutey Halakhot, Purim 2). And Achashverosh donned the magnificent robes, to say: The Jewish people are no longer unique.
But Mordekhai the Tzaddik embellished the entire people, revealing what was special in each and every one of us. He brought everyone to accept his specific role and to accept that each other's role is also unique.
Because we must know that each of us is special, with a specific, unique part in God's plan. And even the lost souls who have forsaken their people can return and reclaim their roles as unique.
"...And Mordekhai left the king's presence, clad in royal attire..." (8:15), in magnificent, uniquely colored garments. *

THE PLEASURE PRINCIPLE

What grave sin did the Jewish people commit to deserve annihilation? They enjoyed themselves at Achashverosh's orgy (Megillah 12a).
Pleasure is the Principle of Creation.
The pleasure - the NOAM - God derives from our human service is the cause of Creation.
And the pleasure we experience in serving Him even when facing difficulty and distraction - MONayA - is God's purpose in Creation.
Because then, our pleasure - our NOAM - and His become one, and His Presence - His dwelling, His MAON - is with us (Avodat Yisrael p. 8d).
But sometimes we forget to yearn for this pleasure. We forget our purpose in this world. We forget the Principle of Creation and we crave "fallen pleasure." We forget the spiritual, we forget what life is about and we satisfy ourselves with physical pleasure.
We forget that to exist we don't need physical pleasure (Likutey Moharan I, 62:5). Moshe lived for 40 days on Mount Sinai without food or drink. It was not that he fasted, living on prior nutrition, but that he was nourished by the pleasure of the experience he was having (Zohar I, 135b). The intense spiritual closeness, the intimate emotional proximity, was enough to sustain him for 40 days (Magen Avot p.16; cf. Tzaddik #238). And we all know the feeling of a deeply blissful experience when we have no need for physical pleasure. But to the degree that we are far from experiencing spiritual pleasure, to that degree we feel the need for physical pleasure.
And Adam - on his level - made the mistake: He forgot to serve God and ate from the Tree. And by craving fallen pleasure he diminished God's pleasure in Creation. So God told him that his lifespan - his time for pleasure - would be diminished (Likutey Halakhot, Shechitah 2:9).
And now we know the gravity of what happened in Shushan - not because we ate non-kosher food, because the food at the orgy was strictly kosher! (Magid Maysharim, Vayakhel, Purim). "Eating kosher," we still faced extinction - because we craved only sensual enjoyment from the food (Vilna Gaon; Likutey Halakhot, Birkhot HaReiach 4:5).
And when God curtailed Adam's life for craving fallen pleasure - when He reproaches us for doing the same - the words that He used resound through the ages: "HaMiN ha'etz" - "[did you eat] from the Tree?"
For HaMaN, in advising Achashverosh to invite us to the orgy Esther Rabbah 7:13) - in enticing us to enjoy the "orgy" today (The Aleph-Bet Book, Eating A:6) - and later, in pressing to liquidate the Jewish people, took counsel "from the Tree" (Chullin 139b).
But Mordekhai the Tzaddik drew us out. The Tzaddik lifts us out of fallen pleasure. So that when self-serving pleasure becomes our principle of life, he shows us how to experience God-serving Pleasure. And when we crave the physical to pacify our craving Emptiness, he shows us how to feel Purpose in Creation.
And the "fast for three days" (4:16) was not mere abstention - it was also "no eating or drinking" (ibid.) because there was no need! The spiritual uplift we then experienced, the spirit of repentance that we had, brought us to a Pleasure that "nourished" us for those three days.
And in instituting the Purim feast, Mordekhai shows us how to be with God, in His Maon - how to experience the Noam and taste the Pleasure - because of physical pleasure, not despite it. *

THE SELF SERVICE FEAST

"The Court" denotes this world. "The Garden" denotes the Garden of Eden. "The King's Palace" denotes God's innermost worlds (Vilna Gaon).
An axiom of Jewish faith is the reward of the Future.
But we sometimes misperceive the meaning of this basic tenet. We may tend to think that it's perfectly alright to "serve God" and be a "good Jew" with anticipation of reward as our sole or main intention. After all, God promised it to us. Didn't He?...We didn't have to do it. Did we?...So He owes it to us. Doesn't He?...
And, of course, on an elementary level, it is true. In this world you do as you're told and in the next world God "pays" you for your efforts.
But at the same time, no one can really say that, when reward is the main goal of our Jewishness, we have really served God. In fact, we might well say that we served ourselves more than we served God (Chovat HaLevavot, 5:5).
And this is "the Court," "the Garden" and "the Palace" of Achashverosh: An invitation that we "serve ourselves" with reward as the feast. To view reward (whether in this world or the next) as something to be craved; to fill our "innards" (Likutey Moharan II, 37); to focus our intentions on it and make our Jewishness "Self Service."
And so, the enigma of reward remains an enigma.
But only as long...as long as we are overly concerned with it and worry about God's judgement in the Hereafter. Only as long as we focus on it and trouble ourselves: "Did I do it right?" - thinking that then we will have earned it. And only as long as we see reward as separate from our service of God and as distant as the Future.
Because then we lose sight of the joy in serving Him today. We forget to enjoy serving Him in the here and now. We forget to rejoice in the opportunity to just do our best and leave the rest to Divine Wisdom (Likutey Moharan I, 5:2; Rabbi Nachman's Wisdom #48, 235).
But in serving God now, without expectation, in focusing on the mitzvah of the moment, we here and now see reward right before us and have no need to look to the Future (Likutey Moharan, I 5:2; Vilna Gaon, Shir HaShirim 1:3).
And the timeless joy that we have in this temporal experience will expand ad infinitum in the Future. *

THE RELATIVITY OF THEORY

Throughout the Megillah, wherever "the king" is mentioned without Achashverosh being specified, it is an allusion to God (Esther Rabbah 3:10).
One of the inherent characteristics of Divinely inspired writings such as Megillat Esther is multifacetedness. It can be understood on a virtually infinite number of levels.
The child hears just a story. And as we grow, our understanding of that story also grows and deepens.
Some of us see Torah ethics in the story. Some of us see the eternity of the Jewish people. Others see the living halakhah. And yet others see acronyms of Divine Names laden with kabbalistic meaning.
Yet they are all different levels of understanding the same story.
On the simple story level, "the king" always means Achashverosh. But on a deeper level "the King" refers to God. And then it becomes a whole different story.
And it all depends upon what our ears are attuned to hear and what our eyes are trained to see. And on a deeper level, it all depends on what we really want to see. So nonbelievers see what they want, because they've decided beforehand what they will see.
And it's the same thing with the Torah lessons of the Tzaddik. They can be read simply, on the interpretative level. They can be studied for their kabbalistic significance. But above all, they can be understood for the illumination, the guidance and encouragement that are woven into them.
But only when we look for it will we find that inspiration. If we predecide to mock, we will find a pretext to do so (Likutey Moharan I, 31:9).
So whatever theory, whatever conclusion we draw, it's all relative to what we've predetermined. And that's the Relativity of Theory. *

NAKED SOULS

Vashti would strip Jewish women naked and make them violate the Sabbath. Therefore, measure for measure, she was ordered to appear before Achashverosh and the dignitaries on the seventh day of the orgy, the Sabbath - naked and bare (Megillah 12b).
There are souls - "naked souls" - who have done nothing Jewish with their lives Zohar I, 224a; ibid. II, 150a; Rabbi Nachman's Wisdom #23, 195). No Torah...no mitzvot...Because when we lack these spiritual "garments," we are "naked"...and cannot experience God's Presence (Zohar II, 97b).
So we prepare ourselves in this world for that great experience (ibid. I, 66a). The Torah, the mitzvot we do - fully aware and experiencing to our limits the joy...the awe...in serving God - train our souls to experience the spiritual. So that when our souls take final departure of their physical "garment," we will receive spiritual "garments" - our spiritual senses will be attuned - with which to perceive the Ultimate. We will be able to approach God with "pre-cognition."
But to the degree that we lack these garments - this "pre-view,"
this "fore-taste" - we return to God "naked."
The way we came.
And it's a great pity. In this world the needy among us can at least find someone who will help keep them from being exposed. But in the Hereafter, if we don't bring "garments" with us, we won't be able to get any there.
And so, these "naked souls" remain outcasts - aliens in the Spiritual World. Eternally searching for a "garment" in the World of Eternal Rest.
But never finding.
And this is Vashti - "Vashti." She worked Jewish women on the Sabbath - she denied them "Eternal Rest." Because these "Daughters of Israel" - these souls - were "naked," so on the Sabbath, Vashti had them work - bare (Vilna Gaon, Megillah 12b).
But there is a Tzaddik who cares - even for forlorn souls. A Tzaddik who has "garments" to spare, a Tzaddik who can cover our bare souls. A Tzaddik who will "lend" us inspiration, so that we may then care for our own souls (Tzaddik #48, 228).
And this was Mordekhai, who for the seven days of the orgy prayed and fasted (Targum 1:10). He prayed on behalf of the people - he "lent us ears" to "hear" his prayers. He "lent" us thoughts of repentance which seeped into our consciousness. Thoughts that identified us with our Jewishness, thoughts that spoke to our Jewish hearts. Thoughts that said: "God! Where am I?! What have I done?! Help me return!"
And those thoughts reached even those who had enjoyed the orgy for six days. But on the seventh day they refrained from going because in their hearts they felt their Jewishness and wanted to return.
Mordekhai's prayers had reached them.
That day, the seventh day of the orgy, was Yom Kippur - the Sabbath of Sabbaths. The day of Eternal Rest (Ya'arot Dvash I 3).