“Mi shenichnas Adar, marbin b’simcha” … the one who welcomes in Adar, increases in joy. 

As we have brought in this new Hebrew month, Adar, and with it, anticipate Purim, I’ve been reflecting deeply on the idea of joy. 

Our friend and colleague Rabbi Dr. Dalia Marx, writing in her book, “From Time to Time: Journeys in the Jewish Calendar”, that this adage, “mi shenichnas Adar, marbin b’simcha”, brings up important questions of what it means to feel joyful, when this joy might not come naturally to us. She notes, importantly, that whilst Purim is indeed a happy holiday, it does have its serious side.  

We know that we are not always happy – we go through rough times and experience sadness and frustration – all of which are perfectly human emotions which teach us valuable lessons in patience and resilience. 

We go through extremely happy times, too – a wedding, the birth of a child, B’nei Mitzvah, and so on. 

Yet, Rabbi Marx notes, we live in a culture that values instant gratification; we are taught to avoid difficulty or hardship. 

So, she asks again, that important question: What might real happiness be? 

Rabbi Marx comes to the conclusion that happiness is not about the absence of sadness; it is about choosing happiness every day. It is about a happiness that is full of meaning and creativity and a sense of wholeness, precisely because we have faced life’s difficulties and laughed. 

Purim is, therefore, the perfect story for the month of Adar. Outside of the Megillah text itself, which dictates that Purim is to fall in Adar, it is a story all about defying darkness: an orphan rises up to become royalty and defeats the forces who seek to destroy her people. A serious story, ending with serious reasons to celebrate. 

As the month of Adar calls us to increase in joy, Rabbi Marx writes, may it be a true, encompassing joy.  

We hope you will come and join us – our many Purim festivities can be found here. 

Chodesh Adar Tov!