Drinking on Purim

(1) 1. RAMA: It is a mitzvah to many feasts during Purim (Tur), but one fulfills his obligation with only one feast (Mordechai) One who does the Purim meal at night does not fulfill his obligation. RAMA: Nevertheless, one should be happy and add more during his meal even at night (Teshuvat Mahariv).

(15) How is the obligation of this meal? That one eat meat and prepare as pleasing a meal as his hand can [afford]. And he should drink wine until he becomes intoxicated and falls asleep from his intoxication. And likewise is a person obligated to send two portions of meat or two types of dishes or two types of food to his fellow, as it is stated (Esther 9:22) "and sending portions, one man to another" — two portions to one man. And anyone who increases sending to friends is praiseworthy. And if he has no [means to do this], he should trade with his fellow: This one sends his meal to that one and that one sends his meal to this one — in order to fulfill, "and sending portions, one man to another."

(2) 2. One is obligated to be intoxicated on Purim to the point where he does not know [the difference] between "accursed is Haman" and "blessed is Mordechai". RAMA: Some say it is not necessary to become drunk so much, but rather to drink more than he is used to (Kol Bo), and to fall asleep, and while he sleeps he does not know [the difference] between "accursed is Haman" and "blessed is Mordechai" (Maharil). [There is no difference on Purim] between one who has more and one who has less, as long as his heart is directed to heaven. One should not fast on Purim, except for a fast for a [bad] dream, and see earlier Siman 568 and Siman 570. There are those who have the custom to dress in Shabbat/Yom Tov clothes on Purim, and that is correct (Maharil). We have the custom to make the Purim meal after the afternoon prayer, and pray the evening prayer at night. We pray the afternoon prayer while most of the day remains, and most of the meal needs to be during the day (Minhagim). And it should not be like those who have the custom to start close to evening, and most of the meal happens during the night of the 15th. When Purim falls out on Friday, they should have the meal in the morning because of honor for the Sabbath (Minhagim). And one who wants to [have his meal] every [Purim] in the morning is allowed to (T"H). Some say that there is [significance] to eating seeds on Purim as a remembrance for the seeds that Daniel and his friends ate in Babylonia (Kol Bo). It is good to delve a bit in Torah before one begins the meal, and a support for that is (Esther 8:16) "The Jews had light and happiness...", which we learn out "radiance" - that's Torah (Mahariv). One is obligated to drink a little and be a little happy on two days, the 14th and the 15th (Minhagim), and so is the custom. And some say that if one causes damage to his fellow through his happiness on Purim, he is exempt from restitution (Terumat HaDeshen, Part I 110). And see Terumat HaDeshen Laws of Damages.

"Until one does not know." - Until and not including, for this [level of not knowing] would reach the drunkenness of Lot. [...] And that which it says "they become inebriated. Rabbah arose and cut R. Zera's throat" - Since he was a poor person, as it says in Moed Kattan (28a) "The house of Rabbah [fed bread of] barley flour to people, and not [enough] could be found," and he was [thus] unaccustomed to drinking so much wine. He drank and was enticed by the wine until he reached the drunkenness of Lot.

"A person is obligated." One might ask, how can the sages obligate that which is mentioned in the Torah, Prophets, and other places, namely that drunkenness is a great pitfall? It is because all the miracles that were wrought for the Jewish people in the days of Ahasuerus were on account of drinking. In the beginning, Vashti was bothered on account of drinking and Esther came. Also, Haman's downfall was on account of drinking. Therefore, the sages obligate us to drink so that the great miracle will be remembered with wine drinking. In any case, this is a mitzvah but not an indispensable condition.

"He will not be aware [of the difference]." We should not become drunk and demean ourselves by rejoicing. We are not commanded to rejoice for the sake of debauchery and stupidity, rather we should rejoice with a delight that leads us to love G-d and acknowledge the miracles wrought for us.

(1) The Mitzvot of Joy and Kindness / The Mitzva to Rejoice and Eat a Se’uda

(3) Even though the obligation is to conduct one festive meal during the day, there is nevertheless a mitzva to conduct a meal on the night of Purim, serving foods that bring joy, and to eat and drink a little more than usual.

(1) The Mitzvot of Joy and Kindness / Laws of Drinking

(3) It is a mitzva even for women to drink a lot of wine that brings joy on Purim. However, they must be careful not to get drunk, because drunkenness is more degrading for women than it is for men, and it constitutes a breach of the mitzva of tzni’ut (modesty), for which women are praised.

(1) The Laws of One Who Drank [Wine] and One Who Is Drunk in [Regards to] Prayers, containing 3 s'ifim:
If one drank as much as a revi'it of wine, one may not pray [the Amidah] until [the effect of] one's wine passes. And if one drank more [than a revi'it]: if one is able to speak [as] before a king, if one prayed, one's prayer is [considered a] prayer; and if one is not able to speak [as] before a king, if one prayed, one's prayer is an abomination and one is required to go back and [pray again] when [the effect of] one's wine passes from one. And even if the time of prayer passed, one should make it up for it in the prayer that follows it, in accordance with the law of one who unintentional transgresses. Gloss: And the law of the Recitation of the Shema is the same as the law of [the Amidah] Prayer, but [regarding other] blessings, one may say them even though he is drunk (Mordechai, in the beginning of the chapter "Hadar" (Eruvin Chapter 6), and Hagahot Maimoniot on Chapter 4 of the Laws of Prayer).

(1) The Mitzvot of Joy and Kindness / The Meaning of the Mitzva of Drinking

(2) It is reasonable to ask: Both in Tanakh and in rabbinic literature (Bamidbar Rabba ch. 10, Vayikra Rabba 12:1), it is made clear that drunkenness is disgraceful and liable to bring one to sin. Why, then, are we commanded to get drunk on Purim? The reason is that all the miracles that God performed for the Jewish people on Purim happened through wine. Vashti was removed from her reign at the wine feast, and Esther then took her place. Haman’s demise occurred at a wine feast as well. We must therefore conclude that although drunkenness is generally disgraceful, one cannot ignore its positive aspects. Through wine, simple joy is made manifest and unconstrained material happiness, filled with strength and vitality, is expressed. Throughout the year, the disrepute and rowdiness that associated with drunkenness overshadow its positive aspects, and thus drunkenness causes many problems. On Purim, however, when we drink and rejoice over God’s salvation, in commemoration of the miracles He performed through drinking – the positive aspects of drinking are expressed.

(3) There is a deeper reason as well. On Purim, the eternal sanctity of Israel is revealed, and it becomes clear that everything God does to the Jewish people is for the good. Even things that initially seem bad eventually turn out to be for our benefit. Drinking wine for the sake of a mitzva shows that even the material aspect of Israel is holy at its core. Even though the body and its senses seem to impede the service of God, this is reversed on the sublime plane of Purim, when these physical elements greatly enhance our service of God, with joy and vitality.

(4) Let us delve even deeper. In general, Torah and intellect must guide our lives, and when one follows this path, he is happy, but his happiness is limited by his perception. However, on the lofty level of faith that we reach on Purim, we recognize that God runs the world for the good. Even if His ways are sometimes incomprehensible to us, we disregard our own perceptions and happily accept God’s governing of the world. This is the level of “until he does not know”: cleaving to God Who is beyond human comprehension. This is connected in its entirety to faith through self-sacrifice. With such sublime faith – the faith of the people of Israel – we achieve boundless joy.