(ב) וְכׇל־עַבְדֵ֨י הַמֶּ֜לֶךְ אֲשֶׁר־בְּשַׁ֣עַר הַמֶּ֗לֶךְ כֹּרְעִ֤ים וּמִֽשְׁתַּחֲוִים֙ לְהָמָ֔ן כִּי־כֵ֖ן צִוָּה־ל֣וֹ הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ וּמׇ֨רְדֳּכַ֔י לֹ֥א יִכְרַ֖ע וְלֹ֥א יִֽשְׁתַּחֲוֶֽה׃
(2) All the king’s courtiers in the palace gate knelt and bowed low to Haman, for such was the king’s order concerning him; but Mordecai would not kneel or bow low.
(א) כֹּרְעִים וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוִים. שֶׁעָשָׂה עַצְמוֹ אֱלוֹהַּ, לְפִיכָךְ, וּמָרְדְּכַי לֹא יִכְרַע וְלֹא יִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה:
(1) Kneeled and prostrated themselves. Because he made himself as a god; therefore, “but Mordechai would neither kneel nor prostrate himself.”
(ה) רַבִּי פִּנְחָס אָמַר,..., הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב אַחַר הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה גִּדַּל הַמֶּלֶךְ אֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ אֶת הָמָן בֶּן הַמְדָתָא הָאֲגָגִי וַיְנַשְֹּׂאֵהוּ, וְצִוָּה הַמֶּלֶךְ שֶׁיְהוּ כּוֹרְעִים וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוִים לוֹ, מֶה עָשָׂה הָמָן, עָשָׂה לוֹ צֶלֶם מְרֻקָּם עַל בְּגָדָיו וְעַל לִבּוֹ, וְכָל מִי שֶׁהָיָה מִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה לְהָמָן הָיָה מִשְׁתַּחֲוֶה לַעֲבוֹדַת כּוֹכָבִים.
(5) Rabbi Pinḥas said: The king commanded that they should bow and prostrate themselves to him. What did Haman do? He crafted for himself an embroidered image on his garment and on his heart, and anyone who would prostrate himself to Haman would prostrate himself to the image.
Herodotus Book I
134.
When one man meets another on the road, it is easy to see if the two are equals; for, if they are, they kiss each other on the lips without speaking; if the difference in rank is small, the cheek is kissed; if it is great, the humbler bows and does obeisance to the other.
יכרע. וישתחוה ידועים ונכן מה שדרשו רז"ל כי צורת צלם וע"ז היו בבגדיו או על מצנפתו.
Targum Sheni of Esther (of Geonic provenance) wherein Mordechai and Haman are presented as two generals in Ahashverosh’s army, dispatched with their armies to put down a rebellion in India. Space does not permit us to present all the fascinating details of the story, but in the end, Haman agrees to sell himself to Mordechai as a slave and the bill of sale (the wording of which is presented, in full, in the Aggadah) is written on Mordekhai’s leggings. Mordekhai, as such, refuses to bow to Haman because he is Haman’s master; indeed, every time Haman passes by while others are bowing, Mordekhai points to his leggings as a not-so-subtle reminder of who owns whom. This approach, while attractive, is even more difficult, as it means that Mordekhai is allowing his personal sense of pride to endanger his own life and that of his people.
Mordekhai refuses to bow to Haman because he (Mordekhai) is a descendant of Yaakov and he will not bow to a descendant of Esav. When the Midrash challenges this on the grounds that Yaakov and his sons did, indeed, bow to Esav (Beresheet 33), Mordekhai’s response is that he is a descendant of Binyamin who, being in utero at the time, never did bow to Esav.
Yosef Lekach by Rav Eliezer Ashkenazi 1512- 1585
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Eliezer_Aszkenazy_grave.JPG
(ט) וַתִּיטַ֨ב הַנַּעֲרָ֣ה בְעֵינָיו֮ וַתִּשָּׂ֣א חֶ֣סֶד לְפָנָיו֒ וַ֠יְבַהֵ֠ל אֶת־תַּמְרוּקֶ֤יהָ וְאֶת־מָנוֹתֶ֙הָ֙ לָתֵ֣ת לָ֔הּ וְאֵת֙ שֶׁ֣בַע הַנְּעָר֔וֹת הָרְאֻי֥וֹת לָֽתֶת־לָ֖הּ מִבֵּ֣ית הַמֶּ֑לֶךְ וַיְשַׁנֶּ֧הָ וְאֶת־נַעֲרוֹתֶ֛יהָ לְט֖וֹב בֵּ֥ית הַנָּשִֽׁים׃
(9) The girl pleased him and won his favor, and he hastened to furnish her with her cosmetics and her rations, as well as with the seven maids who were her due from the king’s palace; and he treated her and her maids with special kindness in the harem.
״וְאֵת שֶׁבַע הַנְּעָרוֹת וְגוֹ׳״. אָמַר רָבָא: שֶׁהָיְתָה מוֹנָה בָּהֶן יְמֵי שַׁבָּת. ״וַיְשַׁנֶּהָ וְאֶת נַעֲרוֹתֶיהָ וְגוֹ׳״. אָמַר רַב: שֶׁהֶאֱכִילָהּ מַאֲכָל יְהוּדִי. וּשְׁמוּאֵל אָמַר: שֶׁהֶאֱכִילָהּ קְדָלֵי דַחֲזִירֵי. וְרַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אָמַר: זֵרְעוֹנִים, וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר: ״וַיְהִי הַמֶּלְצַר נוֹשֵׂא אֶת פַּת בָּגָם וְנוֹתֵן לָהֶם זֵרְעוֹנִים״.
The verse states: “And the seven maids chosen to be given her out of the king’s house” (Esther 2:9). Rava said: She would have a separate maid attend her each day, and she would count the days of the week by them, so she was always aware when Shabbat was. The verse continues: “And he advanced her and her maids to the best place in the house of the women.” Rav said: The advancement in the verse signals that he fed her food of Jews, i.e., kosher food. And Shmuel said an alternative understanding: The advancement was a well-intentioned act in that he fed her pig hinds, thinking she would view it as a delicacy, although in fact they were not kosher. And Rabbi Yoḥanan said a third understanding: He gave her vegetables, which did not pose a problem with regard to the kosher laws. And so it states with regard to the kindness done for Daniel and his associates: “So the steward took away their food and the wine that they should drink; and gave them vegetables” (Daniel 1:16).
קדלי דחזירי. וח"ו היא לא היתה אוכלת:
Pig hinds: But God forbid - she did not eat [them].