Purim
– considered to be one of the most entertaining Jewish holidays – holds
relevance in today’s world as well. The story of Purim especially talks about
the courage showed by a woman called Esther, who saved the people of Persia from
extermination.
In
2021, the celebrations for Purim will begin on the evening of 25th
February and end the next evening. Purim can be described as the days of
feasting and spreading happiness around. On this day, Jews exchange presents
and enjoy a grand feast together. They also drink a special drink known as mishloachmanot.
Jews
also donate to charity, which is known as mattanot
la-evyonim. The meal that they enjoy together is known as se’udat Purim. In addition, the family
also spends a significant time praying and offering grace after meals – called Al HaNissim. There are several other
customs and traditions that are observed on a celebratory day, like wearing
costumes, going to parades, and drinking wine or other alcoholic beverages.
Purim
is celebrated every year on the 14th of the Hebrew month of Adar
which marks the day after the victory of Jews over their enemies.
So
what exactly is the message of this wonderful event? Basically, the festival of
Purim and its background story can be interpreted in several ways – it all
comes down to personal subjections.
But
the most popular and widely accepted interpretation of the story is this: God
always protects right from wrong, and He is there even when you fail to see His
presence. And lastly, God always plans ahead and He knows what’s good for His
people.
One
of the most important traditions of Purim is that Jews have to hold carnivals
and parades on the day. Hence, you should prepare for plays and parodies and
even beauty contests. Funnily enough, Purim is known as the Jewish Mardi Gras
by Americans.
Celebrations
on Purim should, however, not interfere with work obligations. Some sources
suggest the opposite – Jews shouldn’t carry on with their day like they
normally do and take a leave from work to spend quality time with family and
friends.
As
you can tell, it is essential that people dress up on the carnival day.
Children are especially excited about the day as they dress up as characters
that are present in the Book of Esther – like King Xerxes, Vashti, Queen
Esther, Mordecai and Haman.
The
tradition of masquerading actually started at the end of the 15th
century by Italian Jews and they were heavily influenced by the Roman carnival
that was quite famous in Europe at the time. This practice was initially only
observed in Europe but soon, Middle Eastern countries also caught up with it.
Why
do you think Jews dress up and masquerade themselves? Well, the tradition is
observed to emulate God who makes his presence felt while staying in a
disguised form. The idea is to show that God is behind every natural event and
He knows what’s best for us. Thereby, we should not feel demotivated and keep our faith
alive in the face of tribulations.
Like
we said before, charity is an important ritual of Purim. A lot of people follow
this tradition by making anonymous donations so that the dignity of the
recipient remains intact. The reason these people keep their identity hidden is
to highlight the aspect of miracles of the festival.
King
Achashverosh, Queen Vashti, Esther, Haman, and Mordecai are some of the most
popular festive traditional Purim costume ideas – the leading characters of the
story. The costumes made for the King and Queen of the story are a lot like the
ones that you wear on Halloween. For example, boys get to wear crowns and capes,
whereas girls boast colorful robes and tiaras that complete their look.
For
Esther, people go for the color purple and when it comes to Haman, they dress
in a Shepherd-like costume. For Vashti, the costumes are toga-like that remind
you of Cleopatra. Basically, all traditional Jewish outfits include colorful
robes that have the star of David incorporated.
Costumes
of Purim are not available at regular stores because they are a specialized
niche. However, you can still buy them from online stores like Annie’s
Costumes, Costume Craze, Etsy, and Amazon! Also, the costumes will only look
complete if you also buy the accessories, so make sure you leave a budget for
them. Graggers – the noisemakers – is an important accessory so just be aware
of that!
Look,
making your own costumes can be a tedious job but it can also be exciting and
fun. The idea is to look confident and comfortable when you wear them. Hence,
make sure that you leave room for creativity so that the day becomes memorable
for you.
What
we can tell you is that making your own costume is considerably easy. You don’t
have to go overboard and spend a lot of cash on buying the right clothes and
decorative accessories. In fact, costume-making doesn’t even demand sewing experience!
You
know what you should do? Raid your grandmother’s closet and pick out some
vintage pieces of clothes! Select some
sophisticated but retro hobo look for yourself – and just kill it on that day!
Normally, Purim costumes are one and the same – robes and togas.
So, you can make yours by using an old sheet. Get yourself a crown and use an
old cape to recreate a new look.
If you already have an old tiara stored somewhere in the house, you’re
good to go. But if not, then you must get one because the look of Esther is
incomplete without it. You can DIY it as well; check out this YouTube tutorial!
As we mentioned before, Gragger is really important. You can
create your own by filling a cardboard paper towel tube with beans and hide the
ends with a waxed paper. Simply decorate and shake it well.
Just remember that Purim is a day when you get together with your
loved ones and celebrate it to the fullest. Costumes and accessories are mere
additions to spark up your day and make it more festive. Always remember that
the celebrations should be done without disturbing the religious sentiments.
And hey – if you can’t find the best online
costume, we’ve given some DIY Purim costumes ideas below!
There
is nothing easier than this costume! Simply find a yellow shirt in your
wardrobe and put on black stripes on it. You may also go for a black striped
dress over it. Now give it yellow tulle, just to add an illusion of wings, pair
it up with a headband and antenna and you’re all done.
Look,
this is every mother’s go-to look for their kids when they’re infants. So, pull
up a bright orange shirt and make a faux cap add a black sleeper just to
complete the final jack-o-lantern effect.
Zombies
never go out of style – bring on a ripped outfit and splash a little bit of
faux blood on it. Put on face powder like it’s for free and paint your lips blood
red to complete the look. And hey! Don’t forget to lumber around.
If
you’re a lonely broken angel, this is going to be the look for you this Purim.
Find yourself a white sheet or dress from the closet and add a pair of wings at
the back. You can even do it yourself at home by cutting out a poster and
decorating it with love.
When
there are angels, devils are not far behind. Pick out this evil costume for the
day by donning a pair of horns. Pick out the jet red dress from your closet and
do a brilliant vampy makeup. You can take help from this YouTube tutorial!
This
is what we suggest. If you’re a family of three siblings, one should go for the
angel, one for the devil, and the last one can be a simple man or a woman.
Okay
we get that some cultures have negative associations with black cats, but
that’s not what Purim is for. On this day, nobody is evil and God is
everywhere. Hence, design this costume by wearing a black bodysuit. Add some
fur or you can go for a sexy belt as well. You may also wear a headband and
paint your face to indicate whiskers and a boop-able nose. Oh, and don’t forget
the tail!
Fairies
are a great choice for your little girls! You can create a costume at home
using clothes from the closet. Just pick
out a party dress and add a flower
wreath and some wings at the back. If feasible, you may directly purchase an
outfit from an online store!
Do
let us know which costume idea you liked the most!
Also,
like our page on Facebook for more information about Purim,
the great Jewish festival costumes people wear in Israel including warrior, viking girl, shield maiden!
What do you have to say about this
joyful and festive Jewish holiday? Also, stay tuned to Hayvine to know more about traditional purim costumes, couple purim costumes, easy costume ideas for toddlers and adults.
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