On Seder night, the gates of heaven open and requests are accepted, and this year we have so much to ask for – victory over our enemies, the release of all those kidnapped, inner unity.
This year we will hold the Seder when we are less tired and exhausted. On the eve of the holiday, we received a Shabbat of rest, which came after the toil and arrival of difficult weeks, sleepless nights, shopping trips and scrubbing the entire house. This is an opportunity to connect with freshness to the inner meaning of this night, on which we left Egypt.
We can "pass" the Seder with a quick reading of the Haggadah, aiming to quickly get to the "prepared table." We will have a nice family meal, but we have missed the main point. The family gathering around the prepared table is only the external framework for the true essence of the Seder, and it is a shame to focus on the framework and abandon the picture.
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The children at the center
To feel the true meaning of the Seder, we must penetrate its inner essence. Without the inner aspect, the external component loses its flavor and becomes an oppressive burden. Imagine if we did not feel the taste of eating. In such a state, we would see it as a hassle and a burden. The taste of the meal turns the effort that went into preparing it into a pleasure, and it is what gives it meaning.
Even Seder night is like that. The interiority of this night is so rich that it is difficult to decide where to begin.
First and foremost, it is intended to pass on the light of Judaism and the tradition of the fathers from generation to generation. Many things are done on this night simply to arouse the attention of children and make them interested and question. All of this is based on the eternal commandment "And you shall tell your son" – to tell the children of the next generation about the birth of the people, its traditions and heritage.
After the children ask, "What has changed?" comes the stage where the father must respond and explain. It is not enough to simply read the Haggadah, but it is the father's duty to explain things to his children, according to their age and level. This is the time to tell about the birth of the people of Israel, about their miraculous exodus from slavery to freedom, about receiving the Torah at Mount Sinai, and about continuing the heritage that sets us apart and that we have carried for thousands of years.
Time of desire
Seder night is also a 'night of preservation', when the gates of heaven are opened and requests are accepted, and this year we have so much to ask for – victory over our enemies, the release of all those kidnapped, inner unity.
The great men of Israel throughout the ages have noted the sanctity and uniqueness of the Seder night, as a miraculous hour of will. In one of the ancient books it is stated: "Every person should be anxious with fear to fulfill the statement of the Sages who established the commandments of the Seder and the Haggadah, and it will not be easy for him. Even if there are some things in the Seder that seem to the person not to be strictly observed, he should be wise in his mind to fulfill them, as there is nothing empty in them.".
Those close to the world of Hasidism can benefit from her abundant commentary on the significance of chametz and matzah, on the spiritual-mental exodus from Egypt that occurs every day, on the power given on Passover to "break free" and leap forward, in a sudden great leap, beyond normal limitations, and on and on.
All of these are the true reason behind the Seder. When it is conducted according to its rules, also in the inner and spiritual sense, one feels that all the effort and trouble do not count in the face of the sense of exaltation that this night gives us, and the strength that we draw from it for the entire year.
