Regarding the verse, “the Jews established and accepted upon themselves” (Megillah Esther), the Sages say that through this, what occurred at Mount Sinai—where G-d held the mountain over them like a jar and said to them, if you accept the Torah, fine, if not, here shall be your grave—was nullified. For in the days of Mordechai and Esther, the Jews accepted the Torah anew, of their own free will.
Thus, Purim surpasses the giving of the Torah. At Sinai, Israel said “we will do and we will hear” under compulsion, whereas on Purim the people accepted the Torah voluntarily. Hence the Megillah says, “and the Jews accepted what they had begun to do,” because the Sinai experience is considered only an initial stage regarding the acceptance of the Torah, which was fully realized on Purim.
Love That Compels
Chassidic teachings explain that the compulsion at Sinai was by no means a negative compulsion. On the contrary, the people said, “we will do and we will hear” out of immense love for G-d—but that love itself functioned as compulsion.
At Sinai, G-d poured an extraordinary love upon Israel, flooding them with His infinite light until their souls left their bodies. This Divine closeness created an irresistible pull toward G-d, leading them to declare, “we will do and we will hear.” This is called “G-d held the mountain over them” because through this supreme love, their free choice was suspended.
During Purim, the situation was reversed. There was no overt Divine revelation, and the days were marked by concealment of G-dliness. The decree and the miracle occurred as if by natural means, without a clear and open display of G-d’s supernatural power. In fact, the Megillah never mentions G-d’s name even once.
In this concealed reality, the Jews were tested. It was the first time the entire Jewish people faced a trial of loyalty to G-d. The test was severe: on one hand, a general threat of annihilation hovered over them; on the other hand, they could have converted to save themselves.
Yet not a single Jew even contemplated such a thing. This represented a renewed declaration of loyalty to G-d and His Torah—not through an overt Divine revelation, but through the people’s own free choice. On Purim, the Jews accepted the Torah anew, of their own volition, highlighting the greatness of these days.
Beyond Reason
This is reflected in the concept of ad d’lo yada on Purim (“one must become intoxicated on Purim until he does not know the difference between cursed is Haman and blessed is Mordechai”). On Purim, a Jew must transcend intellect and reason to reveal the suprarational connection between his soul, G-d, and the Torah. The self-sacrifice of the Jewish people in the days of Achashverosh was not intellectual. It expressed a deep, suprarational bond between the Jewish soul and G-d. It cannot be explained by reason, for it transcends reason.
So too, this inner connection is revealed each year on Purim. Yet, when intellect dominates, we cannot fully perceive it. Therefore, a Jew must rise above intellect, even through levsumei (intoxication), to uncover Purim’s inner essence—the intrinsic connection with G-d.
This is Purim’s link to redemption: for redemption itself reveals the inner essence of the physical world, filling it with awareness of G-d and revealing its hidden truth.
Breaking through the Limitations of Exile
When the service of G-d is carried out with joy that bursts beyond all limitations, then the service itself takes on a mode of breaking through all bounds and constraints. That is to say, one’s actions in the realm of charity... as well as Torah and mitzvot, are performed in a manner that transcends all limitations. When G-d sees that the Children of Israel are fulfilling their mission in a way that is beyond measure, then, since G-d operates on the principle of “measure for measure,” and in this regard many times over, it is understood that Hashem will nullify all the limitations of exile.
(the Rebbe, Purim Farbrengen, 5743—1983)
