Following his 180 day feast for all his international subjects, which ended a day earlier, King Achashverosh began a seven-day feast for his subjects living in Shushan, his capital. This feast ended with the death of his queen, Vashti.
Link: Esther ch. 1
R. Aryeh Levin, known as the “tzaddik [saint] of Jerusalem,” was legendary for his selfless dedication in assisting his fellow Jews, whether the sick, the poor, or those suffering under the British regime during the Mandate of Palestine (1920–1948).
Links: The Man Who Mistook His Wife’s Foot for His Own; The Value of Stories
In today's "Nasi" reading (see "Nasi of the Day" in Nissan 1), we read of the gift bought by the nasi of the tribe of Benjamin, Avidan ben Gidoni, for the inauguration of the Mishkan.
As a parent and a child, as siblings who remain bonded, as two young people in love, as in any marriage that stays alive—so we are with the One Above.
One chases, the other runs away. One runs away, the other chases in longing pursuit. One initiates, the other responds. The other initiates, the one responds.
It is a dance, a game, a duet, and it plays as surely as the pulse of life.
Until one falls away. Until it seems the game is over, that all is lost and it is time to move on.
That’s when the other looks and says, “This is not an other. We are one.” And so, they return to each other’s arms.
It is a great mystery, but in that falling apart, there is found the deepest bond.