Lag Ba’Omer

Lag Ba’Omer, which falls on the 18^th of Iyar, is the thirty-third day of the Omer counting period from Passover to Shavuot. This holiday is a day of joy, where contrary to the rules applying to the rest of the Omer period, it is permitted to get a haircut, get married, dance, and listen to music. The reasons for the joyous day are as follows:

1. The plague in which the students of Rabbi Akiva were killed stopped.
2. It is the anniversary of the death of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, a student of Rabbi Akiva, who discovered secrets told in the Torah, as written in the book of the Zohar. Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai wished for people to be happy on this day.
3. Some say that on this day as well, Rabbi Akiva ordained his remaining students who were not among the 24 thousand killed in the plague. It was these remaining students who imparted the Oral Torah to the nation, which is a cause for great joy.

  Customs of the holiday in the Diaspora are similar to the customs of the Jews of Israel. In recent centuries, this includes going to Meron, the resting place of Rashbi (Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai), to rejoice, dance, and of course, to pray. The Jews of Poland, and especially the Jews of Galicia, used to travel on this day to Krakow to visit the grave of the Rama (Rabbi Moshe Isserles), one of the greatest rabbis of all generations, who also passed away on this day. Thousands and thousands came every year to pray at the grave of the Rama, lighting candles and giving charity. Many were saved by their prayers in this holy place. In the Rama's synagogue, adjacent to his resting place, the residents of the city and many guests would gather to hear a sermon in honour of the day. For many in Poland and Lithuania, there were no studies in cheder on Lag Ba’Omer. Celebrants went out with the children to the fields or forests outside the city, to shoot bows and arrows. The custom of the bow is to imply that during Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai’s lifetime, the bow was not seen, because he protected the nation from danger. Although lighting bonfires was not done on the holiday as is done now, there were chassidic people and others who gathered for meals, and they also lit candles and sang songs, such as "Bar Yochai", "Amar Rabbi Akiva" and more. Many chassidic rabbis, especially in recent generations, hold meals in the presence of their many followers, and give over Torah thoughts in public in honor of the Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and the holiday. Many pray at the graves of the righteous to ask them to intercede on their behalf in heaven, as the day is a time of prayer. Some mention Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai’s writings as there were righteous people who asserted that studying his works holds the same merit as travelling to his grave in Meron and one can therefore ask for salvation in the merit of this great rabbi. Some have the customs of eating carobs on the holiday, in memory of the carobs that Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and Rabbi Elazar ate when they lived in a cave. There are also those who have a custom to eat dairy on this day, such as the Tzemach Tzedek rabbi of Lubavicth as well as the Gerrer rebbes the Sfat Emet and Imrei Emet. The rebbes of Ropshitz would invite a guest from Israel for a meal on the holiday. In Pressburg, Hungary, Lag Ba’Omer was a day in honour of the Chevra Kadisha (burial society), and its managers held fancy meals in decorated halls, with a canopy at the head of the table, where the rabbis, gabbais (people who assist in running synagogues), and judges of the Jewish courts sat. In several communities in Hungary and Bukovina, it was a custom to send a plate of eggs as a gift to the dignitaries of the community. In places where the holiday was dedicated to the Chevra Kadissha, eggs were gathered from all the homes and were given the Chevra Kaddisha for their festive meal in the evening. In Worms and Frankfurt, Germany, Lag B’Omer was known as “the holiday of the students” because it is the date in which the plague that killed Rabbi Akiva’s students stopped. It was customary there for teachers to give brandy to their students and the rabbis and students held a festive meal. In the Far East: In India, they would change clothes, gather in the synagogue, light many candles, and study the Torah works of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai together. In Persia, those who vowed to honour Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai and thus face salvation during the year, held festive meals on the holiday. The community “divided” the hours of the day so that everyone could hold a festive meal and have guests. Some held this meal on Pesach Sheini (several days earlier) in order to host many guests, and would celebrate for several days in a row. People would go from meal to meal for several days, and the joy was great. In North Africa: In Tunisia, they gathered in homes and divided the Zohar into portions for everyone to study so that they could study the whole book. They then would have a large festive meal in honor of the Torah. The rich gave generous gifts to the students of the sages who studied in their homes. In Morocco, they studied the Zohar until midnight and then they celebrated all night, including a festive meal in the rabbi's house. In Tripoli, everyone gathered in one place, and often prayed and studied together in honor of the day. In other places: In Yemen, they closed the shops, and after they bathed and changed their clothes, they gathered at the synagogue and lit candles. They then read the entire "Idra Zota" together, with a special grace. In Rhodes, on this day, they collected the geniza items (worn out holy books and items, pages containing Torah words, and more) from all private homes and synagogues, and held a mass funeral for them in honour of the Torah.