This year, the month of March lines up almost perfectly with the Hebrew month of Adar – 1 Adar falls on March 1, and the next month, Nisan, begins on March 30. The Talmud teaches that “when Adar begins, we increase in joy.” So, this year, we should be increasing in joy beginning on March 1, particularly as we make our way to the joyful holiday of Purim on 14 Adar/March 14.
Generations of Jews have asked whether it’s even possible to fulfill this expectation. Can we really feel more joy simply because a new month has begun? We can do specific actions at certain times, but can we really feel emotions on a calendar?
In our tradition, though, emotions and actions are not totally separate from one another. As Rabbi Shai Held puts it, what we might call an “emotion”–like love, joy, or sorrow–is “both an emotion that leads to action and, equally, a commitment to action that elicits emotion.”
The emotion of joy this month might drive us to celebrate Purim with friends, family, and community; to send Mishloach Manot to one another; to bake hamantaschen and delight in Purim festivities. But the reverse can also be true: we might celebrate together, eat festive foods, and laugh at the Purim Shpiel, Extravaganza, and Carnival in order to feel the emotion of joy so essential to this season.
We might also think beyond Purim to increase in joy this month. For many of us, this is a particularly difficult time to feel joy–we might be in mourning, experiencing illness and pain, or harboring despair about events in our country and around the world.
We can take action to shape our emotions: those of us despairing about the news might set up limits about how, how often, and where to consume news. Those of us despairing about a specific issue might volunteer or engage in advocacy. Those of us facing professional or uncertainty might prioritize stable and certain sources of joy, however small.
But joy isn’t just the absence of despair. This month, may we commit to actions that elicit joy: spending time with loved ones, celebrating Purim, engaging in meaningful learning…maybe even watching March Madness. And may the pockets of joy that emerge spur us to even greater action.
– Rabbi Sienna Lotenberg
