The Talmud says that every Shabbat and Jewish holiday is "half spiritual, half physical." We spend part of the day praying in the synagogue (the spiritual), and the rest of the day eating a fine meal and relaxing at home (the physical).

Spirituality is not achieved exclusively by meditating alone on a mountaintop, or by taking vows of abstinence in an out-of-the-way monastery. Jewish spirituality comes through grappling with the mundane world in a way that uplifts and elevates. That's why yeshivas are always located near town and the bustle of commercial activity.

We don't retreat from life, we elevate it. On Friday night, we raise the cup of wine to make Kiddush and sanctify the Sabbath day. Spirituality, says Judaism, is to be found in the kitchen, the office, and yes, even in the bedroom.

One exception to this rule is Yom Kippur, when both halves are spiritual: We spend our entire day praying in the synagogue, with no food, no marital relations, and minimal rest.

The second exception is Purim, when both halves are physical: We feast, visit friends, dress in costumes, and drink to excess.

The Vilna Gaon (18th century Lithuania) explains that "Purim" shares the same letters as Yom haki-PURIM -- the official Biblical name for Yom Kippur. That which we accomplish on Yom Kippur with spiritual pursuits, we accomplish on Purim with physical pursuits. These holidays are two sides of the same coin, two halves of the same day.

GREATER THAN YOM KIPPUR

Interestingly, we see the balance of half-physical/half-spiritual reflected within each of these two holidays themselves. On Yom Kippur, we prepare for the fast by having a feast the day before. On Purim, we prepare for the feast by fasting the day before (Taanit Esther)!

We would assume that Yom Kippur is the greater of the two days. But in one sense, Purim is even greater: It is easier to achieve spiritual elevation on a day like Yom Kippur, when we pray and have no time for forbidden activities like gossip or getting angry. By fasting, the soul achieves dominance over the body.

But on Purim, in our state of rambunctious drunkenness, it is much harder to maintain our human dignity. As Rabbi Eliyahu Kitov writes: "If one attains holiness through affliction, and another attains holiness through indulgence, who is the greater of the two? It may be said that the one who attains holiness through indulgence is greater, for the attainment of holiness through indulgence requires an infinitely greater degree of striving and effort."

In this way, the challenge of Purim is greater. Literally translated, Yom hakiPurim is only "a day like Purim."

GARDEN OF EDEN

According to Jewish thought, the last (and only!) people to see the world in a state of perfection were Adam and Eve. The Garden of Eden means a perfect world. How did Adam and Eve fall from that state? By eating from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. That is, they pursued the world of illusion, in which the transcendence of the universe (good) is masked by seeming imperfection (evil).

If we approach Purim correctly, when we reach the tipsy state of no longer knowing good from evil, we actually realign our perspective by seeing the Transcendent as the source of all physical reality, thereby revealing its hidden perfection. Therefore Purim at its peak is like a taste of Eden.

The potential for spiritual elevation on Purim is tremendous. As we're drinking and partying, we should keep this in mind and not let the opportunity fly by!

#14 of 42 in the Aish.com Purim Themes Series << Previous Esther's Hidden Strength Next >> Gulf War Miracles_