of Mt. Sinai to be appointed as God's chosen people and receive the Tora.
There are 5 Minhaguim (customs) that most Jews follow on Shabu'ot. To remember them, keep in mind the Hebrew word
A /HA/ R/ I/ T . א ח ר י ת
A:
Azharot or Aqdamot. During Shabu'ot we read these beautiful poems which
contain the 248 positive commandments and the 365
Biblical prohibitions. The word azharot means warnings, i.e., rules,
precepts. (also 613= אזהרת).
HA: Halab (milk),
like any other Yom Tob during Shabu'ot we should have a meal with meat
and wine to fulfill the Mitzva of simha (material happiness). Still, the
custom is that some of the meals are dairy, which is tradition
particular to Shabu'ot, and it is not followed in any other Holiday.
R
: Ruth. During Shabu'ot we study Megilat Ruth. Among the many reasons
for reading the story of Ruth is that when Ruth converted to Judaism she
accepted the Tora upon herself. Likewise, in Shabu'ot we celebrate our
acceptance of the Tora and becoming the Jewish nation. Another reason
for reading Megilat Ruth is that from Ruth we learn the dependency of
the written Tora on the Oral Tora, because by the letter of the Tora,
Ruth, a Moabite, could not have been accepted as a convert.
I
: Yereq (Greens). Many communities have the custom to decorate their
Synagogues with plants, flowers or tree branches to remember Mt. Sinai.
We still treasure in our collective memory that when the Tora was given
to us, Mt. Sinai was green and blossoming with flowers. In the Persian
tradition Shabu'ot is known as mo'eed gol (the festival of flowers).
T
: Tiqun (Reparation). The custom is to stay awake studying Tora during
the night of Shabu'ot (Tuesday night until Wednesday morning) to repair
for our ancestors who went to sleep the night of the sixth of Sivan
instead of waiting awake for the giving of the Tora, which was taking
place the following morning.