Shavuot: The Time of the Giving of Our Torah

Question

Dear Rabbi,

Is there any special mitzvah to be fulfilled on Shavuot like there is on other Jewish festivals, such as eating matzah on Passover?

Thank you

0

Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    Shavuot is the anniversary of when God communicated the Torah to the entire Jewish nation at Mount Sinai. This revealed to them their national mission and purpose. In our prayers, Shavuot is referred to as “Zman Matan Torateinu” — the time of the giving of our Torah.

    Unlike all other holidays, no particular mitzvah is associated with Shavuot. On Passover we eat matzah, on Succot we dwell in a succah booth, and on Rosh Hashanah we blow the shofar, but no specific mitzvah is related to the giving of the Torah. Shavuot celebrates the totality of the Torah. The Torah is all encompassing. It sanctifies and elevates every aspect of life. It cannot be encapsulated in any single ritual or any one experience.

    On all festivals the spiritual light that originally encompassed the world on the first occasion of that festival (for instance, the very first Passover) flows again every year at that same time. This increased spirituality is available to us if we are attuned to it.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team