Explore every episode of the podcast Purim

Recorded live on Zoom in the midst of war here in Eretz Yisrael, Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David enter Ta’anit Esther with open hearts and trembling emunah.

We begin with niggunim — Kulanu Ke’echad, Ayeh Mekom Kevodo, Avo El HaMelech — and move into the deeper battlefield of Purim: not just the destruction of Haman, but the removal of machshevet Haman.

What is the “thought of Haman”? Why does Esther insist that even after victory, something deeper must be uprooted? Why is the only tefillah that is always answered the request for emunah peshuta?

In a time of missiles and miracles, Rav Shlomo speaks about:

• The illusion of political correctness as modern avodah zarah
• The difference between physical victory and spiritual freedom
• Arur Haman = Baruch Mordechai = Emunah Peshuta (502)
• Hisbodedus as the weapon of this generation
• Vision — not for 20 years from now, but for right now

This is a Purim shiur for a generation standing at a turning point in Jewish history. Come before the King. Ask for simple faith. Remove the thought of Haman.
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For more Shuirim and Music from Rav Shlomo Katz, visit: https://ravshlomokatz.com
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CHAPTERS
00:00 Opening Niggun – Kulanu Ke’Echad
00:39 Safe Rooms and the Reality of War
03:29 Not Knowing How to Feel in History
06:46 Reb Nosson’s Prayer Against Klipat Haman
08:38 What Is Machshevet Haman?
11:12 Esther’s True Victory Explained
13:08 The Avodah Zarah of “What Do People Think?”
20:40 The One Prayer That Is Always Answered
31:02 Hisbodedus as the Weapon of Purim
33:20 Vision, Emunah Peshuta and Coming Before the King

Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David continue Rav Kluger’s journey into the pnimiyus of Purim, this time through Matanos La’Evyonim and the question: Who is an “evyon”?

Rav Shlomo explains why Mordechai specifically established this mitzvah — to remind every Jew that a רגע לפני הישועה, we were all in a state of “evyon,” totally dependent on Hashem’s saving grace.

From there, the shiur opens a deeper door: the hidden roots of taavas mamon (the pull of money), the Gemara about galus and adding geirim, the Baal Shem Tov’s language of lifting sparks, and Rebbe Nachman’s teaching on 70 souls / 70 languages, and how “concealment before revelation” works like cracking a klipah to reach the fruit.

A Purim shiur about money… that turns into a shiur about humility, dependence on Hashem, and the inner תיקון that makes redemption possible.

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For more Shuirim and Music from Rav Shlomo Katz, visit: https://ravshlomokatz.com
Join Rav Shlomo Katz's WhatsApp Community: https://chat.whatsapp.com/KHKOhhPaeHx5Kb74WL9L9a?mode=ems_copy_t

CHAPTERS
00:00 Opening and Sponsorship
02:07 Money (Taivas Mamon) in Rebbe Nachman’s Teachings
10:54 Gemara on Adding Converts (Pesachim)
13:36 Lifting Sparks and Adding Gerim
19:26 70 Souls and the Roots of Israel
22:36 70 Languages and Their Negative Traits
23:43 Galus of 70 Languages as Spiritual Test
25:12 Ethiopian Women and the Birth Analogy
29:25 Rebbe Nachman on Pre-Revelation Soul Journey
34:21 Breaking the Klipah to Reach the Fruit
43:09 Mordechai’s Call to Give to the Poor

Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David continue Rav Kluger’s gorgeous ma’amar on Purim, and  go deeper into the pnimiyus of Mishloach Manos as a preparation for Beis HaMikdash Sheini.

We open with “Shoshanat Yaakov,” then step right back into the sugya: Achashveirosh’s feast isn’t just a party — it’s temple-consciousness. Esther’s “לך כנוס את כל היהודים” is not only about survival; it’s about waking up and becoming a people again, so we can return and build.

Then comes the wild historical reveal from Sefer Ezra: during the Purim era, there was already a mizbe’ach in Yerushalayim, with korbanos happening, even while the Heichal still wasn’t built. Meaning: something can be “alive” before it’s “complete”… and unity is the foundation that makes the building possible.

From there, we turn to the wine: why “ad d’lo yada”? Not as an escape, but as a holy breaking of the inner mechitzos that keep us isolated. We bring in Rebbe Nachman’s yesod of yishuv hada’as, the fight against modern distraction, and the line between a Purim that opens the heart… and a Purim where Haman is still sitting at the seudah.

Yasher koach, and may we be zocheh to a Purim of real achdus, the kind that can hold a Beis HaMikdash.
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For more Shuirim and Music from Rav Shlomo Katz, visit: https://ravshlomokatz.com
Join Rav Shlomo Katz's WhatsApp Community: https://chat.whatsapp.com/KHKOhhPaeHx5Kb74WL9L9a?mode=ems_copy_t

CHAPTERS
00:00 Opening Niggun and Greeting
02:44 Opening the Sefer and Starting Reish Nun
03:50 Mishloach Manos as Preparation for the Second Beis Hamikdash
06:02 Achashverosh’s Feast and Its Temple Implications
07:22 Esther’s Directive to Gather the Jews
17:03 Ezra’s Altar While the Temple Remains Unbuilt
19:27 Unity, Mishloach Manos, and the Path to Rebuilding
25:45 Rav Kluger on Wine Drinking Purpose
27:59 Video Testimony and Emotional Overload
29:43 Three Cardinal Sins and Yishuv HaDa'at
32:51 Ribo’s Song and Modern Distractions
34:04 Practicing Hisbodedus for Yishuv HaDa'at
35:25 Ayahuasca and Short-Term Yishuv HaDa'at
36:31 Purpose of Desires in Rebbe Nachman
38:03 Intellectual Isolation and Haman’s Role
40:38 When Purim Drinking Fails Yishuv HaDa'at
42:44 Building a Beit Hamikdash and Unity

Rav Shlomo Katz and the chevra of Shirat David officially start the march toward the Megillah. Purim is coming, and we’re opening with a deep beginning: the pnimiyus of Mishloach Manos (and Matanos La’Evyonim) through a powerful מהלך from Rav Avraham Tzvi Kluger, built on a יסוד from the Maharal (Netzach Yisrael).

Why did Mishloach Manos become the mitzvah people naturally ran to first, even before Mordechai formally added Matanos La’Evyonim? What’s the unique DNA of Purim that demanded these takanos specifically here, and not on any other Yom Tov? And why is the only way to truly understand Purim to read it through the prism of Beis HaMikdash consciousness — right in that tense historic moment between Churban Bayis Rishon and the dream of building Bayis Sheini?

Along the way we touch the stunning “trust” dimension of Mishloach Manos (yes, even kashrus trust), the stages of how the mitzvos formed, and the Maharal’s contrast between Bayis Rishon (Avos) and Bayis Sheini (Knesses Yisrael) — and what that demands from us now.

This is Part 1. We’re laying the foundation, and next week, בעז״ה, it gets even juicier.

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For more Shuirim and Music from Rav Shlomo Katz, visit: https://ravshlomokatz.com
Join Rav Shlomo Katz's WhatsApp Community: https://chat.whatsapp.com/KHKOhhPaeHx5Kb74WL9L9a?mode=ems_copy_t

CHAPTERS
00:00 Opening Honors and Sponsorship
01:09 Exploring the Daled Mitzvos of Purim
02:13 Rav Kluger’s Opening Quote on Purim
04:18 Reviewing Megillah Verses
05:33 Stages of Mitzvah Development
10:26 Why Mishloach Manos Was Self-Adopted
13:29 Uniqueness of Purim Mitzvos
19:42 Historical Context: Post-Exile Purim
22:30 Maharal’s Insight on the Two Temples
23:32 Foundations: Yesod of the Two Temples
24:50 Kedusha of the Avot vs Israel
28:30 Ezra’s Account of Second Temple Dedication
30:38 Gemara on the End of Avot’s Merit
31:49 Hope for Restoring Avot’s Mercy
43:55 Yom Haatzmaut: Cheshbon HaNefesh and Preparation

A brief and wild 18 minutes of learning after Hallel, discussing the origins of Mishenichnas Adar and a wild twist connecting to Bob Saget. Good Purim.

Rebbe Nachman said that all beginnings used to begin from Pesach, but now....(and he didn't complete the sentence). In Breslov tradition, the Rebbe was speaking about how today, from then and now, Purim is the real beginning of all beginnings

In this 15-minute learning, we try to understand what the Rebbe meant by this, and how it is more relevant to our lives today than ever.

A class given in Nachlaot, Yerushalayim, discussing the concept of putting trust back into the game of humanity

Purim often looks like the most playful, physical, even chaotic day in the Jewish year. But beneath the mask lies one of the deepest teachings of our faith: that Hashem is present, especially when He seems most hidden.

Rav Shlomo Katz shares teachings from Rabbi Erez Moshe Doron, exploring the paradox at the heart of Megillat Esther: a miracle so deeply clothed in nature that God’s Name doesn’t appear once. And yet, our Sages tell us this day surpasses even Yom Kippur in holiness. How can that be?

Drawing on the writings of Rebbe Nachman and the Tikkunei Zohar, we journey into the spiritual anatomy of exile where concealment hides even the fact that anything is hidden, and shows us how Purim reveals the secret: God is here, always. Not only in the supernatural, but in the natural. Not only in the revealed, but in the hidden. Not only in the Beit Midrash, but in the palace of Achashverosh too.

This is the joy of Purim. The joy that comes from knowing your life is not random. That even in darkness, there is a story unfolding and you’re part of it.

A short piece from Reb Meilech Biderman on Purim and Adar, discussing the usage of the word Mishenichnas

When one has a mitzvah to fulfill, they are usually exempt from having to do another mitzvah that would have to be done at that exact time. Is this the case when one is drunk on Purim and may not be able to daven? Leave it to the kohen hagadol to bring us to a deeper look at this question?

The last in a four part series on the Alter Rebbe's Purim Ma'amar חייב איניש לבסומי

What needs to take place before a G-dly revelation?

First part of the Alter Rebbe's Ma'amar 'Chayav inish Lebesumei'

intro to the ma'amar Chayav Inish Lebesumei

Why do we celebrate Purim with feasting and drinking, and not just with saying thank you like on Chanukah? Because Purim isn’t about gratitude for a miracle. It’s about the miracle of still being here. It's the simcha of existence itself. The decree wasn’t just exile or slavery. It was total annihilation. And when that gezeirah was flipped, the soul of Am Yisrael danced with a joy that had no words, no form. Just presence. Just life.

In this class rooted in the Torah of HaRav Asher Weiss shlit”a, Rav Shlomo Katz guides us into the halachic and spiritual depths of Purim — when simcha isn’t a reaction, but a mitzvah that is the day. You don't need a reason to be happy. You're alive. We’re alive. And that's enough to get drunk on.

This is the simcha of a Jew who walked out of Auschwitz not with answers, but with breath. It’s not intellectual. It’s not earned. It just is. And if Purim really goes through us, we’ll taste that eternal simcha, not just on Adar 14, but the whole year long.

From the teachings of Reb Yakov Meir Shechter on Purim

On Purim, we drink to blur the lines. But maybe that’s just to uncover what’s been true all along: Hashem is always talking to us. Through people, through circumstances, through the exact words that happen to hit your ears when you weren't expecting them — it's all Him.

Inspired by the teachings of Reb Shlomo Carlebach ztz”l, Rav Shlomo Katz opens our hearts to the Purim avodah of being doped up on Torah, drunk with Shabbos, and intoxicated with the presence of Hashem in everyone we meet.

What begins as a humorous encounter with a New York Times reporter unfolds into a life-changing truth: if we can truly believe that every interaction is Hashem whispering to us, then we stop second-guessing, we stop doubting, and we start living with simcha, emunah, and fierce clarity.

Based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter for Purim

There’s one day a year where the gates are thrown wide open, and Hashem asks each of us: “מה שאלתך וינתן לך — What is it that you truly want?” That day is Purim. Not just a day of costumes and joy, but a sacred invitation to dream big, to daven from the deepest places in our hearts, and to stop limiting what we think is possible.

In this shiur given in Modiin (Feb 2018), we explore how Purim is a Yom Kippur of a different kind, where the avodah is joy, the battlefield is the soul, and the weapons are vulnerability and hutzpah d’kedusha. Through stories, niggunim, and the unforgettable teaching that Moshe Rabbeinu never spoke freely because he never asked, we are reminded: if we never ask, we might never see the miracle.

On Purim, don’t play it safe. Build your ramp. Ask for everything.

Every year, a dear friend calls me before Purim with the same question: "What’s your avodah this year?" And the truth is, that’s exactly how we have to look at Purim: as an avodah, a holy service, no less sacred than the work of the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur.

Drawing from the wellsprings of Reb Ya’akov Meir Shechter shlit”a, this shiur reveals how the four mitzvahs of Purim — Mikra Megillah, Mishloach Manot, Matanot LaEvyonim, and Seudat Purim, aren’t just obligations, they’re divine weapons, forged to help us annihilate the inner Amalek that mocks faith and belittles holiness. 

We go deep into what it means to fight with simcha, to wage war with joy, and to turn every act of giving, reading, eating, and singing into a direct hit against spiritual doubt.

Rav Kook's approach to the encounter we have with Amalek today.

What kind of drinking were our sages referring to regarding the holiday of Purim?

What was it like to be in Rav Kook's Presence on the night of Purim?

March, 2017
Efrat, Israel

The build-up of the month of Adar, toward the month of Nissan, the month of redemption.

Feeling that you are the crown of creation, and that the whole world was created just for you, occurs during the Seuda. How does one get there?

purim, kluger, adam harishon, gan eden, shlomo katz, torah, shirat david, efrat

Based on R' Meilech Biderman's teachings, Shabbos Zachor presents an incredible world of opportunities to make G-d's name complete and great again.

shabbos, sabbath, shabbat, amalek, zachor, purim, baal shem tov, shlomo katz, efrat

Based on the teachings of Rav Kluger, we see how the revelation of Purim is still shining it's light today, in the most mysterious way.

purim, kluger, breslov, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

Comparing this year's Purim to last year's is never ever good.
Where does it come from, and how to avoid it?

breslov, breslev, kluger, shlomo katz, torah, shirat david, efrat

The avoda which takes place during the Purim Seuda is one of the most important avodas of our life - to understand that we are not G-d. Sounds simple, no?

purim, rav kluger, snake, adam and eve, tree of knowledge, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

We began a beautiful teaching from Rav Avraham Tzvi Kluger, as our prep for the holy day of Purim. What is the deeper meaning behind Chazal's statement regarding the level of intoxication on Purim.

purim, jewish, Israel, torah, kluger, breslov, baal shem tov, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

Shirat David
Leyl Purim
2024

purim, haman, mordechai, rav kluger, rizhiner, baal shem tov, carlebach, breslov, jew, israel, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

Based on the teachings of Rav Biderman, we go into Shabbos Zachor a passion for much Jewish children, like never before.

The feeling of being tired can be cured. How so? Welcome to Parshas Zachor with the Bnei Machshava Tova Hachana L'Shabbos Chabura.

chabura, zachor, amalek, torah, parsha, shlomo katz, shirat david

Rav Kook has a secret for us, yes, for us here today
An opportunity this Purim like never before
To taste what the whole Torah is all about for real

rav kook, torah, eretz yisrael, purim, breslov, chabad, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

Toward the redemptive and joyous feeling of Pruim, one must approach Hashem on Ta'anit Esther, with utmost vulnerability and realness

purim, esther, fast day, shlomo, breslov, breslev, yerushalayim, jerussalem, persia, miracle, crying, hisbodedus

Based on a short teaching from Rav Kluger, Ta'anit Esther shows us so much more than we realize.

esther, more, purim, davening, Israel, soul, torah, shlomo katz, rav kluger, shirat david

BS’D
R’ Shlomo Carlebach z’l
Purim - The Holiday of Eitz Hachaim
If by nature I hate everyone, how do I get myself out of it? You can explain to me that its very bad and that it is evil, but it doesn’t get me out of it. But imagine if by nature I love everyone, do you have to come and tell me that hatred is evil? I can’t hate anybody. Even if I tried, I can’t. If by nature I want to be a giver, do you have to tell me that being stingy is evil?
When do you need the whole teaching of good and evil? Only if your nature is separated from G-d. If by my very nature I am connected to everything holy and beautiful, you don’t need the whole teaching of good and evil.
The snake came and said to Eve that the most G-d-like thing is to know what’s good and what is evil. This is only after the snake poisoned her and separated her from the Tree of Life. If you are connected to the Tree of Life, you don’t need the teaching of good and evil.
I want you to think about it in a very deep way.
The Gemara says ‘Haman Min HaTorah Minayin’, where is Haman mentioned in the Torah? When G-d asked Adam ‘did you eat from the forbidden fruit G-d says ‘Hamin Haeitz Asher Tzivisicha’. So the Gemara says the word “Hamin”, ‘did you eat from this tree’ is the same letters as Haman.
You see what it is, Haman is a snake, as simple as this.
Once a year we go back to the Tree of Life, and this is on Purim. On Yom Kippur we didn’t make it back yet. On Yom Kippur I’m still in the Tree of Knowledge, and I’m sorry I did wrong. I know the teaching of right and wrong, of good and evil but I just didn’t listen to the teaching. On Purim I’m getting out of the whole teaching.
Now listen to something very important.
Evil does not mind if from time to time you are good and holy. Evil is broadminded. Evil simply doesn’t want things to be for always. Evil doesn’t mind if occasionally you start to daven stronger, pick up a sefer here and there.
Do you think evil minds if once a year you say to your wife ‘today let’s not get angry darling. Let’s have a little honeymoon.’
Evil doesn’t mind when my child wants to go to Israel, and asks if he can go for a week. But do you know what evil does not want? Evil does not want that you connect to the Tree of Life; to become your very nature. To become that which you know.
To be it? No.
Evil wants you to be a dead holy man. Evil want you to do the right thing because it’s good, not because it’s alive.
So on Purim something happens to us, we receive the Torah again. But this time, it mamesh becomes our very nature. On Purim everything remained in within the borders of nature. The whole story of the megillah is an ordinary story. No earth-shaking miracle happed. Purim is an ordinary day. You eat, you drink, you sleep, but do you know what happens to you on Purim? Purim is that yiddishkeit, that G-d, that everything holy becomes natural to you.
Do you know why I always need my mind? Because I don’t always want to do the right thing, I don’t always want to do the holy thing. Therefore, I need my mind to tell me that I have to do it because it’s good. That’s what I need my mind for, but if my very nature wants to do good, I don’t need my mind. If I don’t have to occupy my mind with good and evil…. gevalt, what I can use my mind for. Gevalt is my mind ready for the highest; and this is the real receiving of Torah on Purim.
You know what’s so heartbreaking? When you utilize G-d’s teaching just for good and evil. That’s the most degrading thing in the world. The most.
After Purim I use my mind for so much more than good and evil, but for life itself.

purim, candace, shlomo carlebach, jew, Israel, idf, Zionism, shirat david, efrat

Based on a teaching from the Chida, we see how the day of Purim offers something that makes all the extra holy work of the day - so worth it.

purim, mashiach, redemption, davening, torah, chida, shlomo katz, efrat, shirat david

The opportunity that the day of Purim presents before us should not be taken for granted.

torah, purim, trust, mordechai, esther, shlomo katz, shirat david

What type of a Jew showed up at the seuda of Achashverosh? In order to understand Megilat Esther, a brief glimpse into the 80 years prior will help put everything in context. Thanks to a beautiful and heartbreaking spark of light from Rav Kluger, we mamesh went for it today in shiur.

purim, seuda, Persia, Ukraine, Iran, shlomo katz, rav kluger, efrat, shirat david

A meeting on the streets of Yerushalayim with a modern day hero, and the emuna of Purim

pollard, torah, Jerusalem, shlomo katz, yevarechecha, tzion, purim

On Purim I discover who my true friends are, and what kind of a friend I want to be.

shlomo carlebach, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat, shalom, mishloach manot

It's often easy to get lost in the mystical aspects of each word. As deep as Purim is, the p'shat, the simple internalizing of the story is what leads a person to taste the deepest depths of the story. This piece is from Rav Kluger's Sefer on Purim.

purim, esther, breslov, shlomo katz, rav kluger, shirat david

Based on a teaching from Rav Kluger, we learned how Purim is the root of the removal of all concealment, but not necessarily in the manner we think it is.
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kluger, nezer, judaism, torah, purim, Israel, efrat, shirat david, shlomo katz

Based on a teaching from Rav Yitzchak Ginsburgh, we learned of the wondrous sense of laughter, emanating from the month of Adar.
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adar, laughter, purim, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat, yitzchak, ginsburgh, chassidus

based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter shli'ta
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purim, torah, jewish holiday, amalek, breslov, breslev, nachman, adar, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter shli'ta
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purim, torah, jewish holiday, amalek, breslov, breslev, nachman, adar, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter shli'ta
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purim, torah, jewish holiday, amalek, breslov, breslev, nachman, adar, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter shli'ta
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purim, torah, jewish holiday, amalek, breslov, breslev, nachman, adar, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat

based on the teachings of Reb Ya'akov Meir Shechter shli'ta
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purim, torah, jewish holiday, amalek, breslov, breslev, nachman, adar, shlomo katz, shirat david, efrat