Before You Passover: It’s time to Clean House and isolate all chametz in a designated closet. What Is Chametz? Any foods forbidden on Passover, including leavened products containing wheat, barley, oats, rye or spelt. Clear your home of all chametz: empty pockets, vacuum cleaner bags, even pet foods. And you’ll use separate sets of dishes for Passover, so gather all chametz dishes and Put ‘Em In The Closet. Stock up on kosher-for-Passover items; for Good Links to Passover foods, check out www.askmoses.com or www.kosher4passover.com. Chametz For Sale–Spiritually, chametz on Passover negatively impacts our soul. Since it is prohibited to eat or even “own” chametz during the eight days of Passover, Lock And Seal your chametz in a closet and “sell” its contents to a non-Jew. To do this, ask your rabbi for a form called “Mechirat Chametz,” a legal document that transfers the ownership of your chametz for the duration of Passover. The simple process can also be completed On The Web by visiting www.chabad.com. March 26: Search Warrant–At nightfall,* begin the “formal search” of the house for chametz (recite blessings 1 & 2). Traditionally, a candle is used to Light The Way, a spoon (as a shovel), a feather (as a broom) and a paper bag (as a paper bag) are used to collect any chametz found. After the search, place all found chametz in a conspicuous spot to be Burned Out In The Morning. March 27: Life In The Fast Lane–When G-d slew the firstborn sons of Egypt, he spared the firstborn of Israel. Therefore, all firstborn sons fast on this day. Joy Breaks All Boundaries. Since the joy of a mitzvah—such as the completion of studying a Talmudic tractate—transcends the obligation to fast on this day, many firstborn sons break this fast early with A Mitzvah Meal of joy, by completing the study of a tractate on this day. Prepare To Celebrate–Get your Seder foods together well before Passover begins. And to Build An Appetite for the Seder, don’t eat any Seder Plate foods today, especially matzah. So If You’re A Lover Of Bitter Herbs And Raw Onions, This May Be A Tough Day. You’re Fired–After having cleaned your house and “sold” your chametz, all chametz found during the formal search the previous night is burned in the morning.* You Mean Nothing To Me–After burning the chametz, a prayer (blessing 3) is recited which verbally disowns any chametz that has been overlooked. March 27: Seder Time–In the evening,* candles are lit (blessings 4 & 5). At nightfall,* the Seder begins. March 28: Lighten Up–Before the second Seder, candles are lit after nightfall* from a pre-existing flame (blessings 4 & 5), since it is prohibited to ignite a new flame on certain holy days. Be Counted! Tonight we begin the mystical counting of the Omer. The Omer was an offering of barley from the first of the new crop, and today is the first time we would have been able to offer it in the Temple in Jerusalem. We count 49 days from Passover to Shavuot, when we received the Torah at Mount Sinai. A person has 49 emotional and spiritual traits. Each day of the Omer is a propitious time to work on a particular level, until our soul is prepared to receive G-dliness on the 50th day, Shavuot. March 29: Shalom Shabbat– Before sunset,* Shabbat candles are lit (blessing 6) from a pre-existing flame. March 30–April 2: The Middle Ground–The Inter-mediate Days of Passover. In between the first two and last two holy days of Passover, go ahead and function relatively normally. The only exception is, like your mother keeps telling you, You Shouldn’t Work So Hard. But keep the wine flowing: it’s a custom to drink a glass of wine every day of Passover. April 2: And On The Seventh Day–In the evening,* candles are lit (blessing 4). This is the day when, 3,314 years ago, the sea split, and the Jewish people were officially free. Spiritual Wake-Up Call. Tonight, this miracle is experienced again by staying up until dawn, studying works of Divine wisdom—the Torah. April 3: Just When You Thought You Had Seen It All–After nightfall,* candles are lit from a pre-existing flame (blessing 4). This day, the final day of Passover, emphasizes an even Higher Freedom! It is dedicated to our imminent and final Redemption. April 4: On A Positive Note–Today, services include the Yizkor memorial prayers, which emphasizes that a soul is with us eternally. Following the custom of the Baal Shem Tov, founder of Chassidism, Passover concludes with a “Feast of Moshiach.” Encore! Encore! Tonight, the world experiences an outpouring of Divine consciousness. This festive meal, complete with matzah and, yes, four cups of wine, begins before sunset and is designed to open our consciousness to the Messianic age. Nightfall* marks the end of Passover. Wait about an hour to give the rabbi time to buy back your chametz, then you can Eat Chametz For The Next 377 Days. April 26: P:2 (The Sequel)–Today is the “Second Passover,” observed simply by eating a piece of matzah. When the Jews fled Egypt, some of them were unable to participate in the Paschal offering because they were ritually impure. So they prayed to G-d for a second chance. Sometimes We Get What We Need, And What We Want. G-d agreed, allowing them to enjoy a “Second Passover.” April 30: Party Of Thirty-Three–Lag B’Omer (day 33 of the Omer), known for barbecues, bonfires and public gatherings of unity, celebrates two events: 1) The day when Rabbi Akiva’s students pledged to banish pride and value each other. 24,000 of his students had died in a plague before they understood that only by mutual respect could they survive. 2) The passing of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the author of the Zohar, one of the fundamental books of Jewish mysticism. He requested that his death be a Celebration Of Life. May 16: Still Counting?–After we refined our 49 emotional and spiritual levels, we reach Shavuot, The Day When G-d Meets Humanity. At Creation, G-d decreed that the spiritual and physical would be separate. Today, G-d annulled this decree and revealed the Torah at Sinai. In the evening,* candles are lit (blessings 4 & 5). Morning Glory–The Torah was given to the Jewish people at sunrise, but G-d had to wake them! To make good, it is a tradition to stay up the night and study Torah. It’s The Cheese–On Shavuot it is customary to eat dairy foods, such as blintzes or cheesecake, and to decorate our homes and synagogues with flowers and plants. Flower Power. When the Jewish People arrived at Mount Sinai, they were preparing to enter Israel, the land of milk and honey, and when the Torah was given, Sinai, a barren mountain, blossomed with flora. May 17: A Perfect Ten–We listen to the Ten Commandments in synagogue today. The Kabbalah explains that at Sinai, every soul that would ever be born heard the Ten Commandments and accepted them, and that this experience is reenacted on Shavuot. Children On Board. It is particularly important that children hear the Ten Commandments because the Torah was given to our ancestors only after their children were promised as its guardians. Before sunset,* women light the Festival/Shabbat candles from a pre-existing flame (blessings 7 & 5, respectively). May 18: Yizkor memorial prayers are recited during services today. Shavuot/Shabbat ends at nightfall. Blessings: 1 Boruch Atoh Ado-noi Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam Asher Ki-de-sha-nu Be-mitz-vo-sov Vi-tzi-vanu Al Bi-ur Chametz. 2 Kol Chah-mirah Va-chah-me-ah De-eeka Vir-shusee Delo Cha-zeesay U'delo Vee-ar-tay U'delo Ye-Da-nuh Lay Lee-batail Vi-lee-hevay Hefker Ke-afra De-arah. 3 Kol Chah-mirah Va-chah-me-ah De-eeka Vir-shusee Da-cha-zeesay U'delo Cha-zeesay Da-chamee-say U'delo Cha-mee-say Di-vee-ar-tay U'delo Vee-ar-tay Lee-batail Vi-lee-hevay Hefker Ke-afra De-arah. 4 Boruch Atoh Ado-noi Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam Asher Ki-de-sha-nu Be-mitz-vo-sov Vi-tzi-vanu Le-had-lik Ner Shel Yom Tov. 5 Boruch Atoh Ado-noi Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam She-heh-che-yoh-nu Vi-kiye-mo-nu Ve-he-ge-ah-nu Liz-man Ha-zeh. 6 Boruch Atoh Ado-noi Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam Asher Ki-de-sha-nu Be-mitz-vo-sov Vi-tzi-vanu Le-had-lik Ner Shel Shabbat Kodesh. 7 Boruch Atoh Ado-noi Elo-hei-nu Melech Ha-olam Asher Ki-de-sha-nu Be-mitz-vo-sov Vi-tzi-vanu Le-had-lik Ner Shel Shabbat Vi-shel Yom Tov.