Each year, as the cold darkness of winter gives way to the hope of spring, Jews around the world observe the holiday of Purim, commemorating the conspiracy of the Persian King Achashverosh and his wicked viceroy, Haman, whose evil designs boomeranged when the divine hand of Providence orchestrated a miraculous redemption nearly 2400 years ago.
The Purim festival is one of our most esoteric rituals, celebrating a variety of theological insights and moral principles:
The hidden miracles of life that pass us by unnoticed unless we pay careful attention
The importance of trust in the wisdom of enlightened leadership to help us find our way
The need for confidence in the guiding hand of destiny, which leaves us free to make our own choices yet ensures that the plan of Creation always remains on track
Purim also reminds us to expect the unexpected, to look beneath the surface for meaning and beauty, to acknowledge simultaneously both our own limitations and our own limitless potential. The holiday contains a warning that freedom cuts both ways, providing us endless opportunity to achieve moral and spiritual greatness and equal opportunity to hide from our own true callings.
Finally, Purim informs us that the world we live in masks a deeper reality that speaks to the ultimate purpose of our existence, and that occasional flashes of revelation appear in the most unlikely places.
One such place is the classic rock masterpiece American Pie, released by Don McLean in 1971. The song is laced with cultural allusions, but it also contains a more profound, hidden meaning, one accessed through the mystical tradition of Kabbalistic teachings. That meaning is presented here.
Close the door, silence your phone, put on your headphones, and settle into your seat to revel in the unexpected. Pour yourself a cup of coffee (or a glass of whiskey), and enjoy a few minutes of esoteric discovery, finally revealed in American Pie Purim.
