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A grager (, 'rattler'), also gragger, grogger or gregger, is a noisemaking device, most commonly a
ratchet Ratchet may refer to: Devices * Ratchet (device), a mechanical device that allows movement in only one direction * Ratchet effect in sociology and economics * Ratchet, metonymic name for a socket wrench incorporating a ratcheting device * Ratc ...
, used to make noise by the congregation when the name of
Haman Haman ( ; also known as Haman the Agagite) is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who according to the Hebrew Bible was an official in the court of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian empire under King Ahasuerus#Book of Esther, Ahasuerus, comm ...
is read out during the recitation of the '' Megillah'' in the
synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...
during the celebration of
Purim Purim (; , ) is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday that commemorates the saving of the Jews, Jewish people from Genocide, annihilation at the hands of an official of the Achaemenid Empire named Haman, as it is recounted in the Book of Esther (u ...
in order to blot out Haman's name. This is done in accordance with the passage in the
Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''.
; or ''midrashot' ...
which commented that the verse from
Deuteronomy Deuteronomy (; ) is the fifth book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called () which makes it the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible and Christian Old Testament. Chapters 1–30 of the book consist of three sermons or speeches delivered to ...
"Thou shalt blot out the remembrance of
Amalek Amalek (; ) is described in the Hebrew Bible as the enemy of the nation of the Israelites. The name "Amalek" can refer to the descendants of Amalek, the grandson of Esau, or anyone who lived in their territories in Canaan, or North African descend ...
" must be understood "even from wood and stones". Traditionally Haman is believed to be an offspring of Amalek, and a tradition had developed to write the name of Haman on stones and to knock them until the name is blotted out.An excerpt related to groger
from:


Etymology

Eliezer Ben-Yehuda Eliezer Ben‑Yehuda (born Eliezer Yitzhak Perlman; 7 January 1858 – 16 December 1922) was a Russian–Jewish linguist, lexicographer, and journalist who immigrated to Jerusalem in 1881, when the Ottoman Empire ruled it. He is renowned as the ...
initially suggested the word , 'shaker', for the Purim noisemaker, but under the influence of Yiddish the term for rattler (from the Hebrew , meaning 'noise', suggested by Ben Yehuda's son,
Itamar Ben-Avi Itamar Ben-Avi (; , ; 31 July 1882 – 8 April 1943) was the first native speaker of Hebrew in modern times. He was a journalist and Zionist activist. Biography Itamar Ben-Avi was born as Ben-Zion Ben-Yehuda in Jerusalem on 31 July 1882, the so ...
) was accepted.


Origins and controversies

The custom can be traced back to the
Tosafists Tosafists were rabbis of France, Germany, Bohemia and Austria, who lived from the 12th to the mid-15th centuries, in the period of Rishonim. The Tosafists composed critical and explanatory glosses (questions, notes, interpretations, rulings and ...
of the 13th century, and the leading
Sephardic Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...
and
Ashkenazi Ashkenazi Jews ( ; also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim) form a distinct subgroup of the Jewish diaspora, that Ethnogenesis, emerged in the Holy Roman Empire around the end of the first millennium Common era, CE. They traditionally spe ...
halachic authorities, Rabbi
Yosef Karo Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, also spelled Yosef Caro, or Qaro (; 1488 – March 24, 1575, 13 Nisan 5335 A.M.), was a prominent Sephardic Jewish rabbi renowned as the author of the last great codification of Jewish law, the ''Beit Yosef'', and its ...
, and Rabbi
Moshe Isserles Moses Isserles (; ; 22 February 1530 / 25 Adar I 5290 – 11 May 1572 / 18 Iyar 5332), also known by the acronym Rema, was an eminent Polish Ashkenazi rabbi, talmudist, and ''posek'' (expert in Jewish law). He is considered the "Maimonides of ...
stated "one should not nullify the custom or belittle it", as the custom bears meaning and significance. Some later rabbis of the 19th century, including
Sefardi Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...
chief rabbis of Jerusalem, Raphael Meir Panigel, and of Izmir,
Haim Palachi Haim Palachi ( ; Acronym: MaHaRHaF or HaVIF) (January 28, 1788– February 10, 1868) was a Jewish- Turkish chief rabbi of Smyrna (İzmir) and author in Ladino and Hebrew. His titles included ''Hakham Bashi'' and '' Gaon''. He was the father ...
, protested against the noisemaking tradition, considering it an improper disturbance obstructing the reciting of the Megillah.


Manner of noisemaking

While the blotting out was originally done by clapping two stones or pieces of wood on which "Haman" had been written or drawn, today the noisemaking of "blotting out" is the common practice. Many
Kabbalists Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal (). Jewi ...
and
Chassidim Ḥasīd (, "pious", "saintly", "godly man"; plural "Hasidim") is a Jewish honorific, frequently used as a term of exceptional respect in the Talmudic and early medieval periods. It denotes a person who is scrupulous in his observance of Jewish ...
would stamp their heels, which represent
Amalek Amalek (; ) is described in the Hebrew Bible as the enemy of the nation of the Israelites. The name "Amalek" can refer to the descendants of Amalek, the grandson of Esau, or anyone who lived in their territories in Canaan, or North African descend ...
, the ancestor of
Haman Haman ( ; also known as Haman the Agagite) is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who according to the Hebrew Bible was an official in the court of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian empire under King Ahasuerus#Book of Esther, Ahasuerus, comm ...
. Some have the custom to only make noise when Haman is mentioned with a title or adjective. Rabbi Shimon Apisdorf suggests that any noisemaker will do: "alarm clocks, toddler xylophones, dolls that cry with the push of a button, a toy police car with siren and flashing lights or anything else that will make a wonderfully annoying noise".


Gallery


See also

*
Yimakh shemo () is a Hebrew curse placed after the name of particular enemies of the Jewish people, or on rare occasions, after the name of evildoing Jews. A variant is (). Usage The term, although Hebrew, may be inserted as a set phrase in languages other t ...
("May his name be erased") *
Crotalus ''Crotalus'' is a genus of pit vipers, Common name, commonly known as rattlesnakes or rattlers,Albert Hazen WWright AH, species:Anna Allen WWright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Pub ...
, a similar object used by Christians during the Paschal Triduum


References

{{Purim footer Purim Traditional toys Toy instruments and noisemakers