Tevet. The tenth month of the Hebrew calendar. A curious designation, really. It’s the fourth month by the civil reckoning, but the tenth by the ecclesiastical. One could get lost in the semantics, I suppose, much like one can get lost in the quiet, suffocating depths of winter. It’s a month of 29 days, usually slinking into the Gregorian calendar somewhere between December and January. In the Babylonian calendar, they called it Araḫ Ṭebētum, the "muddy month." Apt. It feels like a time when the world itself is bogged down, stuck in a mire of introspection and cold.
Gregorian New Year
Ah, the Gregorian New Year. That arbitrary mark on a calendar that most seem to cling to with desperate optimism. It almost always lands squarely within Tevet. A brief, flickering candle in the long winter night, I suppose. It’s rare for it to spill over into the adjacent months, Kislev or Shevat. A small mercy, perhaps, that the world’s collective sigh of resolution and regret is largely contained within this particular stretch of time.
Holidays
Tevet is punctuated by a few notable observances. There’s Hanukkah, of course, the Festival of Lights, which can bleed into the first couple of days of Tevet, or even the third if Kislev decides to be particularly stingy with its days. Then there’s the solemnity of the Tenth of Tevet, or Asara beTevet, a fast day. A day to remember, to reflect, to perhaps mourn.
Community Holidays
Within the more insular circles, the 5th of Tevet holds significance for Chabad Hasidim. It commemorates a 1987 verdict concerning an inheritance, a dispute over the books of Rabbi Joseph Isaac Schneersohn. It’s a reminder that even in matters of spirit, the mundane often intrudes.
In Jewish History and Tradition
Tevet is woven with threads of history, some luminous, some shadowed.
On the 1st of Tevet, a pivotal moment unfolds. Around 479 BC, Esther was taken to King Achashverosh's palace. A seemingly simple act, yet it set in motion the events that would lead to her becoming queen of Persia. The Book of Esther recounts this, detailing how she was chosen by him to be queen on the 10th of Tevet. A tale of fate, courage, and perhaps, a desperate gamble.
The 9th of Tevet, in 1066, marks a darker chapter. The 1066 Granada massacre saw a Muslim mob unleash its fury upon 4,000 Jews across the city. A stark reminder of the fragility of peace and the persistent undercurrent of violence.
The 10th of Tevet also bears the weight of a calamitous event in 588 BC. Nebuchadnezzar II's armies commenced their siege of Jerusalem. This day is now observed as a fast, a somber memorial to that fateful beginning.
Later, in 1669, decreed and enforced in 1670, Jews were expelled from Vienna, Austria, under the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Leopold the First. Another instance of displacement, of being cast out.
The 17th of Tevet, in 1728, marks a different kind of beginning. Shearith Israel, the first New York synagogue, erected its first building in Lower Manhattan. A seed of religious life planted in new soil.
In 1483, the 20th of Tevet saw a significant milestone in scholarship: the first volume of the Babylonian Talmud, the tractate Berachot, was printed in Soncino, Italy. A testament to the enduring power of textual tradition.
The 22nd of Tevet, in 1496, echoes the expulsion from Spain four years prior, as Jews were expelled from Portugal. The relentless scattering of a people.
A monumental task of translation occurred on the 24th of Tevet, in the 3rd century BC. Jewish elders procured the translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek, the Septuagint, for Ptolemy II Philadelphus. A bridge built between cultures, a monumental effort to disseminate sacred texts.
Also on the 24th of Tevet, in 1812, the Alter Rebbe, founder of the Chabad philosophy and author of the Tanya and Shulchan Aruch HaRav, passed away. A profound loss, leaving behind a rich intellectual and spiritual legacy.
The 25th of Tevet is noted for the publication of Chovot HaLevavot in 1559. And in a different vein, around 332 BC, Alexander the Great met the high priest. This encounter followed claims by the Samaritans that the Jews intended to betray him. One can only imagine the tension in that room, the unspoken threats and the careful diplomacy.
Finally, the 28th of Tevet, in 81 BC, marks a significant shift in the Sanhedrin. Shimon ben Shetach ejected the Sadducees, who held sway over the council, replacing them with his Pharisaic disciples, loyal to the Mishnah. A power play, a reassertion of a particular interpretation of tradition.
This list, I'm told, is incomplete. A common affliction for any attempt to catalogue the vastness of history. One could always add more. One should always add more. The past is never truly finished.