Lag BaOmer celebrations in Meron
צילום: אלי מנדלבאום
Masses make their way to Mount Meron for Lag BaOmer celebrations
Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox make pilgrimage to the grave of Zohar author Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai to light bonfires.
Close to midnight Saturday, the Boyan Hasidic dynasty Rebbe, Nachum Dov Brayer, was expected to light the first main bonfire in Meron, commencing the Lag BaOmer celebrations.
Lag BaOmer is a Jewish holiday celebrated on the 33rd day of the Counting of the Omer. The holiday marks the day Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, a Mishnaic sage and leading disciple of Rabbi Akiva in the 2nd century, revealed the deepest secrets of kabala in the form of the Zohar (Book of Splendor).
Among the main practices of Lag BaOmer are bonfire lighting and the pilgrimage to Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai's grave on Mount Meron.
Tens of thousands of people have already started making their pilgrimage to Mount Meron using public transportation, shuttles and even helicopters. The entrance of private vehicle to Meron has been barred as of Thursday.
For the next 24 hours, rabbis and Hasidic leaders will celebrate the memory of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai - each around his own bonfire surrounded by his followers in previously set times - to the sound of music.
Several hours after the Boyan Rebbe lights the first bonfire, former Israeli chief rabbi Shlomo Amar will light a bonfire.
Boyan Rebbe lighting the first bonfire in Meron (Photo: Aviyahu Shapira) (צילום: אביהו שפירא)
The right to light bonfires in Meron for this celebration is considered a great privilege and honor in the haredi sector. Those who are rewarded with that right are considered very influential in the ultra-Orthodox community. Several of the main bonfire lightings are reserved in advance, while lobbyists for many Hasidic dynasties vie for the bonfires who aren't reserved. As a result, dozens of rebbes were expected to light bonfires during the night and on Sunday.
Just like every year, haredi barbers will arrive in Meron to open a makeshift barbershop for the sake of the boys who will undergo the "upsherin" (haircutting ceremony). After families of boys who reached the age of three cut the first locks of hair off, the barbers would be on hand to complete the boys' very first haircut.
The anniversary of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai's passing, the 18th day of the Hebrew month of Iyar, falls on Saturday night this year, which led the Chief Rabbinate, the Tzohar rabbis and others to call for the postponement of the Lag BaOmer celebrations and bonfire lighting in one day to Sunday night, to prevent Shabbat desecration. While the Ministry of Education obliged the call, it was the haredi community that insisted on sticking to the original date and refused to change it.
The pilgrimage to the grave of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, a revered tannaitic sage, started on Thursday. The roads leading to Mount Meron have been closed ever since, and only residents of Meron have been allowed into the village prior to the beginning of celebrations.
Over a thousand policemen and volunteers from the police's northern district will secure the events in Meron and regulate traffic in the area.
Local authorities started preparing for the Lag BaOmer events a week ago. Police forces were deployed to the area to stop merchants from setting up stands and tents, and changes were made to traffic arrangements to prevent a collapse of transportation in the area.
Ynetnews contributed to this report.
