Shavuot Reader Shavuot is a big deal. While Simchat Torah marks the beginning of the annual cycle of reading the entire Torah from the beginning, Shavuot is the holiday marking the day the Israelites got the Torah. To celebrate, we eat cheese and dairy-related products. And stay up all night to study.
What’s It All About?
When is Shavuot?
As you may recall, the Hebrews left Egypt in a bit of a hurry, and therefore it took some weeks until they were ready to attend to the business of receiving the word of God and become the official Chosen People.
Shavuot 2026 begins at sundown Thursday, May 21, and ends after nightfall on Saturday, May 23.
How many weeks? Seven, the Hebrew word for which, sheva, shares a root with the word Shavuot, which means weeks. To mark the occasion of having received the divine laws, we do what Jewish parents everywhere would have us do year-round: Study all night long. Together with Passover and Sukkot, the holiday is also one of the Three Pilgrimages (or shalosh regalim, if you want to rock the Hebrew), annual occasions for the ancient Israelites to bring their harvest and livestock over to the Temple in Jerusalem for festivities and ritualistic slaughter. And while the pilgrimage part was abandoned—you know, exile and all—we still mark these three major holidays with special recitations of the joyous Hallel prayer.
ANY BAD GUYS?
Surprisingly, none. It’s one of those Jewish holidays without a villain. Which is also why it’s one of those Jewish holidays not yet turned into a major Hollywood motion picture.
What Do We Eat? Delicious dairy products. Cheesecakes are big. If your ancestors hail from the Tri-State area— Poland, Russia, Ukraine—so are blintzes. The rational explanation for this particular culinary choice is that the Torah was given on the Sabbath, and as no animals could be slaughtered to celebrate the happy occasion, the Israelites likely shrugged their shoulders and collectively agreed to nosh on some brie. More mystical Jews—you know, Madonna— believe that the numbers speak for themselves: Dairy in Hebrew is chalav, and if you sum up the numerical value of the three Hebrew letters that make up that word you get 40. Which is a number you’d remember if you had to wander in the desert for as many years.
MILK AND HONEY, TO BE PRECISE! The custom to eat dairy and honey on Shavuot is a custom that goes back over 600 years. A number of reasons are given for this custom. Some say that it is because the Torah is compared to milk and honey (Devarim Rabba 7:3), as we read: “Honey and milk are under your tongue” (Shir Ha-shirim 4:11). According to another midrash, when the Jews stood at Sinai and said, “All the Lord has spoken we will faithfully do” (Shemot 24:7), God responded with the verse: “Honey and milk are under your tongue” (Tanḥuma Buber, Ki Tisa §9). The idea is that since the Jews agreed to accept the Torah unconditionally, they would find the Torah’s words as sweet as honey and milk.