Counting the Omer
This holiday marks the START of the Omer count.
What is Passover?
Rabbi Akiva had this many students.
What is 24,000?
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai hid in a cave to escape THESE rulers occupying ancient Israel.
Who are the Romans?
The most iconic Lag B'Omer tradition, happening all over Israel on the night of the holiday.
What are bonfires?
For Israeli school kids, Lag B'Omer is this kind of day.
What is a school holiday / day off?
This holiday marks the END of the Omer count, 49 days after Passover.
What is Shavuot?
Before becoming a great rabbi, Rabbi Akiva worked as this for decades.
What is a shepherd?
For 13 years in the cave, Rashbi and his son had ONLY these two things to survive on.
What are a carob tree and a spring of water?
Kids in Israel play with these on Lag B'Omer — connected to Rashbi's students disguising themselves as hunters.
What are bows and arrows?
This northern Israeli city is home to Rashbi's tomb, where hundreds of thousands of people gather every Lag B'Omer night.
What is Meron?
The word 'Lag' is made of two Hebrew letters that add up to this number.
What is 33?
Shocking but true: Rabbi Akiva didn't start learning to read until he was this age.
What is 40?
When Rashbi first came out of the cave and saw people doing everyday work, THIS happened.
What is fire shot from his eyes / he burned things with his gaze?
This special ceremony, done on Lag B'Omer, is when 3-year-old boys get their very FIRST haircut ever.
What is upsherin?
You can actually see Israel's Lag B'Omer bonfires from up HERE.
What is from a satellite / from space / from an airplane?
The Omer connects two big ideas: Passover gave us freedom, and Shavuot gave us this.
What is the Torah?
This is what killed Rabbi Akiva's 24,000 students during the Omer period.
What is a plague?
After going back into the cave a second time, Rashbi finally came out able to see THIS in ordinary everyday life.
What is holiness (or: he made peace with the real world)?
This is one of the most popular days in Israel for these life events — since they're totally forbidden during the rest of the Omer.
What are weddings?
Israeli kids traditionally cook THESE two types of food over the Lag B'Omer bonfire.
What are Marshmallows / s'mores AND kebabs / hot dogs (accept any grilled foods)?
During the Omer, Jews observe a period of semi-mourning. Name TWO things that are not allowed during this time.
What are haircuts, parties, weddings, live music (any two)
The Talmud says the students brought the plague on themselves because they didn't do this to each other.
What is treat each other with respect / kavod?
On his last day alive, Rashbi spent hours revealing secrets of this type of Jewish wisdom — and asked that his death anniversary be celebrated, not mourned.
What is Kabbalah / Jewish mysticism? (He wrote the Zohar)
The bonfires of Lag B'Omer symbolize the spiritual 'light' that Rashbi brought to the world through this text he authored.
What is the Zohar?
Israel's population is about 9 million people. On Lag B'Omer, roughly THIS many people show up at Meron alone.
What is hundreds of thousands? (accept 300,000–700,000)