{"id":47902,"date":"2026-11-04T09:40:14","date_gmt":"2026-11-04T09:40:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?p=47902"},"modified":"2026-11-04T09:40:14","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T09:40:14","slug":"article-20221-en","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?p=47902&lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Wine drops at the Passover Seder \u2014 the custom\u2019s origin and meaning"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>\n.es-site{--ink:#483320;--paper:#fbf8f2;--gold:#a78349;background:var(--paper);color:var(--ink);font:18px\/1.85 Arial,sans-serif;overflow-wrap:break-word}\n.es-site *{box-sizing:border-box}.es-site a{color:#6b5036;text-underline-offset:4px}.es-site h1,.es-site h2,.es-site h3{color:#483320;line-height:1.35;font-weight:600}.es-site h1{font-size:clamp(36px,5vw,64px);margin:12px 0}.es-site h2{font-size:clamp(28px,3vw,40px);margin:0 0 24px}.es-site h3{font-size:23px;margin:0 0 16px}.es-site p{margin:0 0 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href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=1052&#038;lang=en#amulets\">Amulets<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=1052&#038;lang=en#contact\">Contact the office<\/a><\/nav>\n<style>.es-site img{max-width:100%;height:auto}.es-site iframe{max-width:100%}.es-site .es-archive-body{max-width:1100px}.es-site .es-archive-body h1{font-size:clamp(28px,4vw,44px)}.es-site .es-archive-body table{max-width:100%;overflow-wrap:anywhere}<\/style>\n<p><main class=\"es-wrap es-archive-body\"><\/p>\n<h1>Wine drops at the Passover Seder \u2014 the custom\u2019s origin and meaning<\/h1>\n<figure><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/article-passover-wine.webp\" alt=\"Wine goblet and matzot \u2014 illustration of Seder customs\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"emanuel-editorial\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>While reciting the plagues in the Haggadah, many communities customarily remove a little wine from the cup. This small act has received different interpretations in books of customs, Jewish law and Kabbalistic literature. To understand it properly, it is important to distinguish the custom in the Haggadah\u2019s order from later stories associated with the wine drops.<\/p>\n<h2>Its source in the laws of the Seder<\/h2>\n<p>The Rema\u2019s glosses on the laws of Passover, section 473, mention dropping wine while saying \u2018blood, fire and pillars of smoke,\u2019 the ten plagues, and Rabbi Judah\u2019s mnemonic signs. Books of customs describe different ways of doing this, including using a finger or pouring directly from the cup. Each family should follow its custom; if no clear custom is known, a rabbi can be consulted.<\/p>\n<h2>Interpretations and allusions<\/h2>\n<p>Some interpretations emphasize remembrance of the plagues and the plea for deliverance, while others address mystical allusions and intentions. Different interpretations should not be combined as though they all appeared in the same source. Even a very familiar explanation should be attributed to a particular author only after checking the wording in that author\u2019s book.<\/p>\n<p>The Seder is devoted to telling the story of the Exodus, giving thanks and teaching. Customs involving the cup can deepen intention, but should not distract from the story or the conversation among household members.<\/p>\n<h2>Is this a custom for harming someone else?<\/h2>\n<p>Folk stories also associate the wine drops with actions directed against rivals. A story\u2019s existence does not make it a halakhic instruction or prove that the act caused the reported event. The source of the wine-dropping custom does not authorize pouring wine where a particular person walks or performing an act intended to frighten or harm them.<\/p>\n<p>Someone involved in a dispute needs a factual examination and a permissible way to resolve it. Seeking the Creator\u2019s help can accompany this without turning the holiday table into a place of vengeance.<\/p>\n<h2>How should it be practiced?<\/h2>\n<p>Follow the Haggadah and family custom, maintain cleanliness and safety, and remove broken utensils or dangerous objects. There is no need to collect the drops for another use. Questions about how to remove the wine or what to do with the remaining wine should be referred for halakhic guidance appropriate to the family\u2019s custom.<\/p>\n<p>This keeps the custom in its proper setting: part of an order of thanksgiving, remembrance and hope for redemption, in which responsibility for words and actions matters no less than symbolic intention.<\/p>\n<p><small>For study: Rema, Orach Chayim 473; Darkhei Moshe, there; books on Seder customs.<\/small><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/main><\/p>\n<footer class=\"es-footer\">\n<p>Rabbi Emanuel Shahar \u00b7 Tiferet Malchut Shlomo<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=20352&#038;lang=en\">About the Rabbi<\/a> \u00b7 <a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=50002&#038;lang=en\">Terms of use<\/a><\/p>\n<nav class=\"es-langs\" aria-label=\"Language\"><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=22&#038;lang=he\" hreflang=\"he\" lang=\"he\">\u05e2\u05d1\u05e8\u05d9\u05ea<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=1052&#038;lang=en\" hreflang=\"en\" lang=\"en\" aria-current=\"page\">English<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=1053&#038;lang=fr\" hreflang=\"fr\" lang=\"fr\">Fran\u00e7ais<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=1054&#038;lang=ar\" hreflang=\"ar\" lang=\"ar\">\u0627\u0644\u0639\u0631\u0628\u064a\u0629<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=20074&#038;lang=es\" hreflang=\"es\" lang=\"es\">Espa\u00f1ol<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=20369&#038;lang=fa\" hreflang=\"fa\" lang=\"fa\">\u0641\u0627\u0631\u0633\u06cc<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/?page_id=20374&#038;lang=tr\" hreflang=\"tr\" lang=\"tr\">T\u00fcrk\u00e7e<\/a><\/nav>\n<\/footer>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While reciting the plagues in the Haggadah, many communities customarily remove a little wine from the cup. This small act has received different interpretations in books of customs, Jewish law and Kabbalistic literature. To understand it properly, it\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":20214,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"elementor_canvas","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47902"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47902\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50656,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47902\/revisions\/50656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20214"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=47902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emanuelshahar.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=47902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}