Our Religous Traditions
Pesach
Kitniot and Rice
Sephardic Jews, like all other Jews, prohibit the use of the five basic hametz grains on Pesach. These are barley, rye, oats, wheat, and spelt. However, unlike Ashkenazic Jews, they permit the use of other grains, or kitniyot, such as chick peas, corn, beans, peas and lentils.
Western Sephardim, Jews from Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Algeria Tunisia etc. do not eat rice on Pesach. However all other Sephardim do eat rice on Pesach. Hence why all Ashkenazim say “So I hear you can eat rice on Pesach!”
Seder Minhagim
The Haggadah is read in a number of different languages starting with Hebrew and including Spanish, French, Arabic or Ladino depending on the place you are from.
Our haroset is based on dates, not apples. You use what's plentiful in your country: In the Middle East, it's dates! The dates are crushed, boiled and pureed, then sprinkled with crushed dried nuts. The result looked exactly like mortar, as it is supposed to!
Sephardim use balsamic vinegar instead of salt water. The Zeroah is not a chicken wing it is a large shank bone.
In Morocco the leader would take the seder tray and go around chanting and lightly banging the tray over each of the participant's head singing Bivhilu Yazanu Mimitzrayim - In haste we left Egypt.
We do not hide the afikoman matzah rather it is looked after.
Sephardim recite the Four Questions in the following order:
1. "On all other nights, we do not dip even once. Why on this night do we dip twice?";
2. "On all other nights we eat bread or matzah. Why on this night do we eat only matzah?
3. "On all other nights, we eat all kinds of herbs. Why on this night do we eat only maror?
4. "On all other nights, we eat either sitting or reclining. Why on this night do we eat only reclining?
Ten Plagues - There is no dipping of fingers in wine. The mother would walk up to the father with a large bowl and a glass of water. He would recite the plagues one by one, and for each plague he would pour a bit of wine in the bowl from a special large wineglass, and the mother would pour a bit of the water. It is all done under the table - nobody is supposed to look at the "plagues" for fear of being "contaminated"! Then the mother, without looking directly at the bowl, and with everyone else looking in another direction, would go to the bathroom and flush the "plagues" down the toilet. The wine represents justice and the water mercy.
In Singapore each participant would sling the napkin containing the matzah over their right shoulder. Then the leader of the seder would ask them "Where are you from?", and they would answer "Mitzrayim -- Egypt". The leader would then ask again, "And where are you going?". They would then sling the napkin of matzah over their left shoulder and answer: "Yerushalayim -- Jerusalem!".
May we all merit to have the Seder in Jerusalem this year.
