What Is Shavuot?

What if a holiday asked you to stay up all night, eat cheesecake, and celebrate the most important event in your people's history? Shavuot (the Festival of Weeks) falls on the 6th of Sivan, seven weeks after Passover, and commemorates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. It is one of the three pilgrimage festivals, yet it is perhaps the least well-known, partly because it lacks the dramatic physical observances of other holidays. Its power lies in what it celebrates: the moment that gave the Jewish people their identity and purpose.

The Giving of the Torah

Fifty days after leaving Egypt, the Israelites stood at Mount Sinai and heard God speak. This event, the revelation at Sinai, is the foundation of Jewish faith. God gave the Ten Commandments directly to the people and transmitted the rest of the Torah through Moses. Shavuot celebrates this moment of covenant between God and Israel.

Key Customs

All-night Torah study: The Tikkun Leil Shavuot is a beloved tradition of staying up all night studying Torah, rectifying the Midrashic teaching that the Israelites overslept on the morning of the revelation.

Dairy foods: Cheesecake, blintzes, and other dairy dishes are the hallmark of Shavuot meals, for reasons connected to the newly received laws of kashrut and the Torah's description of Israel as a land of milk and honey.

Flowers and greenery: Synagogues and homes are decorated with plants and flowers, recalling the blossoming of Mount Sinai at the revelation.

Book of Ruth: The story of Ruth the Moabite, who chose to join the Jewish people, is read on Shavuot.

The Connection to the Omer

Shavuot marks the culmination of the 49-day Omer count from Passover. If Passover represents physical freedom, Shavuot represents the purpose of that freedom: receiving the Torah and accepting a life of meaning and commitment. The seven weeks of counting bridge liberation and revelation.

Holiday Observance

Shavuot is a full Yom Tov with the same restrictions as Shabbat (except for cooking). It is observed for one day in Israel and two days in the diaspora. Yizkor (memorial prayers) are recited. The Torah reading includes the Ten Commandments, during which the congregation traditionally stands.

For more on Shavuot, see our guides to the giving of the Torah, the Book of Ruth, and the Jewish holiday cycle.