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1. What is the blessing over mushrooms?

I recently received this question from one of our religious school teachers in my shul. Mushrooms are neither a fruit nor a vegetable. They are fungi, and unlike a potato or carrot, do not obtain their nutrients from the soil as plants do. Furthermore, mushrooms may also grow without soil (i.e. on dead trees) and therefore according to the rabbis are not considered the fruit of the ground. For this reason the blessing over mushrooms is "shehakol nee-heyeh beedvaro" (that everything is according to God's will). This catchall form of bracha is used when one is about to eat any food that is not recognizable as derived from a plant, such as meat, water or candy. Mushrooms too fall into this category.

2. What is the Fast of Esther?

Purim is always preceded by the Fast of Esther (Ta'anit Esther), which recalls the three-day fast by the Jews of Persia (Esther 3:12) to lend support to Queen Esther. Because the fate of her people was at stake, Esther was preparing to enter King Ahasuerus' presence without prior permission, an act punishable by death. Ironically, the fast mentioned in the Book of Esther actually occurred during Passover of the previous year, rather than just before the climactic events in the Purim story. When the day of fasting falls on Shabbat (such as this year), it is moved back to Thursday, since fasting is not permitted either on the Sabbath (except on Yom Kippur), a day of joy, or on Friday, when one is preparing for the Sabbath.

3. How many times is Haman's name actually mentioned in the megillah of Esther?

I believe there are 54 mentions of Haman, and of course the popular custom for the congregation is to make lots of noise every time his name is read, to fulfill the biblical commandment to "blot out the name of Amalek" (Deuteronomy 25:19), the ancestor of Haman. While any kind of noisemaking device is acceptable, including booing and stamping one's feet on the floor, it is traditional to use a gragger (noisemaker) for this purpose. Some people even write the name of Haman on the soles of their shoes, so as to literally blot out the name as they stomp on their feet.

4. What exactly is a Purim rabbi?

In some yeshivot, a student is selected as the so-called Purim rabbi, to give lectures that frivolously manipulated sacred texts and parodied his teachers, who for one day were not the objects of respect but the targets of playful or stinging satires. One reason for this practice is that a single day of making good-natured fun of Torah, which is so highly revered the rest of the year, prevents Jews from becoming sanctimonious about their holy text.

5. What is Shushan Purim?

Purim falls on the 14th of Adar, and Jews the world over celebrate Purim on that day. However, since Shushan, the capital of Persia, was a walled city, inhabitants of all cities known to be walled since the time of Joshua observe Purim one day later, on the 15th of Adar. Inhabitants of Jerusalem (a walled city) read the megillah and celebrate Purim on the 15th of Adar, while the rest of Israel observes the holiday on the 14th. The 15th of Adar is called Shushan Purim.

6. I've heard that there is such a thing as Purim challah? True?

Yes, some Jewish people have a custom to serve a braided challah on Purim afternoon at the festive meal known as the Purim seudah. It is made of longs strands of dough, representing the long ropes that were set up by Haman to execute Mordechai but which in the end were used to hang Mordecai and his 10 sons.

Rabbi Ron Isaacs is the spiritual leader of Temple Sholom, a Conservative congregation in Bridgewater. His forthcoming new book is "Siddur Or Shalom," a Shabbat morning prayerbook. Contact him at www.rabbiron.com or "Ask the Rabbi," c/o Rabbi Ron Isaacs, Temple Sholom, P.O. Box 6007, Bridgewater, N.J. 08807.