Before the meal, unmarried young women would hide behind a door to eat a hard-boiled egg - a symbol of fertility suggesting that marriage was in the not-too-distant future.

The Jews in Egypt had a peculiar local custom. 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!". In some families, the leader would take the seder tray and...

Now let's talk about the ten plagues. There was no dipping of fingers in wine. We were much too refined for that! My mother would walk up to my father with a large bowl and a glass of water. My father 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 my mother would pour a bit of the water. It was all done...

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...

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 look exactly like mortar, as it is supposed to!

The 601st commandment of the Jewish faith states: "Thou shalt never again dwell permanently in the land of Egypt". [Deut. 17:16] Well - looks like I blew it from day one. I was born in Egypt, a permanent dweller. The time was early September. A few days later was Yom Kippur, and already I was learning to beat my breast in repentance. "For the sin that we have committed by dwelling permanently in the Land of Egypt". So I was born...

Make a sandwich of marror between two pieces of the bottom Motazah. Dip the sandwich into the haroseth and shake it off.

Praised are you, Adonai, our God, sovereign of the universe, who has redeemed us and our fathers from Egypt and enabled us to reach this night that we may eat matzo and marror. Lord our God and God of our fathers, enable us to reach also the forthcoming holidays and festivals in peace, rejoicing in the rebuilding of Zion your city, and joyful at your service. There we shall eat of the offerings and Passover sacrifices which will be acceptably placed...

Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha’olam, asher g’alanu v’ga’al et avoteinu mimitzrayim, v’higianu lalaylah hazeh le’echol bo matzah umaror. Kein Adonai Eloheinu vEilohei avoteinu yagi’einu l’mo’adim v’lirgalim acheirim haba’im likrateinu l’shalom, s’meichim b’vinyan irecha v’sasim ba’avodatecha. V’nochal sham min hazvachim umin hapsachim asher yagia damam al kir mizbachacha l’ratzon, v’nodeh l’cha shir chadash al g’ulateinu v’al p’dut nafsheinu. Baruch Atah Adonai, ga’al Yisrael. Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech haolam, borei p’ri hagafen

Raise the cup of wine until it is drunk at the end of Magid. Therefore it is our duty to thank and praise, pay tribute and glorify, exalt and honor, bless and acclaim the One who performed all these miracles for our fathers and for us. He took us out of slavery into freedom, out of grief into joy, out of mourning into a festival, out of darkness into a great light, out of slavery into redemption. We will recite a...

Raise the cup of wine until it is drunk at the end of Magid.  L’fichach anachnu chayavim l’hodot, l’hallel, l’shabeiach, l’faeir, l’romeim, l’hadeir, l’vareich, l’aleih ul’kaleis, l’mi she’asah a’avoteinu v’lanu et kol hanisim haeilu: hotzianu meiavdut l’cheirut miyagon l’simchah, umei’eivel l’yom tov, umei’afeilah l’or gadol, umishibud ligulah. V’nomar l’fanav shirah chadashah: halleluyah. Halleluyah hal’lu avdei Adonai, hal’lu et sheim Adonai. Y’hi sheim Adonai m’vorach mei’atah v’ad olam. Mimizrach shemesh ad m’vo’o m’hulal sheim Adonai. Ram al kol goyim Adonai, al hashamayim...

In every generation, one must see himself as if he himself had personally come out of Egypt, as it is said: “You should say to your son on that day, ‘It is because of that which God did to me when I left Egypt.’ It is not only our ancestors that the Holy One Blessed Be He redeemed. Rather, he redeemed us too, along with them, as it is said: “He brought us out of there, in order so that he...

B’chol dor vador chayav adam lirot et atzmo k’ilu hu yatza mimitzrayim, shene’emar: v’higadta l’vincha bayom hahu leimor, ba’avur zeh asah Adonai li b’tzeiti mimitzrayim. Lo et avoteinu bilvad ga’al hakadosh baruch hu, ela af otanu ga’al imahem, shene’emar: v’otanu hotzi misham, l’ma’an havi otanu, latet lanu et ha’aretz asher nishba la’avoteinu.  

FRabban Gamliel would teach that all those who had not spoken of three things on Passover had not fulfilled their obligation to tell the story, and these three things are: Pesah [Paschal Lamb], Matzah and Maror [Bitter Herb].   Point to the shank bone The Pesah which our ancestors ate when the Second Temple stood: what is the reason for it? They ate the Pesah because the holy one, Blessed be He “passed over” the houses of our ancestors in Egypt, as...

Rabban Gamlieil hayah omeir: kol shelo amar sh’loshah d’varim eilu bapesach, lo yatza y’dei chovato, v’eilu hein: Pesach, Matzah, Umaror. Point to the shank bone Pesach shehayu avoteinu och’lim, bizman shebeit hamikdash hayah kayam, al shum mah? Al shum shepasach hakadosh baruch hu al batei avoteinu b’mitzrayim, shene’emar: va’amartem zevach pesach hu l’Adonai, asher pasach al batei v’nei Yisrael b’mitzrayim, b’nagpo et mitzrayim v’et bateinu hitzil, vayikod ha’am vayishtachavu. Point to the matza Matzah zeh sheanu och’lim, al shum mah? Al...

How much more so do we have to be thankful for the manifold and unbounded blessings of God: He brought us out of Egypt, and executed judgments against the Egyptians, and executed judgments against their gods, and put to death their firstborn, and  gave us their riches, and split the sea for us, and led us through it on dry land, and sunk our foes in it, and satisfied our needs in the desert for forty years, and fed us the...