Search URJ.org and the other Reform websites:

Passover: Customs and Rituals


The Seder

The seder is the centerpiece of any Passover experience. A seder is an elaborate festive meal that takes place on the first night(s) of the holiday of Passover. Family and friends join together to celebrate. The word seder literally means "order," and the Passover seder has 15 separate steps in its traditional order.  These steps are laid out in the Haggaddah, the book used during the seder. Many congregations hold a community seder during at least one night of Passover. There are also synagogue services held during the first day(s) of the holiday.


Kadeish, Ur'chatz,
Karpas, Yachatz,
Magid, Rachtzah,
Motzi, Matzah,
Maror, Korech,
Shulchan Orech,
Tzafun, Barech,
Hallel, Nirtzah

Listen to a recording of the "Order of the Seder," based on the ancient Babylonian chant (sung by Cantor Kathy Barr).

Each of these 15 steps is summarized and explained below:

  1. Kadeish: Sanctification
    A blessing is recited over wine in honor of the holiday. When the seder falls on a Friday night, this version of the kiddush is recited for Passover and Shabbat. When the seder falls on a Saturday night, we continue with a special version of havdallah.The wine is then drunk. A second cup is then poured (but not yet drunk).
  2. Ur'chatz: Washing
    Participants wash their hands without a blessing in preparation for eating the Karpas.
  3. Karpas: Vegetable
  4. Yachatz: Breaking
    The middle of the three matzot on the table is broken into two pieces. The smaller part is returned to the pile, the larger one is set aside for the afikoman (see below).
  5. Magid: The Story
    A retelling of the story of the Exodus from Egypt and the first Pesach. This begins with the youngest person asking The Four Questions, a set of questions about the proceedings designed to encourage participation in the seder. The Magid is designed to satisfy the needs of four different types of people: the wise one, who wants to know the technical details; the wicked one, who excludes himself (and learns the penalty for doing so); the simple one, who needs to know the basics; and the one who is unable to ask, who doesn't even know enough to know what he needs to know. At the end of the Magid, a blessing is recited over the second cup of wine and it is drunk.
  6. Rachtzah: Washing
    Participants wash their hands again, this time with a blessing, in preparation for eating the matzah.
  7. Motzi: Blessing over Grain Products
    Ha-motzi, the blessing for bread or grain products used as a meal, is recited over the matzah.
  8. Matzah: Blessing over Matzah
  9. Maror: Bitter Herbs
    A blessing is recited over a bitter vegetable (usually raw horseradish; sometimes romaine lettuce), and it is eaten. This symbolizes the bitterness of slavery. The maror is dipped in charoset, a mixture of apples, nuts, cinnamon and wine, which symbolizes the mortar used by the Jews in building during their slavery. Note that there are two bitter herbs on the seder plate: one labeled maror and one labeled chazeret. The one labeled maror should be used for maror and the one labeled chazeret should be used in the korech, below.
  10. Korech: The Sandwich
  11. Shulchan Orech: Dinner
    A festive meal is eaten. There is no particular requirement regarding what to eat at this meal (except, of course, that chametz cannot be eaten). Among Ashkenazi Jews, gefilte fish and matzah ball soup are traditionally eaten at the beginning of the meal. Roast chicken or turkey are common as traditional main courses, as is beef brisket. Jews with far-ranging palates can put their own unique, contemporary stamp on this meal.
  12. Tzafun: The Afikoman
  13. Barech: Grace after Meals
    The third cup of wine is poured, and birkat ha-mazon (Grace after Meals) is recited. This is similar to the grace that would be said on any Shabbat, but with the special insertion for Passover. At the end, a blessing is said over the third cup and it is drunk. The fourth cup is poured, including a cup set aside for the prophet Elijah, who is supposed to herald the Messiah, and is supposed to come on Pesach to do this. The door is then opened to invite Elijah into our homes.
  14. Hallel: Praises
    The standard group of psalms that make up a full Hallel are recited at this point. A blessing is recited over the last cup of wine and it is drunk.
  15. Nirtzah: Closing
    A simple statement that the seder has been completed, with a wish that next year, we may celebrate Pesach in Jerusalem (i.e., that the Messiah will come within the next year). This can be followed by various traditional songs, hymns and stories.


Ritual objects

The seder plate contains various symbolic foods referred to in the seder itself. The contents of a seder plate vary by tradition, but most of them contain a shank bone, lettuce, an egg, greens, a bitter herb, and a mixture of apples, nuts and spices.

The following symbolic foods should be placed near the leader of the seder. During the course of the seder, they are pointed out, lifted up and displayed, and explained.
On the seder plate (use either a special one for this purpose or a regular dinner plate), include:

  • Shank bone, zaro’ah, symbolizes the lamb that was sacrificed in ancient days
  • Roasted Egg, beitzah, represents the Passover offering of ancient days as well as the wholeness and continuing cycle of life
  • Bitter herbs, maror (horseradish or romaine lettuce), a reminder of the bitter lives of the Hebrew slaves
  • Charoset, the mixture of apples, nuts, sweet wine, cinnamon and sugar in the Ashkenazic fashion or dates, nuts and sweet wine in the Sephardic tradition, reminds us of the bricks and mortar made by the Hebrew slaves
  • Greens, karpas, symbolizes the spring, the time of the year when Passover takes place

Also place on the table:

  • Three matzot (pl. of matzah), on a plate with a cloth or napkin cover
  • Salt water, a reminder of the tears shed by the Hebrew slaves
  • Cup of Elijah, Kos Eliyahu, symbolizes the hope for a redemptive future

Along with these traditional symbols, families may choose to include a Cup of Miriam, Kos Miriam, on the holiday table. This symbol honors Miriam, the sister of Moses, who played a vital role in the history of our people. The cup of Miriam is a special goblet filled with water and placed on the seder table. Many families and congregations have begun adding an orange to the seder plate as a symbol of inclusion of the LGBTQ community and others who feel marginalized in Jewish life.

The Haggadah (pl. haggadot) contains the text of the seder. There are many different haggadot: some concentrate on involving children in the seder; some concentrate on the sociological or social justice aspects of Passover; there are even historical haggadot and critical editions.

The afikoman is half of the middle matzah that is broken in the fourth step of the seder, yachatz. It is traditional to hide the afikoman, and the person who finds it gets a prize! The afikoman is eaten last of all at the seder, during step 12 of the seder, tzafun.



The Torah reading for the first day of Passover is taken from Exodus 12:37-42 and 13:3-10, which describes the Exodus from Egypt, the basis for the Passover story. The Haftarah reading, an additional selection from the Prophetic books, is Isaiah 43:1-15.