Mimouna under Fire - 2026

Mimouna 2026: Between an Open Door and an Open Heart

"Tirbehu Vetis’adu” – A celebration of sweetness, hospitality, and hope

By Tami Lancut Leibovitz | Master of Manners

At the close of Passover, another door opens in the Jewish calendar: the door of Mimouna. It is a celebration of sweetness, blessing, hospitality, and hope — an evening in which people greet one another with the traditional words, “Tirbehu Vetis’adu”: may you prosper, may you be blessed, may good fortune accompany you.

Yet Mimouna 2026 arrives in a far from ordinary moment. In an Israel marked by tension, exhaustion, and uncertainty, this beloved tradition takes on renewed meaning. It is no longer only a holiday of mofletta, honey, and festive tables, but a reminder of something deeper: the enduring value of an open home, good neighborliness, generosity, and human warmth.

Rooted in the traditions of North African Jewry — and most strongly identified with Moroccan Jewish heritage — Mimouna has long symbolized the transition from the restraint of Passover to the abundance of everyday life. It is a celebration of reopening: of doors, of tables, and of the heart itself.

One of the most touching traditions associated with Mimouna recalls the close ties that once existed between Jews and Muslims in Morocco. According to communal memory, when Jewish families returned from synagogue at the end of Passover and had not yet touched flour, it was often their Muslim neighbors who brought back the flour kept for them during the holiday, and at times even helped prepare the first leavened food. At the center of that moment stood the mofletta — warm, thin, quick to prepare, and perfectly suited to mark the immediate passage from matzah to soft, risen dough, from limitation to renewed abundance.

Over time, that spirit of neighborliness and openness became part of Mimouna itself. Homes were opened, tables were set with sweets and symbols of blessing, and family, friends, neighbors, and guests were welcomed with the heartfelt greeting: “Tirbehu Vetis’adu.”

This year, that blessing sounds especially resonant. It speaks not only of prosperity, but of recovery. Not only of abundance, but of comfort. Not only of celebration, but of the simple human ability to open a door, offer tea, extend kindness, and create a moment of grace in difficult times.

Perhaps that is the enduring beauty of Mimouna. It reminds us that freedom is not only a memory of the Exodus, but also the ability to remain generous, gracious, and open-hearted.

Tirbehu Vetis’adu — and may better, sweeter days lie ahead.