Saturday night marked the beginning of Passover, a week-long celebration of the freeing of Jewish slaves from bondage in Egypt.
Along with Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Hanukkah, Passover is among the four most celebrated Jewish holidays, said Jesse Israel '96. "Everybody pretty much celebrates it," he said.
Both the Hillel House and Dartmouth Dining Services are offering special foods to help students comply with Passover's dietary restrictions.
Until sundown next Saturday, Jews who adhere to Passover's rules will eat nothing that has not been certified as "kosher for Passover."
Forbidden foods include anything containing starch or yeast. Other foods must be prepared in certain ways to be considered kosher. For Passover, the rules are even stricter than usual for determining what is considered kosher.
"Regular kosher just doesn't cut it for Passover," Rachel Wellner '97 said.
Instead of bread, Jews eat a cracker-like unleavened substitute called matzo. Jews fleeing Egypt had to do so in great haste and did not have time to let their bread rise.
The Passover festivities began with the first Seder supper, held Saturday night at Hillel for students and community members. The supper is a traditional meal that recounts the story of the Israelite's exodus, led by Moses, Wellner said.
Although in Israel there is traditionally a Seder meal only on the first night of Passover, many American Jews have a Seder meal on the first two nights. Hillel sponsored a second one last night.
For students away at school, it is not always easy to keep to Passover's restrictions. "It is always hard," Wellner said. "The matzo gets to you after a while."
Eran BenDavid '97, who is from Israel, said, "It's as difficult as you make it. To observe everything, it's a real burden ... I won't overburden myself and starve just because I can't find something that's kosher."
The extent to which students celebrate the holiday varies from almost nothing to very strict adherence.
"It's pretty individual among the different families about how they celebrate holidays," Jacob Waldman '97 said.
BenDavid said that the holiday is observed strictly in Israel. "There is no non-kosher food on the shelves," he said.
To assist students in keeping kosher, each College dining area will have a Passover table set out with a selection of kosher foods, said Tucker Rossiter, associate director of DDS.
But the selection is not usually adequate for Jewish students' needs, Erika Meitner '96 said. "It's really hard ... at the Dining Halls," she said. "It's hard to get stuff without bread here."
Meitner complained that DDS just puts out a table with hard-boiled eggs and fish and considers it "their contribution to Jewish students at Dartmouth."
Hillel provides an extensive selection of food that has been kashered, the process of assuring food is kosher, for Passover.
A program has been set up to allow students to use their meal plans when they eat at the house this week.
But this is not always an option. "To walk there for every meal is impossible," Meitner said. The house is located on South Park Street, beyond Leverone Field House.
