Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday greeted Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and the Jewish community on the occasion of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashanah means "head of the year." Every autumn, it is a two-day celebration that marks the start of the Jewish High Holy Days. The millennium-old holiday is a time for reflection, often marked by prayer, symbolic foods, and the blowing of a traditional horn known as a shofar.
PM Modi stated in a tweet, "Warmest greetings for Rosh Hashanah to my friend @yairlapid, Israel's friendly people and the Jewish community all over the world. May the new year bring good health, peace and prosperity to everyone. Shana Tova!"
Naor Gilon, Israel's Ambassador to India, also celebrated the Jewish New Year with his team in India. He stated in a tweet, "Have a happy Rosh Hashanah! Continuing the Rosh Hashanah tradition with our @IsraelinIndia team and friends. We welcomed the New Year with the sound of the shofar and honey-dipped apples."
Furthermore, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said in a speech to the nation, "to our Jewish family all over the world, Shana Tova, Happy New Year."
He hoped that the Jewish people would remember that this year "We are all one big family. It does not matter if you are orthodox, secular, reform or conservative, which synagogue you pray in or if you pray at all."
India and Israel have strategic alliances. Relations between the peoples of the two nations date back over two millennia. For centuries, Jews have been welcomed in India, and their contributions have enriched Indian culture.
(With Inputs From ANI)