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Afikoman (Mishnaic Hebrew: אֲפִיקִימוֹן ʾăpîqîmôn;So spelled and vocalized in de Rossi 138 (Parma A) and Kaufmann A50; also spelled אפיקמון in the Cambridge manuscript and by Joseph Ashkenazi (as cited by Solomon Adeni). Modern pronunciation: אֲפִיקוֹמָן ʾăpîqômān) based on Greek language epikomon ἐπὶ or epikomion ἐπικώμιον, meaning "that which comes after" or "dessert"), a word originally having the connotation of "refreshments eaten after the meal",Babylonian Talmud ( Pesahim 119b) is now almost strictly associated with the half-piece of Matzah which is broken in two during the early stages of the Passover Seder and set aside to be eaten as a dessert after the meal.
Based on the Mishnah in Pesahim 119b, the afikoman is a substitute for the Passover sacrifice, which was the last thing eaten at the Passover meal during the eras of the First and Second Temples and during the period of the Tabernacle. The Talmud states that it is forbidden to have any other food after the afikoman, so that the taste of the matzo that was eaten after the meal remains in the participants' mouths. Since the destruction of the Temple and the discontinuation of the Korban Pesach, Jews eat a piece of matzo now known as afikomen to finish the Passover Seder meal.
Customs around the afikoman vary, though they often share the common purpose of keeping children awake and alert during the Seder until the afikoman is eaten. Following Ashkenazi customs, the head of household may hide the afikoman for the children to find, or alternatively, the children may steal the afikoman and ransom it back. Chabad tradition discourages stealing the afikoman lest it lead to bad habits. Following Mizrahi Jews customs, the afikoman may be tied in a sling to a child's back for the duration of the Seder.
The Haggadah Otzar Divrei HaMeforshim cites several other reasons for the custom of stealing the afikoman. According to the author of the work Mekor Chaim – Chavos Yair, this custom demonstrates love for the mitzvah of afikoman. Rabbi Menashe Klein, the Uzhhorod Rebbe, says that this custom is a re-enactment of the biblical account of Jacob stealing the blessings that were supposed to go to his brother Esau. Midrash Pliah says that Isaac told Esau, "Your brother came with trickery" (Genesis 27:35), adding, "and he took out the afikoman." According to the Midrash, this account took place on Passover. Therefore, the children steal the afikoman to get the blessings, which are the present that they ask their fathers to buy for them.
Jewish law prescribes that an olive-sized piece of matzo be eaten to fulfill the mitzvah of eating the afikoman. Many people eat an additional, olive-sized piece of matzo together with it. The first piece of matzo commemorates the Korban Pesach (Paschal lamb), whose meat was eaten at the very end of the festive Seder meal in the days that the Temple stood. The second piece commemorates the matzo that was eaten together with the meat of the Paschal Lamb in the days of the Temple, in fulfillment of the Torah commandment, "They shall eat the together with matzo and maror" (Exodus 12:8). Like the eating of the matzo earlier in the Seder, the afikoman is eaten while reclining to the left (in some Orthodox Judaism circles, women and girls do not lean).
According to Jewish law, the afikoman must be consumed before midnight, just as the Korban Pesach was eaten before midnight during the days of the Temple in Jerusalem.Mishnah Kodashim 5:8. Thus, if the Seder is running late with much singing and discussion of the themes of the The Exodus from Ancient Egypt, families may have to shorten the meal segment of the Seder and proceed quickly to the afikoman.
After the eating of the afikoman, no other food may be eaten for the rest of the night, other than the last two cups of wine at the Seder and coffee, tea, or water.
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