1. The roasted shank bone of a lamb, or zeroa, makes us think of our ancestors' sacrifices to God in the ancient Temple, or Beit Hamikdash, and of the lambs that were roasted on the night of the first Passover.

2. A roasted egg, or beitzah, is another reminder of the Temple sacrifices. It also reminds us of spring, the time when eggs hatch and new life begins.

3. A bitter herb, or maror, such as horseradish, gives us a taste of the bitterness of slavery.

4. Haroset is a mixture of chopped apples and nuts, cinnamon, and wine. (In Israel, dates are often use dinstead of apples.) Because haroset looks like the mortar that holds bricks together, it reminds us of the hard labor our ancestors were forced to do when they were slaves in Egypt.

   

5. Salt water is a reminder of the tears our people shed during our slavery.

6. A green vegetable, or karpas, such as parsley or lettuce, is a symbol of spring and therefore, of hope. After a season when all plant life is frozen, spring arrives, and growth is renewed. In a similar way, after a time when the Israelites were held in slavery, they were freed, and their lives were renewed.

A special cup of wine from which no one will drink is also on the table. It is put there for Elijah the Prophet, who we hope will visit us on seder night.

The table is set with a wine cup and a Haggadah for each person. And on the leader's chair or, sometimes, on every person's chair is a pillow. This is because in ancient times, slaves had to sit on hard benches or even stand during their meals while free people could lean back on couches. We are free now, and we lean on pillows to show the difference between our present freedom and our earlier slavery.

Let's follow the order of the seder as it is written in the Haggadah. The seder begins with the brachah over the candles and then the Kiddush, the blessing over wine. Four cups of wine are part of the seder.