Rosh Hashanah is one of the most important Jewish holidays and it is only nine days away, marking the Jewish new year.

The holiday celebrates the birth of the universe as God created everything on Rosh Hashanah. In 2017, the day will be celebrated on Wednesday, September 20 and it begins at sundown. It lasts through nightfall on Friday, September 22.

One of the key elements of Rosh Hashanah is the way it’s celebrated, by lighting candles in the evenings and enjoying a hearty meal with delicacies through the night and day. Prayer services also take place during the holiday, including the sounding of the ram’s horn on both mornings.

Rosh Hashanah is not a day for creative endeavors. The actual phrase means “Head of the Year,” and it comes from the idea that just how our head controls our body, our actions on this day will have a great impact on the rest of the year.

It sets the tone on who we are and what we want to achieve over the coming year. Everyone in the world is expected to pass before God like a flock of sheep. It is also determined “who shall live, and who shall die … who shall be impoverished and who shall be enriched; who shall fall and who shall rise.”

Peace, prosperity and blessing are among the common tenets that we ask of God during Rosh Hashanah.