Chalakeh/ Upsherin ceremony on Lag BaOmer

It is customary to celebrate the Chalakeh /Upsherin ceremony on Lag BaOmer.  This is a celebration of a three-year-old boy’s first haircut.
This event often marks the end of the mourning customs and the beginning of joyous days when small children can get their hair cut.  It is the start of a new chapter in raising the child.
The source of this custom is related to the Prophet Samuel whose mother, Hannah, brought him to the Mishkan (Tabernacle) after he was weaned so that he would grow up there – a maturing process, if you will.
There are those who give their three-year-old boys their first haircut as a symbol of maturity at the tomb of the Prophet Samuel or other holy places in Israel.  There are those who celebrate the Chalakeh / Upsherin as part of the celebration of the Rashbi in Meron.
The celebrations are felt at the Western Wall as well where the mourning customs have ceased and we transition to preparations for the approaching holiday of Shavuot (the Festival of Weeks).