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 Meanings
of Hanukkah
The mid-winter holiday of Hanukkah, which begins on the 25th of
Kislev, is an ancient religious-national holiday which celebrates
the victory of the Maccabees (a family from the priestly tribe)
in 164 BCE over the Seleucid Greeks and their cruel king Antiochus
Epiphanes.
A candelabrum
is lit for eight nights, in celebration of the Maccabees' rededication
of the defiled Holy Temple, and in celebration of freedom.
The
story of this Jewish uprising against foreign oppression and the liberation
and rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem is told in the apocryphal
Book of Maccabees. "And there upon your children came into the shrine
of your house... and did light lamps in your holy courts, and appointed
these eight days to be kept with praise and thanksgiving...and we
thank your great name" (I Maccabees 4:49).
Miracle
of the lamp
 The
sages of the Talmud embellish the historical reason for the festival
with the story of the pure oil found in the Temple; though sufficient
for only day only, this oil miraculously burned for eight days until
new supplies could be prepared. In commemoration of this miraculous
event, a special Hanukkah lamp with eight lights is lit each night
of the holiday, beginning with one on the first eve and adding one
light each succeeding night. Hanukkah is also known as Hag ha-Urim
(Festival of Lights).
Rather
than focusing on the military aspect of the festival, the rabbis chose
to emphasize the survival of religious values in the face of pagan
and idolatrous opposition. In modern times, especially in the State
of Israel, the opposite tendency can be noted.
A
debate takes place in the Mishnah in which the House of Hillel promotes
lighting eight lights the first night, and reducing one light each
night, while the House of Shammai promotes the custom of light one
light the first night, and adding a light each night. The latter custom
was adopted, according to the principle, "One adds to holiness, and
does not diminish it."
At
home
Each
night the Hanukkah lamp (hanukkiah) is lit, increasing a
light each night. On the first night, three blessings are recited.
On the second and subsequent nights only the first two blessings
are recited. On Sabbath eve, the Hanukkah candles are lit before
the Shabbat candles.
In
modern Hebrew the eight-branched menorah is known as a hanukkiah,
so as to differentiate it from the 6-branched candelabrum in the
Temple, which was known as a menorah. A ninth socket in the
hanukkiah holds a server (shamash), which is used to light
the other candles or oil wicks.
The blessings said when lighting the candles:
Barukh
atah Adonai eloheinu melekh ha'olam, asher kid-shanu be'mizvotav ve'zivanu
le-hadlik ner shel Hanukkah.
(Praised are You, Sovereign of the Universe, who has sanctified us
with Your mitzvot and has commanded us to kindle light for Hannkah.)
Barukh
atah Adonai eloheinu melekh ha'olam, she'asah nisim la'avotenu bayamin
ha-hem bazman ha-zeh.
(Praised are You, Sovereign of the Universe, who performed miracles
for our ancestors, in those days, at this time.)
Barukh
atah Adonai eloheinu melekh ha'olam, she'hecheyanu v'kiymanu v'higiyanu
lazman ha-zeh.
(Praised are You, Sovereign of the Universe, for granting us life,
for sustaining us, and for enabling us to reach this day.)
 A
popular Hanukkah game is the spinning of a top (dreidl in
Yiddish, sevivon in Hebrew) with four sides, on each side
of which are the four Hebrew letters nun, gimmel, heh, shin
(acrostic for Nes gadol haya sham —
A great miracle happened there).
In
Israel, the last letter is a peh instead of a shin,
so that the acronym stands for Nes gadol naya poh (A great
miracle happened here). If the top falls on nun, the player
takes nothing from the pot (of nuts, raisins, or coins); if it falls
on the gimel, s/he takes the whole pot; if it falls on hay
the player takes half; and if it falls on the shin (or peh
in Israel) s/he must add to the pot.
 Given
the dedication theme of the festival (Hanukkah literally means
dedication in Hebrew), is also customary to affix a mezuzah
to a doorpost in the home that has yet to receive one.
The
mezuzah is affixed to the right side of the doorpost of Jewish
homes in accordance with the Biblical injunction: "Inscribe them on
the doorposts of your house and on your gates" (Deuteronomy 6:9; 11:20).
The mezuzah is written on a rectangular piece of parchment
by a trained scribe. On one side are the verses of Deuteronomy 6:4-9;
11:13-21; on the reverse side is written the divine name Shaddai (Almighty).
The parchment is rolled up and inserted in a case, with the letters
Shaddai exposed at an opening. Mezuzah cases vary in size,
material and style.
Traditional foods
Latkes,
fried in oil as a reminder of the miracle of the oil (latkes
is Yiddish for fried pancakes; known in Hebrew as levivot);
dishes made
with honey and fruit (such as tsimmes —
potatoes with carrots, prunes and honey. In
Israel it is customary to serve jelly donuts (sufganiot).
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reading
and study
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Black,
Naomi. Celebration: The Book of Jewish Festivals (Jonathan
David, 1989).
Donin, Rabbi Hayim Halevy. To be a Jew: A Guide to Jewish Observance
in Contemporary Life (Basic Books, 1972).
Greenberg, Rabbi Irving. The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays
(Summit Books, 1988).
Greenberg, Blu. How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household
(Jason Aronson, 1989).
Goodman, Philip, ed. Jewish Holiday anthologies (JPS, 1970,
1992).
Jacobs, Louis. The Book of Jewish Practice (Behrman House,
1987)
Kitov, Eliyahu. The Book of Our Heritage (Feldheim, 1978).
Klagsbrun, Francine. Jewish Days: A Book of Jewish Life and
Culture around the Year (Farrar Straus Giroux, 1996).
Knobel, Peter. Gates of the Seasons: A Guide to the Jewish
Year. (CCAR, 1983).
Renberg, Dalia Hardof. The Complete Family Guide to Jewish
Holidays (Adama Books, 1985).
Schauss, Hayyim. The Jewish Festivals: A Guide to their History
and Observance (Schocken Books, 1996).
Strassfeld, Michael. The Jewish Holidays: A Guide and Commentary
(Harper & Row, 1985).
Waskow, Arthur. Season of our Joy: A Celebration of Modern
Jewish Renewal (Beacon Press, 1990). |
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