Hanukkah
The Festival of
Lights
by Holly Hartman
Hanukkah, the "Festival
of Lights," starts on the 25th day of the Jewish calendar month of Kislev and lasts for
eight days and nights. In 2008, Hanukkah begins at sundown on December 21.
With blessings, games, and festive foods, Hanukkah celebrates the
triumphs--both religious and military--of ancient Jewish heroes.
Hanukkah is a relatively minor holiday in the Jewish year. In the United
States, however, its closeness to Christmas has brought greater
attention to Hanukkah and its gift-giving tradition. Amid the ever-growing
flood of Christmas advertising, it may seem especially fitting that the
Hanukkah story tells of Jewish culture surviving in a non-Jewish world.
The Hanukkah Story
Nearly 2,200 years ago, the Greek-Syrian
ruler Antiochus IV tried to force
Greek culture upon peoples in his territory. Jews in Judea - now Israel- were forbidden their most important
religious practices as well as study of the Torah. Although vastly outnumbered,
religious Jews in the region took up arms to protect their community and
their religion. Led by Mattathias the Hasmonean, and later his son Judah the
Maccabee, the rebel armies became known as the Maccabees.
After three years of
fighting, in the year 3597, or about 165 B.C.E., the Maccabees victoriously
reclaimed the temple on Jerusalem's Mount Moriah. Next they prepared the
temple for rededication -- in Hebrew, Hanukkah means "dedication." In the
temple they found only enough purified oil to kindle the temple light for a
single day. But miraculously, the light continued to burn for eight
days.
The Menorah
The lighting of the menorah, known in
Hebrew as the hanukiya, is the most important Hanukkah tradition. A menorah
is a candlestand with nine branches. Usually eight candles - one for each day
of Hanukka - are of the same height, with a taller one in the middle, the
shamash ("servant"), which is used to light the others. Each evening of
Hanukkah, one more candle is lit, with a special blessing.
The
menorah symbolizes the burning light in the temple, as well as marking the
eight days of the Hanukkah festival. Some say it also celebrates the light
of freedom won by the Maccabees for the Jewish people.
The
Dreidel
Long a favorite Hanukkah toy, the dreidel once had a serious
purpose. When the Syrians forbid study of the Torah, Jews who studied in
secret kept spinning tops "sivivons, or dreidels"on hand. This way, if they
were found studying, they could quickly pretend that they had only been
playing.
Outside of Israel, a dreidel has the Hebrew letters "nun,"
"gimel," "hay," and "shin" on its four sides. These letters stand for "Nes
gadol haya sham," which means, "A great miracle happened there," referring
to Israel. An Israeli dreidel has the letter "pay" rather than "shin." This
stands for "poh," meaning "here"a great miracle happened here."
The
Hebrew letters also represent Yiddish words that tell how to play
the dreidel game. Each player starts with the same amount of candies,
chocolate coins (gelt), or other tokens, and puts one in a pot. Players take
turns spinning the dreidel, waiting to see which letter lands face up. Nun
is for "nisht," do nothing. Gimel is for "gants," take the
whole pot. Hay is for "halb," take half. Shin is for "shtel," add to the pot. The game ends when a single player wins all the
tokens.
Hanukkah Foods
Many traditional Hanukkah foods are
cooked in oil, in remembrance of the oil that burned in the temple. In the
United States, the most widespread Hanukkah food is latkes, or potato
pancakes, a custom that may have developed in Eastern Europe. In Israel, the
favorite Hanukkah food is sufganiya, a kind of jelly donut cooked in oil.
Israelis eat sufganiyot for more than a month before the start of
Hanukkah.
Eating dairy products, especially cheese, is another
Hanukkah tradition. This is done in memory of the Jewish heroine Judith, who according to legend saved
her village from Syrian attackers. Judith fed wine and cheese to the Syrian
general Holofernes until he became so drunk that he fell to the ground. She
then seized his sword and cut off his head, which she brought back to her
village in a basket. The next morning, Syrian troops found the headless body
of their leader and fled in terror.
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