Gifts range from major purchases to minor ones, the Jewish equivalent of stocking-stuffers. Many parents also encourage their children to give to charity during this time. And the eight days of lamp burning? Instead, some say that the festival of lights may be a second Sukkot , a harvest festival that lasts eight days, but geared toward olive growers. An Ultra-Orthodox Jewish man lights candles on the eighth and last night of the holiday of Hanukkah in Jerusalem's Mea Shearim neighborhood December 13, Tags: Lifestyle , hanukkah.
Maria G. Join the Discussion. On the first night of Hanukkah the first candle is lit, on the second night another flame is lit and then by the eight night, all eight lights are kindled. A menorah is lit in every household and placed in a doorway or window and a menorah is also lit in synagogues and other public places.
Special blessings are recited at the festival before the menorah is lit and traditional songs are sung afterwards. Hanukkah - or Chanukah which the festival is also known as - begins on the eve of Kislev - the ninth month of the year and continues for eight days.
However a small band of Jews led by Judah the Maccabee, rose up and drove out their Greek-Syrian oppressors and reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Legend has it, that this one container lasted for eight days until new kosher oil could be prepared under conditions of ritual purity.
As oil is an integral part of the Hanukkah story, fried foods are frequently part of Hanukkah meals. One particularly popular food is latkes , which are a kind of fried potato pancake. Prayer services and blessings after meals are also part of the Hanukkah celebration, as is the tradition of giving small gifts for children on each night. Such gifts often include toys, candy, or money, which is called Hanukkah Gelt in Yiddish.
And a common toy given during Hanukkah is the dreidel , a four-sided top. How do you play with the dreidel? The letters represent the words Nes Gadol Haya Sham , which translates to "A great miracle happened there," referring to the miracle at the temple.
Playing the traditional game with the dreidel includes players taking turns spinning, with each side signifying they either take some of that Hanukkah Gelt from a central pot, or have to give some up. Is Hanukkah a major holiday in the Jewish faith? Hanukkah isn't a terribly important holiday, in a religious sense, to the Jewish people.
But Hanukkah's position on the calendar generally places it somewhere between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and so it becomes part of a more secular and Christian cycle of celebrations which we all generally refer to as "the holidays. In modern times, Hanukkah also symbolizes Jewish resilience, with obvious parallels to ongoing conflicts in the Middle East.
However, the Maccabees led by Judah managed to defeat the Greek troops and reclaim the Temple in Jerusalem. They then rededicated it to the service of God. Surprisingly the one-day supply lasted for eight days which was enough time to prepare new oil under conditions of ritual purity. Food remains a key part of Hanukkah and traditionally food fried in oil - to commemorate the miracle oil - is eaten. Latkes is one food which is commonly eaten during the festival which are fried potato pancakes served with applesauce and sour cream and doughnuts sufganyot filled with jam are also eaten.
Usually the game is played for a pot of coins, nuts or other prizes and it won and lost based on which letter the dreidel lands when it is spun.
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