Post date: Nov 28, 2013 3:24:20 AM
Why do we light 36 candles in total during Chanukah?
Background info: The Gemara (Chagigah 12a) explains that Hashem created an awesome ‘light’ during Creation that allowed one to see from one end of the universe to the other (meaning that with this light, one had the ability to understand everything contained in the universe, why things happen the way they do, etc…). But because of man’s sin, this light was hidden quite soon thereafter, to be revealed to the Tzadikim in the days of Mashiach.
The Bnei Yissaschar tells us that although this light is hidden, it’s not completely out of reach. It’s contained within the Torah, and it can be revealed to some extent through our learning of Torah. This special light shone for 36 hours, and the fact that it’s hidden within the Torah is evident in that the words “Ohr” (light), “Neir” (candle/light), and “Me’oros” (luminaries) appear in the Torah 36 times combined. Also, Chanukah is a celebration of the Oral Torah, and since the essence of Torah is acquired through learning Oral Torah (which is based in the Gemara), it’s no coincidence that there are 36 Masechtos (tractates) in Talmud Bavli. To tap into this hidden light, we simply need to study Torah. (This connection is found further in a phrase from Mishlei (6:23) that says “Torah Ohr.”) We light the candles on Chanukah according to the opinion of Beis Hillel (by adding another light on each subsequent night) and not according to Beis Shamai (whose opinion was that we should start with eight candles and reduce the total by one light each night) demonstrating that the more one learns and delves into Torah, the more the Hidden Light is revealed to him.
The Yevanim attempted to extinguish the light of the Torah, but Hashem revealed sparks of the Hidden Light through the miracle of the small jug of oil lasting for eight days. As we light our Chanukah candles each year, some of the Hidden Light is even revealed to us! This is evident by the fact that we will have lit 36 candles by the end of Chanukah, the same number of hours that this awesome Light shone from the time it was created until it was hidden.
Additionally, instead of the typical understanding of the phrase in Tehillim (144:15) “Ashrei Ha’am shecacha LO” (Lamed Vav) as “Praiseworthy is the nation for whom this is so,” we could reinterpret the last word using Gematriah (numerical value of the letters) and understand it as “Praiseworthy is the nation who keep the 36 candles of Chanukah” and thus possess the light of the Torah and therefore will merit all the benefits of the Hidden Light!
[Inside Chanukah p. 220]
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Why does the Al HaNissim focus on the military miracle and not on the miracle of the oil?
Although everyone was aware of the miracle of the oil, only a very small minority who were in the Beis Hamikdash personally experienced it by witnessing it. In contrast, everyone felt relief when the oppression of the Yevanim ended.
The Seifer Baruch She’amar explains that since there was a personal connection to the military miracle by everyone, this is the miracle focused on in the Al HaNissim.
[Inside Chanukah, p. 62]
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The letters of “Chanukah” could be interpreted as being Roshei Teivos for the following phrase:
Chutzah Nadlikim Uz’manam Kol Halailah
We light (the candles) outdoors (in Eretz Yisrael), and the time for lighting them extends throughout the entire night.
[Inside Chanukah, p. 463]