Hanukkah celebrates the triumph of Jewish people over religious persecution. It represents the great win for the Jews against the Syrian-Greeks. In second century BCE, the Maccabees recaptured the Holy Temple in Jerusalem from the Greeks. The first thing they did was light a golden menorah with one jar of oil that they found. It burned surprisingly for eight days. Today you can see a three million solid gold replica of the menorah right outside Aish HaTorah in Jerusalem. Jews still light a menorah to recall this miracle, and to be inspired by its message.
In Hebrew, the word "hanukkah" means "dedication." The Hanukkah celebration revolves around the kindling of a nine-branched menorah, known in Hebrew as the hanukiah. On each of the holiday’s eight nights, another candle is added to the menorah after sundown. The ninth candle,the shamash, is used to light the others. Jews typically recite blessings and carols around the glowing menorah during this ritual. They display the menorah in a window as a reminder to others of the miracle that inspired the holiday.
Hanukkah is not the Jewish Christmas. Even though there is no significance to giving gifts some exchange them.
There is a tradition to give gelt, which is money, to kids to give an motivation to learn Torah.
The traditional foods of the holiday are deep-fried and caloric. Jews eat oily foods like latkes and sufganiyot . Latkes are pancakes made out of potatoes and onions, which are fried in oil and then served with applesauce. Sufganiyot are jelly-filled donuts that are fried and sometimes dusted with confectioners’ sugar before eating. Around 17 million are eaten in Israel during Hanukkah.
A popular Hanukkah game is spinning the dreidel, which is a four-sided top with Hebrew letters written on each side. Gelt, which is also know as chocolate coins covered with tin foil, are part of this game. Spinning the dreidel was originally done by students illegally studying Torah, the Jewish written law.
In conclusion, even though Hanukkah is one of the less important holidays, according to Jewish law, some of its traditions are well known across nation.
Hanukkah
By T. Ware