Do You Light a Menorah or a Chanukiyah?

What do we light on Chanukah?

It shouldn’t be complicated, but this is Judaism. When I ask a group that question, I always get two responses. Most people say they light the Chanukah “menorah.” Others answer they light the “chanukiyah.”

What’s the difference?

On the one hand, a “menorah” in Hebrew means a “lamp,” and can refer to any lamp, including the seven-branched candelabra lit every day in the Mishkan and, later, the Beit Hamikdash. This menorah happens to be central to the story of Chanukah. So, even though our Chanukah candelabra is different than the OG menorah, it’s A menorah, and we’re celebrating a holiday centered around THE menorah, so we light the menorah.

On the other hand, the word “menorah” has become closely associated with THE menorah of the Temple. What we light on Chanukah is different. That one had 7 branches, and we’re lighting 8 candles plus one shamash. We can’t call what we light a “menorah.” We need to call it something else. Hence, “chanukiyah” to the rescue. The term can be found in the writings of Rabbi Avraham Meyuchas (1699-1767) and was a term used by the Ladino-speaking Jewish community in Israel at the time. Later in the 20^th century, Hemda Ben-Yehudah, the second wife of modern Hebrew language innovator Eliezer Ben-Yehudah, designated the Chanukah candelabra to be known exclusively as the “chanukiyah.”

I must admit a partiality for chanukiyah. The menorah was the menorah, and we don’t light the menorah. I sometimes go out of my way to describe light the “Chanukah lights” instead of lighting “the menorah.” While I recognize and validate those in the “chanukiyah” camp, I now have a better understanding of the meaning and message of menorah.

Last night, Rabbi Zalman Wolowik of Chabad of the Five Towns shared some Chasidic insights into the original menorah. The Torah describes Hashem commanding the menorah be crafted out of “mikshah,” one piece of gold. It could not be assembled out of multiple pieces of gold. The word “mikshah” shares a root with the Hebrew word “kashah,” which means difficult. Rashi (Shemot 25:31) quotes the tradition that Moshe had difficulty (kashah) figuring out how to make the menorah, so God had to make it for him.   

But what was so difficult about carving a menorah out of one piece of gold? It might be complicated, but Moshe was pretty bright. He had divine assistance. He made use of the services of Betzalel as chief craftsman. Why was mikshah so difficult to comprehend?

The answer is that mikshah did not only refer to one piece of gold. The menorah was to represent the spiritual unity of the Jewish people. Its seven branches all faced one central direction. This represents that all Jews with all their wisdom and different ideas and all of their emotional and spiritual characteristics are meant to operate as one unit. Just as the menorah is of one piece, so are the Jewish people.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe explained that there are two essential laws of the menorah: that it should be forged from a single piece of gold, and that its diverse lights should face each other in harmony with their source. As we strive to illuminate our surroundings, there must be the ever-present awareness of our intrinsic oneness, coupled with an assertion of our individual talents in concert with each other and in fidelity to our mission and identity.

That’s pretty mikshah. Such a proposition was even beyond Moshe’s comprehension. But that’s what the menorah is. The menorah is a symbol of the unified Jewish people. We each bring our fullest selves to serve as an essential part of a unified nation. That’s what the menorah teaches.

So, I now understand better why we naturally light what we refer to as the “menorah” on Chanukah. The menorah teaches us about ourselves. On Chanukah, we commemorate and celebrate the survival, continuity, and relevance of Judaism throughout the ages. It is also time for us to remember our role in that story. We are an essential part of the Jewish nation. What we bring to the community is unique to us. If we don’t, nobody else will. And we need each other to fulfill our potential as a Jewish nation.

I believe this is why Jewish tradition developed in a way that everyone lights the menorah the best way possible. According to the basic law, each home only requires one candle to be lit each night. Regardless of which night of Chanukah or how many people in the house, one candle is all you need. Now, does anyone know anyone who does it this way? Everyone who lights, instead, lights what is considered mehadrin min hamehadrin, the super-duper way to light. Each person lights an ascending number of candles each night. The goal of Chanukah is for each one of us to be our best authentic selves.

So, light. Light your menorah or your chanukiyah, inspired by the eternal message of Jewish potential and unity of the original menorah. Enoy the light, be inspired by the light, and share the light. That’s how we will chase away the darkness and create a bright world for all.