Chanukah

(To receive thoughts seasonally for the upcoming holiday by e-mail -- sign up here! )  (short) - Chanukah DICTIONARY SUPPLEMENT Chan-u-kah  n. Hebrew name of the Jewish festival of lights. Etymology: 1. ‘inauguration’(of the re-purified Temple). 2. ‘rest on the 25th’ (chanu means ‘they rested’; the last two letters, chof and hei, numerically equal 25; the 25th of Kislev is the first day of Chanukah). The Maggid of Kosnitz offers another interpretation. Vowelled differently, Chanukah can be read: "chinuch - hai" –"educate the...". The Rebbe explained: From a certain perspective, Chanukah is the first holiday of the new year. Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot constitute a consummation of the previous year, even though they are situated at the beginning of the new one. If we put our full energy into both the spirit and the mitzvah details of Chanukah, the first holiday of the new year, G-d gives Chanukah the power to "educate the" year - to ensure that the succeeding holidays will also be celebrated in the best fashion. (long) - Chanukah

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