Here we are a few days after Chanukah.
It was so inspiring to watch the lights multiply every night.
From the first night of Chanuka when we kindled one solitary light, to the eighth night when we lit all eight lights of the Menorah.
The message was clear and powerful.
Don’t stop adding light. Every day one should try to add in light, good deeds and bring more holiness to the world.
Except that it seems to come to a screeching halt on day eight.
On day night we went from the previous night of eight, to zero candles.
It seems to go against the main lesson of Chanukah.
Chanuka got us into a habit and pattern of adding.
Yet, on ‘day 9 of Chanukah’ we don’t light nine candles.
There is no ninth day of Chanukah.
What happens with the ‘going up in holiness’ that we embraced and internalized on Chanukah?
The answer is simple.
The growing doesn’t stop after day eight.
G-d forbid.
It is just that by the eighth day of Chanuka we have learned the lesson that we need to continue to grow and add in all matters of positivity and holiness.
It is now so ingrained into our way of thinking that we don’t need to light additional physical lights to teach us that.
Eight days of Chanuka is enough to instill this message into us till Chanuka comes again next year and we are once again reminded, to never be satisfied with the good we have done.
Add, add and add even more.
Why is eight days enough to implant this message permanently into our consciousness?
Because seven are the days of the week. Eight is the beginning of the new cycle of the next week.
Ever since Hashem has created the world the seven-day cycle is a pattern that repeats itself every single week for the 5786 years that the world has been in existence.
Every Sunday is a repeat of the first day of creation. On the first day of creation Hashem created light. Every week we should start off our week with generating light. Same is with Monday and every day of the week through Friday.
It is a repetitive cycle.
We really feel this most strongly on Shabbat. Hashem rested on the seventh day of the first week of creation. Hashem instructed us at Sinai that we too must rest on the seventh day.
By giving us the mitzvah of Shabbat, G-d is empowering us to enter a space of rest, rejuvenation, spiritual sensitivity and heightened awareness of G-d.
The gift of Shabbat is otherworldly.
Light your Shabbat candles before sundown after ‘unplugging’ your gadgets and watch the anxieties melt away.
Take a cup of kosher wine and recite the kiddush. Feel the aura and glow of G-dly rest fill your soul.
The seven days of the week are a repeat of the initial cycle of creation over again.
The adding of lights for eight days of Chanukah teaches us that on every single day of the week we need to find ways to add positivity and light. It is not a Sunday thing, or a Tuesday thing. Every single day of the week, every time there is a new day, it ought to bring new light to the world.
It is challenging to fully adopt the growth mindset.
It is tempting to achieve some level of success, and then try to find a comfortable ‘couch’ that you can sit on like a ‘potato’
The message of Chanukah empowers us to act exactly the opposite.
If you have achieved success in any aspect of your life, this means you now have more experience, more wherewithal, more wisdom and more maturity to do even more.
Let me ask you to do a little meditation.
Close your eyes, breathe deeply and ask yourself honestly.
‘Am I coming in to land’
or
‘Am I ‘getting ready to take off’.
Please take a moment to let this sink in.
Are you (subconsciously) shying away from growth, because you don’t want to expend energy and effort’?
Have you truthfully reached the full potential that you could reach’?
Click here for ‘the Rebbes relentless call never to rest’
The eighth night of Chanuka is the ‘above-world’ energy.
If seven is the cycle of creation – the days of the week, eight is the number of miracles. Of transcending creation.
(This explains the symbolism of the Brit Milah being on day eight from birth. It represents G-d’s infinity connecting with the covenant of Brit to the Jewish baby boy).
The Jewish world is not retreating. Thank G-d we are growing and expanding.
Our enemies took aim at Chanuka and murdered fifteen innocent souls including two rabbi colleagues of mine, at the Bondi Menorah lighting.
With a terror attack at the beginning of the first night of Chanuka in one of the earliest time zones in the world, the prognosis for having large public Menorah lightings and a joyous illuminated Chanuka around the world was grim.
It looked like our enemies had dealt us a blow that would knock us down G-d forbid.
Who would come to celebrate Chanuka publicly at venues around the world?
The reality is that Chanuka events were even more well attended this year.
Jews of all types defiantly and proudly stood tall and brave as they came to thousands of Chanuka events around the world.
I met Jews who told me ‘we don’t usually come to Chanuka, or light candles, but this year we feel compelled to renew our commitment to our Jewishness and to connect to G-d’.
The Midrash teaches that Jews are compared to an olive. When you squeeze an olive, you get oil. The pressures of the negative forces that antagonize the Jews, causes a pure ‘oil’ to emerge from within them. This translates into a deeper feeling and commitment to our true Jewish identity.
We pray to Hashem not to allow anyone to ‘squeeze us’.
The ideal way of getting us to grow is to create our own internal ‘squeeze’ by motivating ourselves to try even harder and to put forth more efforts – by our own choice. The Torah teaches that if we do this, we should be spared getting the ‘push’ from the outside.
Closer to home.
This week I have had the privilege of visiting our branches in Phuket and Ko Samui. In each of these locations, alongside the thousands of Jewish visitors who visit Chabad, enjoy the kosher food and the vibrant Shabbat celebrations, there is a growing permanent Jewish presence. To accommodate the local Jewish community, Chabad of Thailand is building Jewish kindergartens to provide Jewish education to toddler and children.
This is the best and only way to ensure Jewish continuity.
In Bangkok, the new flagship Synagogue – ‘The Heart of Jewish Thailand – is making headway. Please G-d soon the basement floor will be poured, and the building will start to rise.
The new community meat restaurant, JDeli – next door to JCafe - is wildly popular. (Finally, a place where you can order good ole fashioned matza ball soup).
From so many individual Jews I hear of increased and intensified personal Torah study. So many Jews are upgrading and deepening their observance of Mitzvahs.
We all need to find ways to grow and increase.
Each of us in our own way, shining our own light, illuminating our individual surroundings and beyond,
It doesn’t have to be grandiose things.
The blessing is to be found in the small things that we do.
And especially in the consistency of doing the actions that bring light to the world – Torah and Mitzvahs.
Successful growing!
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Yosef Kantor