In 168 B.C.E. the Jewish Temple was seized by Syrian-Greek soldiers and dedicated to the worship of the god Zeus. Jewish revolutionaries had retaken the Temple from the Syrians they wanted to rededicate it to God and restore its ritual purity. Eight days worth of oil were needed to complete the ritual purification, but they were only able to find one day's worth of oil. They lit the menorah anyway and miraculously the oil lasted for eight full days.
In commemoration of this event Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days and a candle is lit on the hanukkiyah on each of those days. One candle is lit the first night, two the second, and so on, until the final night when all the candles are lit.
For the perfect Hanukkah:
Step 1: Make latkes (potato pancakes)
Fried foods like potato pancakes and doughnuts ("sufganiyot" in Hebrew) are traditional Hanukkah treats because they are cooked in oil and remind us of the miracle of the holiday.
Check.
SOOOOO GOOD!!
Step 2: Light the Menorah!
The hanukkiyah is used during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah and commemorates the miracle of the oil.
Double check!
Ooohh yeah.
Step 4: Play Spin the Dreidel
A dreidel has one Hebrew letter on each side. Outside of Israel, those letters are: נ (Nun), ג (Gimmel), ה (Hay) and ש (Shin), which stand for the Hebrew phrase "Nes Gadol Haya Sham." This phrase means "A great miracle happened there."
A game similar to the dreidel game was popular during the rule of Antiochus. During this period Jews were not free to openly practice their religion, so when they gathered to study Torah they would bring a top with them. If soldiers appeared, they would quickly hide what they were studying and pretend to be playing a gambling game with the top.
(And finally, the pièce de résistance)
Step 5: Perform Zemir Atik (dance)
This is actually just a folk dance, performed at weddings and the like...you don't really do it during Hanukkah. But really, who cares??
Aaaand Dad did it with us earlier. But he graciously offered to record it for us. How thoughtful ;p
I tried to upload the video but it wasn't working...I'll try again, but just know that it was awesome.
I must say this was the BEST second night of Hanukkah ever!
I wish I was good at playing spin the dreidel....Alas I always got the wrong symbol. Anyway Happy Hanukkah! Looks like lots of fun!
ReplyDeleteI'm late, buuuuuuuuuuut....
ReplyDeleteHAPPY HANUKKAH!
I loved all of it. I want to make latkes. Really wish I could have been there to dance... :(
And I definitely loved your dreidel pictures. Love that Beth has a Cutie sticker on her face, and that you used the dreidel to look like Squidward, hahahahahaha.
Let's do Hanukkah together next year. :D