Shabbat Candle Lighting Meditation
Greeting the Shabbat
(and also Jewish holidays) are girls and women across the globe. Shortly before
sunset they light candles, which usher in peace and blessing to their homes and
to the world.
The Basics
Prepare the candles (or oil and wicks) and matches, and a
fireproof surface upon which to place the match after lighting the candles,
such as a metal or ceramic plate.1 The candles should be set up in close
proximity to where you will eat the Shabbat meal. The candles should be
sufficiently large (or the oil bountiful enough) so that the flame will burn
for the duration of the meal. Many have the custom, when applicable, that the
man of the household sets up and prepares the candles for lighting.
Until marriage, women and girls light one candle.
Post-marriage, women light (at least) two candles. Some add an additional
candle for each child: e.g., a woman with three children lights five candles.
If no woman (over the age of bat mitzvah) is present in the
home, a man should light the candles.
Light the candles eighteen minutes before sunset—and under
no circumstances later than sunset! The times fluctuate based on date and
location.
The Procedure
1
While dressed in your Shabbat or holiday finery, place several coins in a charity box. Many
have the custom to dedicate this charity to the poor in Israel.
2
Light the candles. Place the lit match on the designated
surface.
3
Extend your hands
over the candles, draw them inwards three times in a circular motion, and then cover your eyes.
4
Say the blessing:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה אַדֹנָ-י
אֱ-לֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר
קִדְּשָׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּנוּ לְהַדְלִיק נֵר שֶׁל שַׁבָּת
קֹדֶשׁ
Transliteration:
Baruch a-ta A-do-nay Elo-hei-nu me-lech ha-o-lam a-sher ki-di-sha-nu
bi-mitz-vo-tav vi-tzi-va-noo li-had-leek ner shel Sha-bat ko-desh.
Translation:
Blessed are you, Lord our
God, King of the universe, who has
sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to kindle the light of
the Holy Shabbat.
(Look for holiday blessings)
5
Now, while your eyes are still covered, is an auspicious
time to pray for your heart's desires. The custom is to pray for children who
will be upright and G‑d-fearing, and for the coming of
Moshiach. Take the time also to pray for others who need blessings and good
health.
6
Uncover your eyes, gaze at the candles, and then greet
everyone with blessings of a good Shabbat or holiday.
7
With the lighting of the candles, a woman ushers in the holy
Shabbat. No "weekday" activities are to be done from that point on,
as she has now entered a world of tranquility.
FOOTNOTES
Once the candles are lit, the Shabbat has been ushered in. As
such, it is forbidden at that time to extinguish the match.
Several coins in a charity box:
Blessing and Greeting:
This is in reply to your letter of the 17th of Iуaт, in
which you inquire about the significance of the dollar bill you received in
connection with the Candle Lighting Campaign.
Actually there are many aspects involved, but I must limit
myself here to one or two. But first а few words leading up to the subject.
As you know, Jews are commanded to remember and do all the
Mitzvoth of our Torah, Toras Chaim (the practical guide in our daily life). But
there are certain Mitzvoth which the Torah specifically emphasizes by the
commandment זכור –
"Remember!" Such, to mention a familiar example, is one of the Ten
Commandments: "Remember the Shabbos day to keep it holy." So also the
commandment to remember Yetzias Mitzraim [Exodus from Egypt] every day of the
year, and so other commandments. The most central of all such remembrances is
to remember the day of our receiving the Torah at Mt. Sinai, which we are to celebrate
soon on Shovuos: "Beware lest you forget the things which your eyes saw
the day when you stood before G‑d your G‑d at
Chorev (Sinai)."
It is self evident why the Torah commands us to remember
those very important events, for а Jew lives in a world which hustles and
bustles with all sorts of material things, which distract his attention from
the truly important and eternal things. We are speaking, of course, even of
"Kosher" things such as eating and drinking and doing business, etc.
-- all in accordance with the Shulchan Aruch [Code of Jewish Law]. Yet,
inasmuch as a person is inevitably involved with such things for the most part
of the day, day after day in а routine manner, he may become too much absorbed
in them so as to forget the very important and essential things which the Torah
wants us to remember particularly.
It is also a matter of common experience that when people
want to make sure they will not forget certain matters, they do all sorts of
things to help them remember.
In light of the above, the Torah has given us certain
Mitzvoth which, in addition to all other meanings, are notable
"reminders." Again, to mention а familiar example, the Mezuzo (in
addition to everything else) reminds the Jew upon leaving and returning home that
G‑d
Who is our very life and strength is One, etc., as [is inscribed] in the
portion of Shеmа
which the Mezuzo contains. Similarly upon arising from sleep in the morning, we
recite а prayer in which we declare that our soul, which G‑d
returns to us every morning, is pure, etc. And so there are many Mitzvoth which
constantly help us to remember our real purpose in life – to
serve G‑d in all our ways. There are Mitzvoth which serve as
reminders to all Jews, since all Jews are equal in regard to the observance of
those Mitzvoth. But there are also Mitzvoth which apply to certain groups only,
such as Kohanim. In each case there are specific reminders for those concerned.
This brings us to the subject matter of your letter.
One of the most important and most beautiful Mitzvoth is the
lighting of the candles before Shabbos and Yom Tov [Jewish holidays], and it
was given as а special privilege to Jewish women, mothers and daughters, to do
it not only for themselves, but also for the whole family and household.
Obviously, everyone in the home enjoys the advantages of the light of the
candles, illuminating the home as well as the table at which the members of the
family sit down for the Shabbos and Yom Tov meal.
The importance of this Mitzvo [Divine precept] goes deeper
than merely illuminating the home in the plain sense, for it makes it а bright
home also spiritually, in accordance with the text of the blessing recited
before lighting the candles – "...Who sanctified us with His
commandments." Hence it is highly desirable that such an important Mitzvo
should have a special "reminder" that would further emphasize the
deeper significance of this Mitzvo. There could be various things which could
serve as reminders of the Mitzvo. The most suitable one would be a reminder
that is not too cumbersome, yet at the same time expresses the significance of
such а great Mitzvo as lighting the candles. Thus the most suitable way is to
connect it with money, since money is the medium wherewith one fulfills the
Mitzvo of Tzedoko, its being an especially great Mitzvo since the giver could
have used the money to buy his own needs, yet gives it selflessly to a needy
person, and thereby does an act of lifesaving, as cur Sages have emphasized.
The special relevance of Tzedoko to the lighting of candles
before Shabbos and Yom Tov is in the fact that, as our Sages relate, lighting
the candles is an act of rectification of а wrongdoing committed by the first
woman and mother of all mankind, namely Chava (Eve) who caused "the candle
of G‑d
which is the soul of man" -- of Adam -- to be extinguished through the sin
of eating the forbidden fruit. By lighting the candles, the Jewish mother and
daughter rectifies the act of putting out the said "candle." It is
therefore particularly relevant to associate candle lighting with Tzedoko, for
Tzedoko too is an act of lifesaving, as mentioned above.
This, then, is briefly one of the meanings for the dime or
dollar bill which accompanied the Candle Lighting Campaign, and which is
intended for Tzedoko, or, if one wants to keep that particular dime or dollar
bill as а memento, one has to substitute it by an equal amount for Tzedoko. All
this is intended to call attention and emphasize the importance of the lighting
of the candles for the person lighting them and for the whole Jewish home.
May G‑d grant that you should fulfill this
great Mitzvo with joy and inspiration. And inasmuch as the great principle of
our Torah is V'Ohavto L'Reacho Komocho [Love your fellow as yourself], you will
surely use your good influence with friends and neighbors that they too observe
this great Mitzvo in a similar way.
At this time before Shovuos, the Festival of Mattan Torah
[The giving of the Torah],1 I extend to you and all your family my prayerful
wishes for а happy and inspiring Yom Tоv, and the traditional blessing of
receiving the Torah with joy and inwardness. May the joy аnd inspiration of
this great Yom Tov be with you throughout the year.
With blessing,
M. Schneerson
P.S. In connection with the above, I want to emphasize а very
important point, namely that however important that dime or dollar bill is, it
is still Muktza and not to be touched on Shаbbоs and Yom Tov, like any other
money.
Extend your hands:
After lighting the Shabbat candles, women traditionally wave
their hands three times in front of the candles, semi-circular inward-leading
hand motions. The hand waving is a symbolic greeting for the "Shabbat
Queen," ushering her holy presence into the home. After the third wave,
the hands end up over the eyes, and the woman recites the blessings on the
candles.
See also Why do we cover our eyes when reciting the blessing
on the Shabbat candles?
Cover your eyes:
Normally, the blessing is recited before the performance of
a mitzvah, but here we light the candle and only afterwards recite the
blessing. This is because once the blessing is recited Shabbat has been ushered
in, and lighting the candle would be forbidden. For this reason, we cover our
eyes immediately after lighting to recite the blessing. Thus, our first
enjoyment of the Shabbat light -- and the fulfillment of the mitzvah -- occurs
after the blessing.
Holiday Blessings:
Candles are kindled on most Jewish holidays of Biblical
origin. They are: Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, Passover
(first and last days), and Shavuot. (Holiday candles are not lit on Chanukah or
Purim.)
Holiday candle lighting follows a procedure similar to that
of the Shabbat candle lighting.1
The basic difference between the two is that while it is
forbidden to create a flame on a holiday, it is permitted to light a candle
using a pre-existing flame, such as another candle that was kindled before the
holiday, a gas range which has been left on, or a pilot flame.2
The following are the basic laws and customs which are
unique to holiday candle lighting:
Outside of Israel, most holidays are two-day affairs.
On the first night of a holiday: Ideally the candles should
be lit – just as on every Friday afternoon – eighteen minutes before sunset.3
However, the candles can be lit anytime before the holiday meal.4 If the
candles are lit after sunset, they should be lit from a pre-existing flame.
Exceptions: a) If the first night of the holiday is Friday night, the candles
must be kindled before sunset. b) If the first night of the holiday is Saturday
night, the candles must be kindled after nightfall (from a pre-existing flame).
On the second night of a holiday: The candles should be lit,
from a pre-existing flame, after nightfall.5 (Additionally, all preparations
for the candle lighting, such as arranging the candlesticks and candles, may
not start before nightfall.6) If the second night of the holiday is Friday
night, the candles must be kindled before sunset, also from a pre-existing
flame.
Whenever a holiday night falls out on Saturday night, before
lighting the holiday candles one says7:
Ba-rooch ha-mav-deel bein ko-desh le-ko-desh
"Blessed be He who separates between [the] holiness [of
Shabbat] and [the] holiness [of the holiday]."8
The blessing for holiday candle-lighting varies depending on
the holiday.
After reciting the holiday candle-lighting blessing, the
Shehecheyanu blessing is recited, thanking G‑d for giving us the life
and strength to reach this special day.
The Shehecheyanu blessing is not recited when lighting the
candles on the last days of Passover. On the second night of Rosh Hashanah, the
kindler should wear a new garment or have a new seasonal fruit on the table
while lighting the candles, and have it in mind when reciting the Shehecheyanu
blessing.9
During the holiday of Sukkot, the candles should be lit in
the sukkah, and should remain there throughout the meal. If it is windy
outside, and there is concern that the candles might be extinguished, the
candles should be placed in a window or doorway, visible to those sitting in
the sukkah.10
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