These sources explore the halachic requirements and practices governing Chanukah candle lighting, including the timing of the mitzvah, proper placement of the menorah, and the purpose and validity of the candles according to classical rabbinic sources.
מצות הדלקתו משקיעת החמה עד שיכלה הרגל מן השוק
18 sources · 3 verified
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What the sources say
The Nitei Gavriel consistently distinguishes between the strict letter of Talmudic law and the practical custom that developed in later generations: the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 14) records that while the Gemara requires placing the Chanukah lamp at the doorway adjacent to the public domain, in recent generations this practice was set aside and the custom became to light indoors near the door or beside a window, and the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 32) similarly notes that while Talmudic law permits lighting one Chanukah candle from another directly, the prevailing custom is to be stringent and refrain, since the core obligation is fulfilled with one candle and the additional lights are only for the enhancement of the mitzvah.
Precise rules govern the physical arrangement of the candles and how the lighting itself is performed: the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 28) teaches that on the first night one lights the candle on the right side, and on subsequent nights one first lights the newly added candle over which the brachah is recited, while the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 20) rules that the shamash must be placed either higher than the other candles, made longer than them, or set in front of or behind them — not in the same row — so that it is recognizable as not being among the counted candles.
The brachot over the lighting must be recited while standing: the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 24) rules that one may not lean on something in a manner that would cause him to fall if it were removed, though after the fact one fulfills the obligation even if he recited the brachot while seated, and a weak person, an elderly person, or one who is ill may sit even at the outset.
Several distinct obligations and customs concern who must light and when: the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 7) states that women are obligated in Chanukah candle lighting, yet the custom is that women and daughters do not light for themselves but rather fulfill their obligation through the lighting of the head of the household, the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 9) rules that one who is in his own city but finds himself in another house is obligated to return home when the time for lighting arrives, and the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 12) holds that a guest who has no wife and is staying in a friend's home must contribute a small amount so as to have a share in the oil and wicks.
The Nitei Gavriel also addresses customs surrounding work and fasting during Chanukah: the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 38) records that women customarily refrain from work while the candles are burning, with some following this restriction only during the lighting itself, others until midnight, and the accepted practice being to avoid specifically those labors associated with women such as spinning, sewing, and laundering, while the Nitei Gavriel (Chanuka 52) rules that no fast of any kind is observed on any of the days of Chanukah.
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Source 1 · Chazal
Verified
Tractate Soferim 20:3
Tractate Soferim 20:3
The Chanukah candle must be lit from sunset until foot traffic clears from the streets, it is forbidden to light from an old candle (though one may use an old candle as a light source if nothing else is available), the candle should not be moved from its place until it is extinguished, one does not recite a blessing over it until it is fit to give light, and the menorah should be placed in the doorway adjacent to the public domain with the mezuzah on the right and the Chanukah candle on the left to fulfill the verse about beauty, and the number of candles increases each night as a principle of ascending in holiness rather than descending.
כיצד מפסיקין לחנוכה אמרו בעשרים וחמשה בכסליו מדליקין נר חנוכה ואסור להדליק בנר ישן ואם אין לו אלא ישן מלבנו באור יפה יפה ואין מגביהין אותו ממקומו עד שיכבה: מצות הדלקתו משקיעת החמה עד שיכלה הרגל מן השוק ואע"פ שאין ראייה לדבר זכר לדבר (שמות י״ג:כ״ב) לא ימיש עמוד הענן יומם ואם הדליקו ביום אין נאותין ממנו ואי׳ מברכין עליו שכך אמרו אין מברכין על הנר עד שיאותו לאורו ואין חוששין לפתילתו להחליפו עד שיכלה: נר חנוכה מצוה להניחו בפתח הסמוך לרה"ר שתהא מזוזה בימין ונר חנוכה משמאל לקיים מה שנאמר (ש"ה ז) מה יפית ומה נעמת מה יפית במזוזה ומה נעמת בנר חנוכה ונרות כב"ה משום מעלין בקדש ולא מורידין כעין ימים היוצאין:
A Hanukkah lamp placed above twenty cubits is invalid because people do not ordinarily look up to see objects at that height, and visibility is required; it is a mitzva to place the Hanukkah lamp within a handbreadth of the entrance, and the halakha is to position it on the left side so that the lamp is on the left and the mezuza on the right, thereby surrounding one who enters with mitzvot.
A Hanukkah lamp that one placed above twenty cubits is invalid, just as a sukka whose roofing is more than twenty cubits high, and just as an alleyway whose beam, its symbolic fourth partition in order to place an eiruv, is more than twenty cubits high, are invalid. The reason is the same in all three cases: People do not usually raise their heads and see objects at a height above twenty cubits. As there is a requirement to see all of these, they are deemed invalid when placed above that height. And the Gemara cites another statement that Rav Kahana said that Rav Natan bar Manyumi taught in the name of Rav Tanḥum: What is the meaning of the verse that is written with regard to Joseph: “And they took him, and cast him into the pit; and the pit was empty, there was no water in it” (Genesis 37:24)? By inference from that which is stated: And the pit was empty, don’t I know that there was no water in it? Rather, why does the verse say: There was no water in it? The verse comes to emphasize and teach that there was no water in it, but there were snakes and scorpions in it. Rabba said: It is a mitzva to place the Hanukkah lamp within the handbreadth adjacent to the entrance. The Gemara asks: And where, on which side, does he place it? There is a difference of opinion: Rav Aḥa, son of Rava, said: On the right side of the entrance. Rav Shmuel from Difti said: On the left. And the halakha is to place it on the left so that the Hanukkah lamp will be on the left and the mezuza on the right. One who enters the house will be surrounded by mitzvot (ge’onim). Rav Yehuda said that Rav Asi said that Rav said: It is prohibited to count money opposite a Hanukkah light. Rav Yehuda relates: When I said this halakha before Shmuel, he said to me: Does the Hanukkah light have sanctity that would prohibit one from using its light? Rav Yosef strongly objected to this question: What kind of question is that; does the blood of a slaughtered undomesticated animal or fowl have sanctity? As it was taught in a baraita that the Sages interpreted the verse: “He shall spill its blood and cover it with dust” (Leviticus 17:13): With that which he spilled, he shall cover. Just as a person spills the blood of a slaughtered animal with his hand, so too, he is obligated to cover the blood with this hand and not cover it with his foot. The reason is so that mitzvot will not be contemptible to him. Here too, one should treat the Hanukkah lights as if they were sacred and refrain from utilizing them for other purposes, so that mitzvot will not be contemptible to him.
The passage teaches that the obligation to light Chanukah candles extends only until the marketplace crowd disperses, because the essential purpose of the mitzvah is to kindle the lights while people are still engaged in their activities in the marketplace; once the crowd leaves and people remain in their homes without visiting one another's houses for business, one no longer kindles the lights.
ונראה לומר, כי לכך הזמן עד שתכלה רגל מן השוק, כי עיקר המצוה הוא להדליק כאשר עדיין מתעסקין בעסקיהם. וזהו קודם דכליא רגל דתרמודאי מן השוק, שעדיין הולכים בני אדם לקנות. וכיון שכן, אפילו אם מדליקין מפנים, כיון שהולכים לצורך עסקיהם, הולכים גם לבית חביריהם בשביל עסקא. וכאשר כלה רגל דתרמודאי, ששוב אין להם עסק בשוק, הם נשארים בביתם, ואין אחד הולך לבית חבירו. לכך, היכא דכליא רגל מן השוק, שוב אינו מדליק.
Addresses Chanukah candle lighting at the conclusion of Shabbat (Motzaei Shabbat), the proper order of Havdalah and Chanukah lighting, and the minhagim regarding which comes first.
Page 1
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Covers the laws of the shamash — why it is required, how it is placed, and the various minhagim regarding its use and positioning relative to the Chanukah lights.
Page 109
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Examines special minhagim connected to Chanukah candle lighting, including the practice of women not doing melacha while the candles burn, and various customs of Chassidic communities.
Page 258
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A person in his home city who is elsewhere when candle-lighting time arrives must return home to light; a wife should wait for her husband to light if he will return by midnight since he is the primary household head; one obligated to return home who already lit elsewhere must light again at home without a blessing unless lighting to discharge other household members.
מי שהוא בעירו ונמצא בבית אחר, מחויב כשהגיע זמן הדלקה לשוב לביתו ולהדליק
On this pageIf a person is in his home city but visiting another house when candle-lighting time arrives, he must return home to light. If a wife knows her husband will return by midnight, she should wait for him to light as he is the primary household head. One who is obligated to return home but already lit elsewhere must light again at home without a blessing, unless he is lighting to discharge other household members.
Page 75
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A guest without family members lighting candles on his behalf must either light for himself or contribute a small coin to acquire a share in the host's oil and wicks, which should ideally be renewed nightly or obtained for the entire festival from the outset.
אורח שאין לו אשה ומתאכסן בבית חבירו, חייב להשתתף בפרוטה שיהיה לו חלק בשמן ובפתילות
On this pageThis chapter discusses a guest who has no family members lighting on his behalf at home. Such a guest must either light for himself or contribute a small coin (prutah) to the host to acquire a share in the host's oil and wicks, which should ideally be renewed each night or acquired for all nights from the start.
Page 86
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Women customarily refrain from performing work while Hanukkah candles are burning, with varying traditions regarding the duration of this restriction (some only during the lighting itself, others until midnight), and the custom applies specifically to distinctly female tasks such as spinning, sewing, and laundering.
נהגו הנשים שלא לעשות מלאכה בעוד שהנרות דולקות א), ויש נהגו רק בשעת הדלקה ב), ויש נהגו עד חצות הלילה ג), והמנהג להמנע רק ממלאכות המיוחדות לאשה, כגון טוויה או תפירה וכיבוס וכדומה ד).
On this pageDiscusses the custom of women to refrain from performing work while the Hanukkah candles are burning, noting various traditions regarding the duration of this restriction (such as only during the actual lighting time, or until midnight) and specifying that it primarily applies to distinctively female tasks like spinning, sewing, and laundering.
Page 213
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According to the halachic ruling in the Talmud, one may light one Chanukah candle directly from another, but the accepted custom is to refrain from doing so because only the first candle constitutes the core obligation of the mitzvah while the others are lit for hidur mitzvah.
מדינא דגמרא מדליקין נר חנוכה מנר חנוכה זה מזה שלא ע"י אמצעי א), אכן המנהג להחמיר שלא להדליק נר מנר לפי שעיקר המצוה אינו אלא בנר אחד, ושאר הנרות אינם אלא משום הדור מצוה ב).
On this pageAccording to the letter of the law in the Talmud, one is permitted to light one Chanukah candle directly from another. However, the accepted custom is to be stringent and avoid lighting one candle from another, because only the first candle constitutes the core obligation of the mitzvah, while the rest are lit for the purpose of beautifying the commandment (hidur mitzvah).
Page 186
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The Talmudic law prescribes placing the Hanukkah menorah at the entrance adjacent to the public domain or courtyard entrance, but in recent generations this custom has been abandoned and people light indoors near a doorway or window instead.
מדינא דגמ' נר חנוכה מניחו על פתח הסמוך לרשות הרבים או על פתח החצר א), אכן בדורות האחרונים נתבטל מנהג זה ומדליקין בפנים סמוך לפתח או אצל החלון
On this pageChapter 14 discusses the ideal placement of the Hanukkah menorah, noting that while the Talmudic law prescribes placing it at the entrance adjacent to the public domain, common practice in recent generations is to light indoors near a doorway or window. It further notes that some follow this custom of lighting indoors even within the Land of Israel.
Page 91
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On Erev Chanukah, Tachanun is recited during Shacharit but omitted during Minchah; if Erev Chanukah falls on Shabbat, certain prayers including Tzidkatkha are omitted during Minchah, and starting from Mincha Gedolah funeral elegies and certain mourning rites are not performed.
א. ערב חנוכה שחרית אומרים תחנון א). ב. במנחה אין אומרים תחנון ב).
On this pageOn the eve of Chanukah (Erev Chanukah), Tachanun is recited during the Shacharit (morning) service but is omitted during the Minchah (afternoon) service. Additionally, if Erev Chanukah falls on Shabbat, the prayer 'Tzidkatkha' is omitted during Minchah, and on days when Tachanun is not said, 'Tzidok Hadin' is also omitted. The passage outlines the halachic practices on the eve of Chanukah, stating that starting from the time of Mincha Gedolah, certain prayers are omitted, funeral elegies and certain mourning rites (like Ma'amadot and Hakafot) are not performed, and the Kaddish Hagadol is not recited.
Page 33
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The Shamash candle should be positioned higher than or made longer than the other Chanukah candles so it is visibly distinct from them, though some customs place it in front of or behind the row of candles rather than in line with them.
השמש יש להניחו למעלה מן הנרות ד) או שיעשו יותר ארוך משאר הנרות ה), שיהא ניכר שאינו ממנין הנרות, יש נוהגין להניחו לפני הנרות ו) או אחורי הנרות ולא בשורה אחת עם הנרות ז)
On this pageThe passage discusses the proper positioning of the Shamash candle, ruling that it should be placed higher or made longer than the kosher Chanukah candles so that it is clearly distinguished from them. It also notes alternative customs, such as placing the Shamash in front of or behind the row of candles rather than in the same line.
Page 129
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On the first night of Chanukah one lights the candle on the far right, and on subsequent nights one lights the newly added candle first and recites the blessing over it, then lights the remaining candles from left to right; the passage discusses proper placement of the menorah in the doorway, citing views that candles should be within one handbreadth of the entrance or within the doorway's width, and rules that one should stand opposite the first candle to be lit to avoid interrupting one mitzvah for another, though any lighting order is acceptable after the fact.
On this pageOn the first night of Chanukah, one lights the candle situated on the far right. On subsequent nights, the newly added candle on the left is lit first, after which one lights the remaining candles by turning from left to right, with some variations depending on whether one is lighting indoors or by a doorway. The passage discusses the placement of the Menorah in the doorway, noting that while some hold all candles must be within one handbreadth of the entrance, many great authorities lit within the width of the doorway itself. It also rules that one should stand directly opposite the first candle they intend to light to avoid passing over one commandment to perform another, though fundamentally any order of lighting is halachically acceptable post-facto.
Page 173
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The blessings over Chanukah lights must be recited while standing without leaning heavily on any support, though those who are somewhat weak may lean slightly and the elderly or ill may sit even initially; one who recites the blessings while sitting fulfills the obligation after the fact. On the first night of Chanukah, three blessings are recited: Lehadlik ner Chanukah, She'asa nissim, and Shehecheyanu.
הברכות צריך לברך מעומד א), ולא יסמוך עצמו על דבר באופן שאם יסולק אותו דבר יפול ב), ואדם חלש קצת מותר ג), ובדיעבד אם בירך מיושב יצא ד), וכן זקן או חולה שקשה להם לעמוד, רשאים לכתחילה לישב ה).
On this pageThe blessings on Chanukah lights must be recited while standing, without leaning heavily on any support. If someone is slightly weak they may lean slightly, and if elderly or sick they may sit; post facto, anyone who recited the blessings while sitting has fulfilled the obligation. On the first night of Chanukah, the person lighting recites three blessings: 'Lehadlik ner Chanukah' (with some specifying 'shel Chanukah' as a single word), 'She'asa nissim,' and 'Shehecheyanu.' The extensive footnotes discuss the halachic sources and linguistic variations for these blessings.
Page 150
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The passage rules that work is forbidden starting half an hour before the time for lighting Chanukah candles, and if one began work before this period, they must stop once the time arrives, though those who began legally may continue if they wish.
א. אסור לעשות מלאכה חצי שעה קודם זמן הדלקה א), ואם התחיל פוסק משיגיע זמנה ב).
On this pageChapter 4 rules that it is forbidden to perform work starting half an hour before the time for lighting Chanukah candles. If one began working legally before this period, they are not halachically required to stop, though it is proper to be stringent. Additionally, household members should ideally refrain from work until the head of the household has lit the candles. The text rules that a person is permitted to perform work before lighting the Chanukah candles if they appoint a guard to remind them, provided that the chosen guard is not himself occupied with work that might distract him.
Page 55
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Women are obligated in lighting Chanukah candles because they were part of the miracle, yet the custom is that wives and daughters do not light individually but rather fulfill their obligation through the lighting of the master of the house.
א. אשה חייבת בהדלקת נ"ח א), והמנהג שאין הנשים והבנות מדליקות לעצמן אלא יוצאות בהדלקת בעל הבית ב)
On this pageThe cited passage discusses the obligation of women in lighting Chanukah candles. It rules that while women are indeed obligated because they were part of the miracle, the common custom is for wives and daughters not to light individually, but rather to fulfill their obligation through the lighting of the master of the house.
Page 63
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Fasting is forbidden on the days of Chanukah, and the custom is not to observe the fast of the righteous on the 28th of Kislev, though authorities dispute whether a groom should recite Vidui during Mincha on his wedding day.
אין מתענים שום תענית בימי חנוכה
On this pageThe cited passage discusses the laws of fasting during Chanukah, ruling that fasting is forbidden during these days. This includes a groom on his wedding day, who does not fast, though authorities dispute whether he should still recite the Vidui confession during Mincha. Additionally, the custom is not to observe the fast of the righteous on the 28th of Kislev.
Page 314
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