Hanukkah
Read one each night, with a couple of extra to spare.
I'm not Jewish, but I've always been incredibly fond of Hanukkah and have wished I could join in on a friend's traditions more times than I can count. I've always imagined that lighting the menorah each night would be accompanied by some kind of reading (and blessings are typically said out loud, shared History.com) — kind of like how I always read the story of Jesus's birth to my own daughter on Christmas Eve. So what would be better than a collection of Hanukkah poems to help celebrate the festival of lights?
History.com noted that Hanukkah is widely believed to be about celebrating the miracle of having enough oil to keep the menorah’s lights burning for eight days at a time when there was only enough oil for one night. It's a symbol of hope, of believing, and of miracles. Many people don't consider Hanukkah to be a massive holiday, like Christmas, but the celebration continues, and with these 10 Hanukkah poems, you can have something to read for every candle you light, plus a couple of extra.
Some of the poems highlight the hope and miracle of Hanukkah — they illustrate the story of Hanukkah beautifully and have a deeply religious meaning. And others? They make you laugh, remind you to make latkes, and are perfect for sharing with even the smallest members of your family this holiday season. Pick one for each night as you light your menorah and enjoy all Hanukkah has to offer.
7
"Season Of Skinny Candles" by Marge Piercy
I love a good, deep poem, but there is something about a simply written one that makes you feel even more excited for the holiday season. "Season of Skinny Candles" by Marge Piercy is that poem. I love the descriptions and they literally paint a picture in your mind of Hanukkah, the darkness, the light, and the hope it all brings.
A row of tall skinny candles burns
quickly into the night
air, the shames raised
over the rest for its hard work.
Darkness rushes in
after the sun sinks
like a bright plug pulled.
Our eyes drown in night
thick as ink pudding.
When even the moon
starves to a sliver
of quicksilver
the little candles poke
holes in the blackness.
A time to eat fat
and oil, a time to gamble
for pennies and gambol
8
"Hanukkah" by Hilda Morley
Reading "Hanukkah" by Hilda Morley in its entirety, in the format it was written, is a truly mesmerizing experience. This poem by Morley, a poet who came to most fame in the 1970s, goes into more than just the lighting of the candles, like what the numbers mean to her in her life. It’s dense and rich, and you can think on it for hours, long after the last candle flickers out. This excerpt prompts thoughts about a small drop of oil lighting a flame powerful enough to spark infinite fearless dreaming.
That house with the lucky
number brought me luck & misluck, both, like the other
that added to 7, out of 4 & 3,
that seven
underlying the eight of this week,
the 8 just over, the 7 just under
a third of the years with Stefan:
I praise them
both today—
the lasting oil
in the seven-branched candlestick:
absence
of all fear—the smallest
drop of fuel enough to leap from
9
"Hanukkah Lights" by Philip M. Raskin
Another famed poem about the meaning behind Hanukkah and the hope and love it brings, Raskin’s verses are full of tradition and share the history, the battle and true passed-down story of the holiday. The full version isn’t long, and is easy to follow. Afterward, it’s nearly impossible not to feel the joy of the miracle that was the eight days of candlelight.
And swiftly the message spread, saying:
"Judea, Judea is free,
Re-kindled the lamp in the Temple,
Re-kindled each bosom with glee!"
My Chanukah-candles soon flickered,
Around me was darkness of night;
But deep in my soul I felt shining
A heavenly-glorious light.
10
“Chanukah Dreams” by Judith Ish-Kishor
In a few short stanzas, Ish-Kishor shares what feels like a very personal recounting of a family celebration, naming characters that light the candles. But this poem also shares the completely relatable wish to sit and watch “every twinkling baby light” all night long. Its powerful imagery is full of color and warmth, and can be easily recited every night of the festival.
Chanukah I think most dear
Of the feasts of all the year.
I could sit and watch all night
Every twinkling baby light.
Father lights the first one—green;
Hope it always seems to mean;
Hope and Strength to glow anew
In the heart of every Jew.
Jacob lights the blue for Truth.
Pink for Love is lit by Ruth.
Then the white one falls to me,
White that shines for Purity.
How the story of those days
Fills my wondering heart with praise!
And in every flame one sees
The heroic Maccabees.
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