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According to Kabbalah, in this story Channah represents our physical world of Malchut – the feminine aspect and desire to receive. When we add the two Aramaic letters of Kaf and Vav to the name Channah, we create the word Chanukah. These two letters have a combined numerical value of 26, connecting us to the tetragrammaton of God. When Channah transformed her Desire To Receive for the Self Alone into a natural concept of sharing, she formed a connection to the Light of the Creator.

When we perform the lighting of the Chanukah candles, combined with the consciousness of sharing and the kabbalistic meditations, we too can connect to the Light of the Creator in its most powerful form, just as Channah did many centuries ago. During Chanukah, that very same cosmic window that Channah used to triumph over the Desire To Receive for the Self Alone is open to all of us.

Connecting to the Energy of Miracles

A miracle is defined as any event that does not follow the course of nature. Only a miracle can turn chaos into Light, thereby restoring order and harmony. During Chanukah we celebrate neither the miracle of the oil jar nor the victory over the Greek Empire, but rather the connection to the Sfirot of Hod and Binah and the consciousness of Zier Anpin – the desire to share. Here, we unite with the cause of all miracles in our world.

The connection with the Sfirot of Binah and Hod strengthens our physical and spiritual DNA, as well as that of the world around us – our relationship with others, forces of nature, and so on. The Rav reminds us that the holiday of Sukkot, like Chanukah, also lasts for eight days. The consciousness of an eight-day holiday indicates our opportunity to elevate from the framework of the seven lower Sfirot, connecting us to the cosmic energy reservoir of the upper worlds. As with Sukkot, we do not have to apply any physical restrictions in order to benefit from the holiday of Chanukah, and the commu-nication required to connect with this Light may be performed in our own homes.

Before lighting the candles of the Chanukiah, we must first be in a state of giving and sharing, just as one flame lights another flame without diminishing. As each candle is lit, we are reminded of how to give and share with abundance. This is why the oil jar

was discovered and the menorah lit – to teach us how to have similar form with the Light. The candles also provide a channel for the transfer of energy by virtue of an inner structure that forms a connection between our world and the upper words.

The Ari writes, “The secret of the eight days of Chanukah: Malchut receives the light from Sfirah Hod itself, not through Zier Anpin.” Without the framework and circuitry of the candles and meditations, it would be impossible to connect directly to the raw energy in Binah. The candles, or oil wicks, are a means of attracting the Light of Binah of Netzach, Binah of Hod, and Binah of Yesod to us. The miracle of Chanukah is the re-sult of this connection to Hod, making it possible, during the eight days of Chanukah, to achieve mind over matter using the power of thought. We must integrate the meditations into the act of lighting the candles, as they create channels for the Light to flow to us and nourish every part of our world, vaccinating us against negativity for the year ahead. This knowledge in itself forms part of our connection.

Kabbalists also reveal that Chanukah can be considered as a mini Rosh Hashanah, allowing us to redeem any spiritual debts we might have overlooked – knowingly or unknowingly – during Rosh Hashanah. On Chanukah we can increase our life force and complete that which may be lacking.

The precise channels for connecting with the miracles of Chanukah were not revealed until the revelations of Rav Isaac Luria’s Gates of Meditation. While these teachings have been available for the past 400 years, it was not until the writings were structured by Rav Brandwein and subsequently disseminated worldwide by The Rav and Karen through The Kabbalah Centre that our generation has begun to recognize what Chanukah truly stands for – not simply a traditional religious celebration, but rather a time to manifest the awesome power of miracles in our lives.

Each one of us can use this time to bring about a cosmic revolution and reveal this Light for the world.

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“In place of commemoration, a kabbalist focuses on connection – that is, the opportunity to tap into the unique energies that exist at that specific point in time. The holidays are literally power sources that we can access using the tools and teachings of Kabbalah.”

-The Rav, Days of Power, Vol. 2

The Holiday of Chanukah

Chanukah is traditionally thought of as a time in December when families come together to celebrate the historic Maccabean victory, commemorated by the lighting of candles and exchanging of gifts.

Through the eyes of the kabbalists, Holidays (holy days), such as Chanukah, are seen not merely as celebrations that signify religious traditions, but rather, these are universal blueprints, cosmic timetables used to draw down the energy available to us all to improve our physical and spiritual well-being on a very practical level.

As the Rav reminds us in Days of Power, the annual Holidays such as Rosh Hashanah, Pesach, Sukkot, and Chanukah belong to all mankind.

“The energies of the various holidays are neither Jewish, Christian, Buddhist, nor Hindu. They are simply basic aspects of the way the universe works, and they are beyond identifica-tion with any nation or religion.”

From a kabbalistic perspective, we understand that Chanukah is the time of year when the spiritual energy of miracles is released into the universe. This energy can be harnessed to produce miracles in our own lives. Therefore, we are not simply celebrating the success of people who lived thousands of years ago but are utilizing the same cosmic window they did.

By lighting candles during this time, using kabbalistic meditations, and injecting the consciousness of sharing, we connect our souls to the energies prevalent in the cosmos during the eight days of Chanukah and plant the seed for miracles, big and small, to fill our entire year.

The History & Origin of Chanukah

During the time when the Greek empire reigned, the Holy Temple was desecrated, and the Israelites were forbidden to study spirituality. On the 25th day of Kislev (Sagittarius), the prolonged war reached a sudden end, with a victory by the Israelites, led by the Maccabim. On that day, a small vial of pure oil from the high priest was found and used to light the menorah. The oil that flowed, which was supposed to last for one day, burned for eight days.

The kabbalists of the time discovered that during these eight days the universe was infused with the power of miracles, enabling a connection with the upper worlds. Through Kabbalah, we understand that the unlikely defeat of an army was not a result of the military power of the Israelites, but rather a result of the revelation of the Creator’s power – a burst of Light that freed the Israelites from the oppression on this profound date in the calendar.

Embedded within the history of Chanukah is the story of Channah. In short, Channah refused to submit to the idolatry of the Greek dominators, preferring to sacrifice herself and her seven sons in the name of God rather than face spiritual subjugation.

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