Inner Divine Point in Hanukkah

זאת חנוכה. אין מובן הפי' מה זאת.

“This is Chanukah.” The meaning of “this” is not clear.

The eighth day of Chanukah is called Zot Chanukah, “this is Chanukah.” What does “this” refer to?

שמעתי מאא"ז מו"ר זצלה"ה פי' המדרש אחרי בזאת יבוא אהרן בזאת אני בוטח כו'.

I heard from my grandfather, my master and teacher, of blessed memory, an explanation of the Midrash: “With this (zot) shall Aaron come,” “In this (zot) I trust,” and so on.

The Midrash gathers verses that use the word zot.

כי מלכות שמים נק' זאת ע"ש כי היא הכל.

For the kingship of Heaven is called zot, because it is everything.

“This” points to God’s kingship, which is present in all things.

ודפח"ח. כי הנקודה המחיה כל נק' זאת והיא החיות שיש בכל דבר.

His holy words are precious. For the point that gives life to everything is called zot; it is the life that is in each thing.

Zot is the inner spark of God in every thing.

ובחנוכה ג"כ רק לברר זה כי הכל מהש"י.

And on Chanukah too, the aim is only to make this clear: that everything is from God.

The miracle of Chanukah reveals that nothing stands apart from God.

וכתיב ויעש כן אהרן ופרש"י שלא שינה.

It is written, “And Aaron did so,” and Rashi explains that he did not change.

Aaron lit the menorah exactly as commanded, every day.

פי' כן. ג"כ כמו זאת.

“So” (ken) means the same as zot.

Ken, like zot, points to that inner constant.

ורמז לדבר כנים אנחנו לא היינו מרגלים.

A hint of this is “We are honest (kenim); we are not spies.”

Joseph’s brothers describe themselves with the same root.

פי' ההיפוך מהרגילות. והוא התחדשות ע"י שנדבק תמיד בנקודה הפנימיות וזהו כנים [מכונים] [מוכנים] לרצונו ית'.

It means the opposite of habit. It is renewal, through always clinging to the inner point, and this is kenim [set] [ready] for His will.

Not changing does not mean routine. It means staying attached to the inner point, which keeps everything fresh.

וע"ז מבקשים תמיד שמרה זאת ליצר מחשבות לבב עמך כו' [כענין שמרה נפשי].

For this we always ask, “Guard this (zot) forever, the thoughts of the heart of Your people,” and so on [like “guard my soul”].

David’s prayer asks God to preserve this inner point in Israel.

ובאמת השי"ת שומר נקודה זו להיות נשאר בבני ישראל.

And in truth God guards this point so that it remains in the children of Israel.

The inner spark is never lost.

וזה ג"כ החיזוק בגלות ע"י שיודעין שגם ההסתר רק מחיות השי"ת ושזה לטובה.

This is also the strength in exile: knowing that even the concealment comes only from the life of God and that it is for the good.

Exile becomes bearable when we know God is behind it.

וז"ס זאת אשיב אל לבי על כן אוחיל.

This is the secret of “This (zot) I recall to my heart; therefore I have hope.”

The verse in Lamentations finds hope in the same word.

ע"י שיודעין שגם זאת מהשי"ת כנ"ל.

By knowing that this too is from God, as said above.

Hope comes from knowing that even hardship comes from God.

וזה ענין חנוכה. ורמז שא' אא"ז מו"ר זצלה"ה בפסוק נכון לבו בטוח בה' סמוך ס"ת חנוכה כמ"ש לעיל.

This is the matter of Chanukah. And my grandfather, my master and teacher, of blessed memory, gave a hint in the verse “His heart is firm, trusting in God; his heart is steady”: the final letters spell Chanukah, as said above.

The last letters of the words in Psalm 112 spell חנוכה, tying Chanukah to trust.

וכן במזמור שיר חנוכת.

So too in the psalm “A song for the dedication (chanukat).”

He turns to Psalm 30, the song of the dedication of the House.

כי דליתני הגיד אא"ז מו"ר זצלה"ה בשם הרב מפרשיסחא זלה"ה כי פי' דליתני הגבהתני וגם לשון שפלות והוא העלי' כמו שהוא בשפלות ודפח"ח.

On “for You have lifted me up” (dilitani), my grandfather said in the name of the Rabbi of Peshischa that dilitani means “You raised me,” but it is also a word of lowliness. The rise comes exactly as one is in lowliness. His holy words are precious.

The same word means both lifting and being low: we are raised up in the very place of our lowliness.

וכן סוף המזמור הפכת מספדי כו' פתחת שקי כו' שכל ההסתר רק מהופך כמ"ש במד' בחוקותי שקללות אינם סדר מסודר רק מהופך ע"ש.

So too the end of the psalm, “You turned my mourning,” and so on, “You loosened my sackcloth,” and so on: all concealment is only reversed, as it says in the Midrash on Bechukotai that the curses are not in proper order but reversed. See there.

Hardship is blessing turned upside down, waiting to be turned back.

ופתחת שקי כשנוטל הקליפה וההסתר ומתגלה הפנימיות.

“You loosened my sackcloth”: when the husk and the concealment are removed, the inner reality is revealed.

Opening the sackcloth uncovers what was always inside.

תאזרני שמחה כי גם ההסתר רק קליפה ומחיצה כנ"ל.

“And girded me with joy”: for even the concealment is only a husk and a partition, as said above.

Joy comes from seeing that the barrier was never real.

וזה ענין חנוכה ימי הנסים כשהיו בנ"י בשפלות מאוד ועזר להם השי"ת וזה לחיזוק לידע כי לפי גודל ההסתר גודל הטובה כי הכל מהשי"ת לטוב.

This is the matter of Chanukah, the days of miracles, when Israel was very low and God helped them. This gives strength to know that the greater the concealment, the greater the good, because everything is from God for the good.

The depth of the darkness shows how great the coming light will be.

וכפי שיודעין זה ובטוחין בו ית'.

And to the degree that one knows this and trusts in Him,

Our trust matters,

כן נתברר ומתגלה הפנימיות לטוב כנ"ל:

so the inner reality is clarified and revealed for the good, as said above.

because trust is what lets the hidden good appear.

Summary: “This is Chanukah” points to zot, the inner point of God’s life in every thing, which is His kingship. Aaron’s unchanging lighting shows constant attachment to that point, which brings renewal, not routine. God guards this point in Israel, and knowing that even exile and hiding come from Him gives strength and hope. Chanukah, born in a time of great lowliness, teaches that the greater the concealment, the greater the good, and trust is what reveals it.