“the light of a candle or that of a blazing sun”
Prv. 20:27
The sacred season of candles is upon us as the nights grow longer, lit by many traditions to mark winter holidays with extra light, warmth and multiple mythic meanings.
Candles light up in today’s chapter of Her Wisdom to become one of the most popular and common of Jewish and world traditions - lighting a candle in memory of loved ones.
Verse 27 is often quotes at funerals and memorial services, although it is not directly related to mortality:
נֵ֣ר יְ֭הֹוָה נִשְׁמַ֣ת אָדָ֑ם חֹ֝פֵ֗שׂ כׇּל־חַדְרֵי־בָֽטֶן׃
A mortal’s lifebreath is GOD’s candle
Revealing all their inmost parts.
Prv. 20:27
The poetic reference here is to the human soul as the flame lit by divine source, and extinguished by similar forces. It’s the same metaphor of a candle illuminating the darkness that is also used here to illustrate how all our beings are seen by the source. The image of a candle used for seeing in the darkness becomes a trope for mystical musings and spiritual speculations. How is our life like a candle in the wind? The image of the lit candle becomes a symbol of our search for our way of grief, depression, dark times or oppressive realities.
The Rabbi of Gur, known as the title of his famous book S'fat Emet, or The Language of Truth wrote about today’s verse in the context of Hanukkah:
“It is written: “A candle of God is the human soul of man, searching out all the inner chambers.” The Talmud notes that searching requires a candle. One candle from another, as is in the verse of the prophets “I will seek out Jerusalem with candles.” [Zeph. 1:12]
The Jerusalem Sanctuary and Temple are found in every one of us, as Torah says: “I will dwell within them.” [Ex. 25:6] These are present insofar as a person makes it clear to oneself that all of life-energy comes from the soul. Thus we say each day: “The soul that You have placed within me is pure...” This means that there is a certain pure place within each person, but it is indeed deeply hidden.
When the Temple was standing, it was clear that all life-energy came from God. This is the meaning of the verse “the indwelling of Shekhinah [in the Temple] was witness that God dwells in Israel.” But even now, after that dwelling place has been hidden, it can be found by searching with candles. The candles are the commandments; we need to seek within our hearts and souls in order to fulfill each commandment with all our strength...
Especially at this season, when lights were miraculously lit for Israel even though they did not have enough oil, there remains light even now to help us, with the aid of these Chanukah candles, to find that hidden light within. Hiding takes place mainly in the dark; we need the candles’ light to seek and to find...By the power of inwardness we can find the hidden light within all our own hidden chambers.”
I’m not sure how the Rebbe of Gur would feel about being quoted right alongside a secular modern Jewish philosopher, nor what she would have said about it, but Hanna Arendt in Men in Dark Times seems to be suggesting the same theme of the candle as inner strength:
“Even in the darkest of times we have the right to expect some illumination, and that such illumination may well come less from theories and concepts than from the uncertain, flickering, and often weak light that some men and women, in their lives and their works, will kindle under almost all circumstances and shed over the time span that was given them on earth.
…Eyes so used to darkness as ours will hardly be able to tell whether their light was the light of a candle or that of a blazing sun. But such objective evaluation seems to me a matter of secondary importance which can be safely left to posterity.”
Let’s get the candles ready for our season of lifting up hope, trust, and our best intentions for comfort and healing, less violence and more peace through the upcoming winter nights and beyond.
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