… spin a dreidel? Why not spin some other toy – like a grogger, or a fidget?
Great Question! A dreidel has four sides. The four sides represent the four difficult galios that we went through. The Kotzker said Nun, Gimmel, Hey, and Shin are gimatria Moshiach (358) — when we spin it, all of galus gets blurry… and we get closer to Mashiach! We also spin the dreidel (normally) from the top. The Maccabim had no training and no real weapons — except emuna and bitachon. The nissim came from Hashem, from above!
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The Hidden Light
Chanukah candles, burning bright in the night!
As the snow falls on the window — what a warm, happy sight!
But after we light them, then what do we do?
Maybe presents, play dreidel…. Is that all? Are we through?
The Bnei Yisaschar reveals, that hidden inside them,
Is the Ohr Haganuz — the hidden light of Hashem.
Adam saw till the ends of the earth, for 36 hours.
In our 36 neiros* — that light is now ours!
Right there on your windowsill! “Pretty amazing,” I’d say.
Many Yidden simply stare at the neiros as they sway.
So among all the fun, the singing and gelt,
Take a look at your neiros… before they melt!
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 17 Special Chanukah Editions.
