What is a Menorah?

The Hebrew word for “lamp” is “menorah.” It generally refers to the golden candelabra which has seven branches that were being lit during the Tabernacle and then in Jerusalem, the Holy Temple, and the eight-flamed menorah being lit up for the first eight nights of the Chanukah holidays of Jewish.

The Lord God commanded Moses about the looks of the menorah. Made up of pure gold of a chunk, it consists of a stem that is composed of six branches that will slant upward. At the very tip of the six branches and also on its single stem, there are cups into which the wicks and the olive oil are being placed. The lamp or the menorah is decorated with twenty-two inverted goblets, eleven, and nine decorative flowers.

The lamp or the menorah is being placed at the Holy Kodesh, which is the similar chamber of the Tabernacle where themizbeáchhazahav or the golden incense altar and the show-bread table or the Shulchan is being placed. Every single day, the High Priest, namely Aaron or even his followers, would light up the candles in the menorah.

Made up in the desert in the Tabernacle, the lamp or the menorah was being placed in the Promise Land, wherein the menorah was being lit up faithfully in Nob, Shilo and the other places wherein the Tabernacle is placed. When King Solomon created The Holy Temple in the Land of Jerusalem, the lamp was being lit up until Nebuchadnezzar of the Land of Babylon damaged the Holy Temple.

When Ezra built the second Holy Temple of Jerusalem, an innovative lamp with new decors and styles was being lit up every single day. And this is the reason why Jewish people lead to the second look of the menorah by Ezra.

The Chanukah Menorah

During the 2nd century, Israel or the Holy Land was ruled by a Syrian-Greek named Seleucids, who tries to persuade the Children of Israel to adopt the beliefs and cultures of Greeks instead of doing the mitzvah observance and believing to the power of the Lord God. As time passes by, the group of Jewish people, to be ruled by Judah the Maccabee won in the war between the mightiest and the strongest warriors on earth, during that time, make the Greeks stayed in that land, claiming the Holy Temple of Jerusalem again and dedicate it again to the Lord God through offering some services.

When they start to light up the lamp, they found out the only cruse of olive oil that escaped the Greeks from contamination. And technically, the Jewish people lit up the menorah lamp, and the one night supply of the olive oil lasts for eight more days, before the preparation of the new oil with the ritual purity condition. To publicize and commemorate all the miracles happened at that time, the Jewish sages implement the Chanukah festival.

Each night of the Chanukah festival, another flame was being lit up again, one for the first day, two for the second day, three for the third day, fourth for the fourth day and so on until the eight candles will be lit up on the last day of Chanukah. Shamash or the additional candle refers to the word “helper” that can be used on lighting up the candle. The handcrafted menorah is where the Chanukah flames are being lit up, Chanukah is the term for Chanukah in the Modern Hebrew.

The Difference of Chanukah Menorah from Menorah

The style and design of Chanukah menorah may be or not be similar to the classic design of menorah. The following are the differences of Chanukah menorah from the original menorah.

•    The original menorah of the Holy Temple in the Land of Jerusalem was being lit up during the morning, while the Chanukah menorah is being lit up after the sundown, which sits it to give light for the entire night.

•    The classic menorah was being lipped up inside the Jewish homes, while the Chanukah menorahs being lit up outdoors, located at the front of the front door that will face the street, but some countries will light up the menorah inside the house near a window or door.

•    The classic menorah is made up of pure gold, while the Chanukah menorah is usually made up of any materials that are fire-safe.