Chanukah is often referred to as the Festival of Lights. (Just for the record, it is not an official name of Chanukah and does not appear in any ancient Jewish literature). It is a time when we celebrate light over darkness. We kindle the menorah, specifically at night and specifically toward the outside. These acts demonstrate that light shall prevail over darkness.
The significance of light is evident from the very opening verses of the Torah. Light was created on the first day of Creation (interestingly, the sun, moon and stars were created on day four).
What is it about light that compelled G-d to create it first? Why couldn’t G-d have created a dark world and then illuminated it afterwards (He wrote the rulebook of science and nature, so He could have chosen to do it any way He wishes)?
An insight from this week’s Torah portion, Miketz, may shed some light on this (pun intended!).
When Yosef was sold into slavery, he eventually became the viceroy of Egypt. His brothers did not now this. They came to Egypt searching for food and met with the viceroy. The Torah states, “Now Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him.”
Why didn’t his brothers recognize him?
Simply put, Yosef was now 20 years older. They never expected their brother to be in a position of royalty.
A deeper perspective has nothing to do with appearance. It has everything to do with mission and purpose. The brothers knew Yosef as a very pious person. They could not imagine that this viceroy of Egypt could be their righteous brother Yosef, since, from their perspective, it was impossible to be immersed in the mundane and remain righteous.
In reality, however, Yosef was indeed able to maintain his faith and integrity amidst the depravity of Egypt and even in its upper echelons of power. How was he able to do this?
The difference between light and darkness can help us understand Yosef’s spiritual staying power and his brother’s failure to recognize him.
When a dark room is lit up, none of the items have changed. The furniture, people, and colors all remain the same. However, they were not visible previously. As such, our interaction changes drastically. If I am unaware of an object, or oblivious to some of its characteristics – such as texture, color or shape – my contact will be much more limited. By shedding light we reveal what already exists.
Yosef’ brothers were operating in darkness. Under the guise of blackness, they could not imagine this was their brother. He was sitting right before their eyes, but they could not see him.
When we look at the world around us from a perspective of darkness, Egypt is a formidable enemy that cannot be conquered. We cower from the challenges around us. We feel inadequate.
Yet, when a light is shined, we recognize that everything in this world serves a purpose. Even the land of Egypt cannot disrupt and quell our divine mandate.
This Chanukah, let’s remember that we are imbued with light. Let’s continue sharing the lights of Chanukah – to ourselves, to others and to the entire world.
Happy Chanukah & Shabbat Shalom!