The vessels of the King are the ten vessels of the
Tabernacle: the Menorah, the Table of the Showbread, the Altar, the Washbasin
and Jug, the Ark and the Curtain in front of it, the Cherubs, and all in its
Weight.
These vessels symbolize the sefirot as follows:
The Menorah - chesed
The Table - gevura
The Altar - tiferet with its connection to malchut
The Basin and Jug or Laver - netzach and hod
The Ark - bina
The Curtain - chochma
The cherubs on the Ark - keter
All in its Weight/shekel – malchut
Moses was ordered by G-d to make them all, but he
found difficulty in making the Menorah, because G-d implied that it had to be
made 'of itself'.
In G-d's command to kindle the candelabrum of the holy Temple, the word used for "kindle" literally means "cause to ascend". The lamps of the candelabrum (the seven-branched menorah of the holy Temple) were all in a straight line; the "front" of the menorah is interpreted to mean the lamp situated on top of its middle shaft.
The Ari explains how its very structure illustrates the Kabbalistic maturation process of the Feminine Principal (Nukva). When the Torah mentions Aaron's kindling of the Menorah - literally causing [the flames] to rise", he thus aptly represents the way the flow of Zeir Anpin (i.e.
the emotions, the principle one of which is the love characterized by him) inspires and causes Nukva to mature and develop.
The menorah in the Holy Temple consisted of seven candles, corresponding to the seven "moving stars" [from our earthly perspective] – the sun, the moon, and the five planets closest to the earth. Arranged upon the Table were twelve loaves of showbread, corresponding to the twelve constellations used as astrological signs of the Zodiac. The purpose of this symbolism was to emphasize that neither do the hosts of the heavens nor do the astrological signs control the fate of the world.
Mitzvahs can be performed only with physical substance. Through doing mitzvahs with physical objects we can transcend the separateness of the physical that we perceive with our senses and realize our true nothingness in relation to G-d: that the created existence is nothing and the Creator is the true existence. The apparent change (during Creation from spiritual into physical through the concealment of the spiritual) is only from our perspective; from G-d's perspective, however, there is no darkness or concealment of His Infinite Light.
The Chanukah candle is a revelation of the light of the future redemption, the light of the essence of G-d, the light which automatically dispels and transforms the darkness. The Chanukah candle must be placed outside the door facing a public area since the outside, the domain of the public, reflects the idea of plurality, of separate existence. The Chanukah candle contains the capacity to light up even the realm that represents a denial of G-d's existence and a rebellion against Him. The source of the negative forces is the left side. The Chanukah candle is placed on the left and shines towards the left; it lights up the negativity (darkness) of the left side.
Both the Temple and the Jewish Nation establish G d's kingdom in the world. The Jews were chosen to proclaim His kingdom and the Holy Temple is the place where we can experience it, as it is that aspect of Creation which humbles itself totally before G d.
The Greeks aspired to disrupt the divinely ordained order by oppressing the Jews and defining the Temple. They were finally defeated and the inner deep truth of the universe thereafter streamed forth through the Menorah in the Temple, revealing G d's sovereignty over the natural world.
The Temple is now in ruins and the Jewish People are in exile, yet we believe that soon they will both be completely uplifted and that the final redemption will be accomplished.
When one kindles the Chanukah lamp, he sees before him the Menorah of the Temple. The Menorah whispers to him from within the Temple saying, "Let us do our job together to proclaim G d's kingdom."
The blessing "Blessed are You...who made miracles in those days in this time..." is said only on the festivals of Chanukah and Purim. One reason for this is that these holidays commemorate miracles that occurred within nature, within natural time, as opposed to other festivals, when the miracles were made directly by G-d, above nature , outside of space and time.
This also serves explains why the "natural" miracles of Chanukah and Purim had to take place through women. The relationship of our physical world to G-d is that of " receiver-giver" (mekabel-mashpia), which is also a paradigm for the feminine-masculine polar forces. Since the Chanukah and Purim miracles occurred within nature, and the world stands as "receiver" in relation to G-d, they came about through women, who symbolize the aspect of "receiver"/mekabel.
A Chanukah miracle in the heart of Siberia.
The letters on the dreidel (outside of Israel) allude to the totality of human capabilities: Gimmel represents "guf", which literally means "body", relating to the physical. Shin represents "seichel", meaning "intellect". Nun relates to the Nefesh, the emotional. And hei stands for the word "hakol" meaning "everything", embodying the totality of human aptitudes.
At the same time, we reflect upon the other meaning of these letters, for they are the same numerical equivalent as the four letters of "Mashiach" = 358. As the dreidel spins, we are reminded that all human history "rotates" around the axis of Mashiach and that everything will one day lead to Mashiach. May he come speedily in our days!
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