Is zos Chanukah a chassidish thing?

amother

↑ OP ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:08 am

amother Begonia wrote:

I'm as litvish as they come (no chassidish blood at all on either side) and always knew that zos chanukah was a time for davening.

. It could be chassidish indluence around you from school etc. what I’m looking for is actual sources. We don’t hold of things that are “just known” our mehalech is to base our yiddiahkeit on emes that can be traced to actual sources not just nice thoughts or ideas.

PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:33 am

Ruchi wrote:

*Segulot for Zot Chanukah*

The final 24 hours of Chanukah, from Wednesday evening to nightfall on Thursday, represent the most critical and spiritually significant time of the entire year.
Zot Chanukah, the eighth and final day of Chanukah, holds a unique spiritual power comparable to the Ne'ilah of Yom Kippur. Rabbi Israel of Ruzhin zt’l teaches that while the Gadol HaDor (leader of the generation) can attain extraordinary spiritual achievements during the Ne'ilah of Yom Kippur, every Jew—regardless of their spiritual level—has the opportunity to access these profound blessings on Zot Chanukah. On this auspicious day, all Jews can acquire miracles (nissim), wonders (niflaot), salvations (yeshuot), and blessings (brachot) not only for the coming year but, in some cases, these divine gifts can endure for a lifetime.

https://chat.whatsapp.com/BDzo.....wwsHA

I wish I would have seen this last night. Smile

But as a Litvak, it's not just another day. It was the last night we got to light the menorah and see the lights, and I made the effort to sit by them with some meaningful material to read and listen to, as well as saying Tehillim. Everything today is one last time. I'm going to wash for lunch beH for an extra Al Hanissim and I just had some muffins so I could say Al Hamichyah and beH have kavannah when I say "al mizbechecha v'al heichalecha." I'm cleaning the menorah wistfully.

And Chanukah is a time when we should all be filled with extra gratitude; the motif of these days is l'hodos ulehallel. We should be thinking about all the nissim in life. Here's a quick thought on the everyday nissim by Rabbi Travis, quoting Rav Shternbuch, shlita: https://torahanytime.com/lectures/340188 Chazal only made Chanukah a yom tov when the next year (and remember, the battle was continuing), they felt a special energy. Of course there is special energy to tap into now. Nothing wrong with us Litvaks noshing from the chassidish table and we welcome them to do the same.

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:36 am

amother Thistle wrote:

Chasidish things very often mean stuff that was dropped by everyone else and only chasidim held onto it. Research and you will see that to be the case.

Also note that chasidim celebrate every opportunity and make the mundane holy (its the essence of chassidus) and so many things that were braught down in seforim and kabala were later turned into a “thing” by chasidim. Chassidis means serving hashem with joy and meaning. Making the everyday into a holy something.
So zos chanuka has tremendous power according to kabala. Chasidish therefore acted on it.
Nowadays anyone who searches for meaning usually ends up following chasidish stuff because it has more depth.

Signed a former litvak proud chasidista.

I'm a current Litvak. (Capitalizing because it comes from a geographical location. Lower case chassidish words doesn't mean I'm dissing chassidim.) If you read the life and stories about the Chazon Ish and many other gedolim from the worlds of mussar and the yeshivah, you will not be proud to be a Litvak or chassidiste, you'll be proud to be a Jew.

P.S. The Litvish siddur and Tehillim don't omit perek kuf (Ivdu es Hashem b'simchah). Just saying.

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:38 am

amother OP wrote:

This is all very vague. I’m asking for sources like halachic sources that have clear origins in Torah and Halacha.
Also chasidush stuff is stuff that was dropped by everyone else?? What are you talking about??

It's sad that people don't know happy Litvaks.
Rabbi Hillel Goldberg of Denver writes that he used to have a regular seder with Rav Yaakov Galinsky, zt"l, who was a Novardoker, and Rabbi Goldberg says that after their seder, his sides would hurt from laughing so hard.

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:40 am

amother OP wrote:

This whole post represents what I’m asking. I don’t see any sources other than this and that rebbe said or teaches.. I appreciate it but that’s what I am asking if it’s a chassidish thing only. Because as I said we don’t really hold of general chassidish ideas that’s aren’t based on concrete sources

But there are no contraindications to any of the suggestions, are there? (I didn't read every word.) And I don't know Rav Avitan. I assume he's someone of stature. So that alone could be good enough.

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:42 am

amother OP wrote:

But look at what you're replying to. How could the ebbing moments of a holy day NOT be a time when we realize how precious this special time is and our tefillos and avodas hayom are?

amother

↑ PlumPink ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 9:54 am

PinkFridge wrote:

But look at what you're replying to. How could the ebbing moments of a holy day NOT be a time when we realize how precious this special time is and our tefillos and avodas hayom are?

Because work backwards.
My Rav says he has no source that Chanukah itself has any more kedusha or tefilla or anything like that than any other mitzvah we do

The litvishe mehalech is that Chanukah is about keeping the halachos of Licht lechatchila- mehadrin min hamehadrin including exactly at the right time. We sing, we dance. We say hallel and al hanissim and we emphasize learning because the yevanim tried to take away the Torah.

This davening by the Licht, inspiration by the candles - I mean yes there's kedusha. But we don't sit and be inspired by the Shabbos Licht. We don't say tehillim over the shechita knife. We don't hold onto the kedusha of the Kiddush cup. We don't dance and linger and tie a note with a bakasha onto the eruv tavshilin egg

Im not trying to be rude. If you find inspiration, that's great.
But the Litvishe mehalech doesn't really see chanuka Licht as an extra kedusha, time to daven, for bakashos to be answered. Not more than any other mitzvah that we do.
I'm looking for sources. For Chanukah and for Zos Chanukah.

amother

Brass ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:04 am

amother PlumPink wrote:

This davening by the Licht, inspiration by the candles - I mean yes there's kedusha. But we don't sit and be inspired by the Shabbos Licht.

But the Litvishe mehalech doesn't really see chanuka Licht as an extra kedusha, time to daven

Did your rav actually tell you that we dont sit by the shabbos licht , daven and be inspired?? Ones eyes are meant to be uncoverd after bracha looking at licht saying bakashos! Chasidish and litvish and all other jewish women daven for their family by shabbos candles! Looking at licht by kiddish?? Also pretty real!

Chanuka licht has kedusha too....

Funny how you say litvish sing and dance but find no place for tefilla by these special mitzvos....

amother

↑ PlumPink

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:07 am

amother Brass wrote:

Its actually different.
We daven by the Shabbos Licht to USE them. Not because of the kedusha.

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:18 am

amother PlumPink wrote:

I can't give you exact sources, but I've heard the following stressed in numerous shiurim, given by people with a Litvish, yeshivish orientation:

1) Chazal were only koveia the shemonas yemei Chanukah the next year, after they sensed the koach of the day. (You need Litvish sources for the idea of the koach of the day? Rav Dessler, https://www.artscroll.com/Book.....QLzV, I'm sure many other sefarim like https://www.eshelpublications......html.

2) Chanukah is a time lehodos ulehallel. You need a source? Al Hanissim. Okay, let me google and see what I turn up. Here's something I found while googling: https://mishpacha.com/the-hiding-chanukah/ FYI: The Feldmans, shlita, are Litvish. And this: https://www.chareidi.org/archi.....7.htm Rav Paley, zt"l, Google tells me, was a close talmid of Rav Boruch Ber Leibowitz, zt"l.

And if Chazal instituted that we say full Hallel, that's a message that this is a time of thanks. And if we're going to thank, we don't just thank for the immediate situation, we thank for EVERYTHING. Look at bensching. We start with the food and then we start thanking Hashem for seven special brachos NOT related to food in Modim. Look at Nishmas. Listen to Rabbi Travis's series on Thanking Hashem When Things Look Bad. (They're short. Start anywhere.)

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:23 am

amother OP wrote:

My husband likes to say that just because something sounds nice doesn’t mean it’s rooted in emes. Not to compare kavyochol but a Christian song can sound nice and inspiring too. It’s our mehalech to be careful to do things that have mesorah from primary Torah and halachic sources bec the line of emes has to be upheld.
I understand that chassidim may not have this approach.

I get mesorah. I remember a teacher of mine in seminary, who's chassidishe, saying that he'd love to give his kids brachos Shabbos night but his father didn't and he wants to recreate his father's table.
But we're not diluting our mesorah if we stop and think for a bit about the meaning of what we're doing.

tigerwife ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:30 am

This Aish article has a source that Zos Chanuka is the final seal on what is planned for our year (beyond Hoshana Raba):

https://aish.com/final-judgment-on-chanukah/

Additionally, I always learned the following (and I’m having trouble finding this source since it takes me to Teva shoes). Kabbalistic, which a lot of chassidus is based off of:

Each number represents something.
7 is teva, nature. Think, the seven days of the week, the seven musical notes. Patterns in nature often come in sevens.

8 is lmaaleh min hateva- beyond the natural. On this day, you can truly daven for miracles that wouldn’t simply be excused for the natural order of the world. Think of Rubashkin who was basically told his case is closed and the next day (Zos Chanuka) he was freed.

You can say you want straight-forward Halacha and that’s fine. Kabbala is not for everyone. Still doesn’t hurt to daven extra hard today.

↑ PinkFridge ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:37 am

tigerwife wrote:

Litvaks know about seven and eight too. Looking at the sources, he draws on (I think) the Rizhiner Rebbe and Rav Yisrael Salanter.

amother

Apple ↓

Thu, Jan 02 2025, 10:39 am

amother OP wrote:

But Torah is not just halacha. Halacha is the parameters of what we can and can’t do. The Torah is all encompassing. It’s the blueprint of the world. Do you dismiss the parts of the Torah that are not coming to teach Halacha, but rather a middah or an element of this world?
The Torah at har Sinai was given with 4 different understandings, all of which are true. Pshat, drash, remez, and sod. Kabala is as much a part of the Torah as the pshat is, it’s just more esoteric and harder to understand. That’s why we have tzaddikim who can bring it down to our level and tell us practically what to do.
Signed,
Daughter of a hardcore yekke, married to a heimishe chossid