The Hidden Miracle of Chanukah
Revealing His Love
The Sefarim HaKedoshim explain that the miracle of Chanukah is a fusion of revealed as well as hidden miracles. We celebrate the revealed miracles—the victory in the war and the clear miracle of the oil. But there’s another neis, a hidden one, and that is the miracle that HaKadosh Baruch Hu revealed His love to the Jewish People, and He assisted them in doing teshuvah—the greatest miracle of all.
That is, when we see that the lights of the Menorah burned for eight days, it is only an indication that the Ribbono shel Olam illuminated the hearts of Klal Yisrael—and, since their hearts were illuminated, there was also light on the outside, seen in the lights of the Menorah. Thus, when a Yid celebrates the Yom Tov of Chanukah, he gives thanks for the true miracle of the Ribbono shel Olam assisting us in returning to Him.
All Klal Yisrael
Furthermore, brings the Chiddushei HaRim: It is known that the oil for the Menorah was brought by the entire Klal Yisrael, since it was a public offering. Thus, not only were the Kohanim included in the miracle; it was a miracle for all Klal Yisrael. Every single person in Klal Yisrael was included in this miracle. We see from this that the inner miracle of teshuvah—which is expressed by the miracle of the Menorah lights—applies to the entirety of Klal Yisrael.
The reason that the Yidden needed to be lifted up is because when we live life in the course of our regular existence, it is easy to become swept up in the order of nature. We fall into the klipah of Yavan, which says, “What you see before your eyes, that’s all there is.” And if things were terrible until now, they’ll likely continue to deteriorate. And this is how the Yidden entered a cycle of fear and the darkness of Yavan.
Illuminating the Way
But the mesirus nefesh of the Chashmonaim—who believed in Hashem with complete and pure emunah, with all their hearts and souls—illuminated the entire generation, and it penetrated the hearts of all the Yidden with a spirit of teshuvah. Even the מתייונים experienced pangs of teshuvah and recognition of Hashem—otherwise they wouldn’t have merited the open miracle of the lights of the Menorah. Thus, we see clearly that the true miracle of Chanukah was that the Ribbono shel Olam illuminated the hearts of Klal Yisrael with the proper emotions and an understanding of teshuvah.
In this vein, the Zera Kodesh of Ropshitz teaches that in the era of the neis Chanukah, the Ribbono shel Olam brought down a light that penetrated even the hearts of the מתייונים who had cast off the yoke of Torah and mitzvos. This was the miracle of Chanukah: the light illuminated even the darkest of places.
We see from this that the Ribbono shel Olam makes an incredible miracle—in our times just as in those times: He enables us to see and understand events we ordinarily would not, so that we will be able to do teshuvah. In our days, He enables us to see our mistakes in new ways—and to see the world in a truer light. This is the gift that Hashem gave the Yidden during the neis Chanukah, and this is the gift that He continues to give us year after year at the time of Chanukah.
There Is No Time or Place Devoid of Teshuvah
Let us discuss one aspect of this special Chanukah miracle. We know that one of the most important tenets of Chanukah is that the light illuminates even below ten handbreadths, למטה מעשרה טפחים. What does this mean? What is the difference between above ten tefachim or below it?
The simple answer is that there are places that are welcoming hosts for השראת השכינה, such as the Makom HaMikdash, for example, and there are places that are more lowly and less friendly to the Shechinah. When we say that the light of the Shechinah reaches even lower than עשרה טפחים, we mean that it makes its way even to those lowly places—for מלכותך מלכות כל עולמים—His Kingdom is the Kingdom of all the worlds....
And just as we understand this regarding the Shechinah’s ability to rest in all places, so too it applies to teshuvah; the Ribbono shel Olam sometimes miraculously sends an aura of teshuvah to the most unlikely places. If we understand that Hashem illuminated the hearts of even the מתייונים who were so filled with errors and sins, people who were not in a good place... then we can understand that Hashem will send feelings of teshuvah even to those who find themselves למטה מעשרה.
There simply is no matzav in the world in which we cannot receive an aura of teshuvah and to change our ways completely. There is no time or place in the world that is devoid of teshuvah.
It’s Never a Lost Cause
This is a tremendous yesod, and it lies at the heart of Chanukah. There’s no time that isn’t opportune for teshuvah. Just because a person has fallen into complications, or because he doesn’t feel that it’s time for a fresh start, that doesn’t mean that the cause is lost. The yesod of למטה מעשרה tells us that at every time and at every place, the Ribbono shel Olam will help us become close to Him once again.
For example, if a person will say, “The year has recently begun, it’s only Chanukah, but already I feel as if I’ve ruined my fresh start.... I will wait until next year to begin again....” We will rightfully look at him like he’s out of his mind. We will tell him, “What?! There are months and months of avodas Hashem ahead of you... there are the days of Chanukah, Zos Chanukah, Shovavim, the days of joy of Adar, the purity of Nissan, the exalted days of Sefirah and Shavu’os! Aren’t you being ridiculous?! Why would you give up already?!”
Picking Ourselves Up on an Ordinary Tuesday
Everyone understands the foolishness of this thinking. But what about a Sunday or a Tuesday that didn’t begin as we would have wished? We find ourselves in middle of the day, and everything went sideways. The person says, “Okay, Hashem will help... tomorrow’s another day. Tomorrow will look different.” His mistake is no different from waiting a year to begin anew. He doesn’t understand that every unit of time is precious—no matter how small. Time isn’t measured only in yearly increments.
One must accustom himself to thinking differently, and to understand that this attitude is rooted in ga’avah. He must understand his mistake, and declare, I am here and now going to return to Hashem and become close to Him. What will he do now? He will bentch Birchas HaMazon, and before that he will do teshuvah. And now that he has done teshuvah, he will merit an aura and an illumination in his bentching that will then help him in his Torah and avodas Hashem.
Learning Lessons
If one doesn’t grasp the fact that the light of the Shechinah reaches even in the lowliest places—that is, in every time and in every place—he passes up valuable opportunities, and one loss leads to the other, R”l. (It is interesting to note that when it comes to gashmiyus, people are very good at getting to the root of their mistakes and making sure not to repeat them. Anyone with even a bit of wisdom will sit down to take stock of what went wrong and what went right so that he can calculate his next step).
When a person grasps the mistakes that he made, he now knows to be careful. “This isn’t right, I see... when I talk to this-and-this person, the talk tends to veer toward lashon hara and other forbidden talk.... When I come to daven in this minyan, I don’t have a good davening—it’s not for me.”
Since he understands where he tends to go wrong, he can make changes. He tries to wake up earlier on the first day so he can daven with a different minyan, but he fails to make it on the first day, and the same thing happens on the second day... but he doesn’t forget about it, and he doesn’t give up—because he understands that the former minyan isn’t for him.
If a person were to use this approach in his avodas Hashem, he would find elevation in every matzav. He wouldn’t succumb and say, “This area isn’t b’seder by me,” and then give up. He would be solution-oriented—focused on repairing this area.
It is the ability to do teshuvah in every moment that enables the person to turn around whenever he wishes.
Sweeping the Streets Every Day
The Dzikover Rebbe once said to his chassidim, “Once, I was in Vienna, and I saw a street cleaner sweeping the streets. I asked him, ‘Why are you cleaning the streets when in just a little bit they will become dirty once again?’ He answered me, ‘Listen, Rabbiner, if I didn’t clean every day, the filth would reach my head!’”
Similarly, when it comes to teshuvah, explained the Rebbe, a person says, “Yes, yes, we must do teshuvah. It is true... very important. In a little while it will be Chodesh Elul, and we will begin to do teshuvah.” This person doesn’t realize that the world isn’t arranged in such a way that we can leave “the filth” to pile up and our mistakes to accrue and accumulate until he has the time to deal with them.
Taking Stock
Take, for example, a person who operates a large supermarket; he has income and expenses on a large scale. He must make a cheshbon on a constant basis. He can’t just kick the can down the road—because so much debt will accumulate, and he won’t be able to deal with it. He has no choice but to sit down periodically to see what came in and what went out.
The same applies to our spiritual reckoning. We can’t leave the errors and mistakes to accumulate; we must constantly be engaged in taking spiritual stock. And the good news is that the Aibishter gives us the opportunity constantly to do teshuvah.
If someone erred in the way he was mechanech his children, it pains him greatly. He realizes that he shouldn’t have yelled so much... he shouldn’t have gotten so upset. He realizes this only after many years, and he really regrets the way he dealt with his children. He doesn’t feel that teshuvah applies to a situation like this. He goes to an expert who only pours salt on his wounds. “You fouled up,” he says. “It’s too late; there’s nothing that I can tell you....” This person feels that there’s nothing he can do to repair the situation.
A similar instance: A person got into a complicated situation with a peer or colleague, and he says to himself... “I’m really in a big mess. There’s nothing I can do.”
There’s Always Something You Can Do
What these people don’t understand is that there is something that they can do at this moment. You must change the way you’re thinking about this, and you must do teshuvah for it right now, admitting your fault and regretting your actions. And if you snatch the opportunity to do teshuvah, the Ribbono shel Olam will immediately send the yeshuah.
In the era of Yavan, Hashem sent a spirit of teshuvah into the hearts of Klal Yisrael—because He loves them. And this spirit continues to this day—especially in the days of Chanukah. The Ribbono shel Olam helps those who wish to do teshuvah. If you’re serious about finding what you can repair, He will help you find the way back.
Taking the First Step
Rectification Brings More Rectification
And so, let us elaborate on a point that pertains in general to searching one’s ways, and specifically to the topic at hand. Generally, people think that when we’re exhorted to engage in חשבון הנפש, making a reckoning of one’s deeds (for example, when yissurim come to a person, R”l), we think that we need to uncover the precise reason for the yissurim. Then we’ll ask, “How can I know the reason? I have a thousand issues!”
Indeed, this is a sugya we can and must elaborate upon, but the first thing a person must know is this: Is there something that you can rectify right now? Yes, one will say. “But how can I know that this is the precise reason for my suffering.” The answer is, if you will fix the things that are within your reach, you will become closer to the Ribbono shel Olam, and once you’ve become closer to the Ribbono shel Olam, you’ll already know what else to fix. Rectification will bring more rectification... until you’ll reach your ultimate destination.
Take the First Step
The mistake that people make is that until they find the exact source of their problems, they’re unwilling to engage in teshuvah. “I’m not going to simply do teshuvah just like that,” he says. “I’m willing to do teshuvah if I know that it will take care of my problems.”
This is akin to someone who’s looking for work. Yet, he pushes away all the offers that come to him because he’s stubbornly set his mind upon some fantasy job. And so, he waits and waits... and his debts only accumulate and accrue.
Similarly, a person who has an apartment for rent has set his heart on a certain rental amount. No matter how many offers come his way, he refuses them all. Meanwhile, his losses on the empty apartment outweigh anything he could have earned from getting his preferred price. But he stubbornly continues to insist on having it his way.
A person must always be willing to accept that what Hashem has placed before him is the step that he must take, and if so, he must grab the opportunity. Later, he will see what to do further. Many tzaddikim would tell those who came before them to ask for berachos for parnassah: “Do the first deal that comes before you!”
This is the idea: Take the first deal that comes your way.
Don’t Think, Do
So it is with teshuvah. A person doesn’t believe that the light of the Shechinah illuminates down in the lowliest places, to even the smallest things.
He says, I know that Chazal tell us that when suffering comes to a person, he should take stock of his ways. Now I need to figure out what the source of the suffering is specifically. B’li neder, we’ll call a meeting about it. Today I don’t have time, tomorrow I also don’t have time, and on the following day I already have a meeting about something else. But we’ll get to it....
The question to this person is: In the meantime, how’s your berachah on the coffee you’re holding in your hand? Can you do better in that regard? No, this he won’t address because it’s probably not the cause.... In the meantime, he gets into complications with people, and he makes many mistakes—all the while, he has something that he can do right now, but he doesn’t take the opportunity.
Throwing Away the Cable
How many times, as you’re lost in thought about your ways and deeds, does someone come up to you with his hand outstretched for a donation? He isn’t the poor man from the legends, and he isn’t Eliyahu HaNavi in disguise... he’s the annoying guy from shul who’s already bothered you for a donation once for Shabbos, once for Yom Tov, and once for the weekday. Here’s something you can rectify. But what do you say? “Stop bothering me, I’m in the midst of a reckoning! You’re disturbing me from doing teshuvah.”
There are so many examples of the way a person can throw away the rope that can propel him to the next step. That is, it may be that this indeed is not the root cause of your suffering, but in order for you to be able to get to that root cause, the Ribbono shel Olam condenses His Shechinah to the lowliest places. He throws a rope into the pit so you will be able to climb out—and once you climb out and see the light of day, everything is clearer... you’ll already see what to rectify. The rope was thrown down to you. Grab it. Give the poor man some tzedakah: it will give you the siyatta Di’Shmaya to find the light and through this your way back!
A Drink for the Way
A person must open his mind and understand—yes, I don’t yet know what I need to repair... but, until we get to the tavern, we need a drink too, as the saying goes. Until we begin the big program of teshuvah, we must also do teshuvah. One must say, if this is the right thing to do, I will do it. He must understand that the Ribbono shel Olam is talking to him, saying: You, in your state, this can be the move for you to begin the process... then you will begin to move forward.
Many tzaddikim, when giving people a derech in teshuvah, didn’t give them broad and overarching programs. They gave them small steps that they can do immediately. The holy Ruzhiner once instructed a great ba’al aveirah to be careful to say Birchas HaMazon from a siddur. The chassidim wondered about this... but the end of the story was that this Yid attained incredible madreigos.
We learn from this story that there are many rungs to the ladder, and a person must ascertain which step he can take right now—and once he takes that step, he’ll be able to take further steps.
Don’t Think About Teshuvah
The legendary Lubavitcher chassid Reb Mendel Futerfas would say that thinking about teshuvah is worse than thinking about an aveirah. For thinking about something means that we’re thinking about it and pining for it, but we stop short of doing it. If so, it’s a great complaint against the person. You were right there! Why didn’t you take the plunge?!
We ask the person, “What are you doing?” And he answers, “I’m being מהרהר בתשובה, thinking thoughts of teshuvah.” “And what does this mean,” we ask. “I know that there are things in my life that I need to...
