Lighting the Candles

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Click on a night or click on the menorah to light the candles.

The most important part of Hanukkah is lighting the menorah. The menorah is a candle holder that has spaces for eight candles, placed so that the viewer can easily see how many candles are burning. There is usually one extra candle, called the shammash, that is used for lighting the other candles. It is placed higher than the other candles to differentiate it from the other candles.

The menorah is lighted each night of Hanukkah after sundown. One candle is added each night until the last night, when all eight candles are lighted. The candles are placed in the menorah starting on your right. Once the candles are in place, you light the shammash and then use the shammash to light the other candles from the left, (the opposite way you place the candles in the menorah.)

• On night one you place the right-most candle and light it. You should let it burn down.
• On night two, you place the right-most candle (we'll call it candle 1) and then also the next right-most candle (we'll call it candle 2). When you light the candles, you should light candle 2 before candle 1. Let the candles burn down
• Now, it's night three. Place candle 1, 2, and then 3, where candle 1 is the right-most candle. Light candle 3, then 2, then 1, from the left.
• And so on.

In the early days, the menorah was placed on the doorstep so all passerbys could see it. Some people still like to put it in a window so that people can see it and remember the miracle of Hanukkah.