Shlomo Carlebach

Everybody knows, Tuesday night is Chanukah, the Festival of Light. And, you know, sometimes it’s so obvious — you know, there’s the book, “Who is Who in Judaism,” you know? “Who is Who in the World,” right? Sometimes it’s so obvious who is real and who is not. For those who are not so real, they say, Chanukah is a very unimportant holiday — ‘cause it really is, and what’s so important about it, you know? Basically, on Chanukah you can do anything you want to. It’s not like Yom Kippur — you’re fasting, you go to shul. Chanukah, you can sell your herring. In the middle — in between one piece of herring and the other — you run to the window, you kindle a little light, so who cares, right? So it’s not important.

But the truth is, the Holy Baal Shem Tov, the holy of holiest, told us that Chanukah is higher than the highest in the world. Yom Kippur is very special — Simchas Torah is special — it’s all beautiful. But how does it compare to Chanukah? How does it compare to what a person feels when you kindle light?

Okay, now, sweetest friends, in a nutshell, I’d like to share with you what our holy rabbis teach us — what is light? What does it mean? Okay, I’m sure everyone has about ten million answers. Let me tell you the Torah from the holy Ishbitzer. I just want you, really, to open your hearts.

You know, I can tell you something — something very holy and exalted, which you didn’t know before. And now you know it. So, you have an added [piece of] information. Imagine a person didn’t know that there is one G d. I meet this person. I explain to them, and I prove to them — there is one G d. “Oh,” they say, you know, “that’s very nice, very beautiful. Thank you very much. I didn’t know it.” Now they know.

Or I’ll tell you something. Did you think the whole world — the way it is now — that’s the way it’s supposed to be? People cheating each other, killing each other, hating each other? Let me tell you that our great prophets prophesied that tomorrow morning there’ll be peace in the world. And you’ll say, “Oh, I didn’t know that. But it sounds good.” You know? “Thank you for telling me. Where can I get that book?” “Oh, it’s a dollar twenty-five.” “So do you have any second-hand, where I can get it for seventy-five cents?”

Okay! What are they missing? What are they missing? They know the words. There’s no light behind it, right? Let me tell you what light is. Light is that which lifts you up beyond you. Beyond you. Suddenly I’m reaching somewhere, to a place [which] I didn’t even know existed.

You know, let’s put it this way. Imagine I didn’t know there was one G d, and suddenly somebody tells me, “There really is one G d!” So, gevaldt, am I reaching! Suddenly my soul expands two billion miles. Somewhere else. So, you know, sweetest friends, all the holidays, all our life is beautiful, but unless — unless there is light in it — you’re dead.

You know, I always tell my friends, What do you think is happening in cemeteries? They have a committee — a cultural committee — they’re having lectures, they have all the dead people get together, and they exchange ideas, you know? Without hurting anybody’s feelings, if someone has a problem, he goes to a psychiatrist, right? Try one in the neighborhood, right?

What are they missing? They’re dead, right? It doesn’t change them. Doesn’t lift them up to a higher place. You know what dead is? Can’t move, right? Always the same. I’m the same when I say hello; I’m the same when I say good-bye. I’m the same when I eat an apple, and I’m the same when I kiss my child. Always the same.

You know what light is, sweetest friends? This is so precious. But now, one more step, friends. Light can only burn on pure oil. You know, the Maccabees came back, and they wanted to kindle G d’s light, and they realized, we need at least one drop of pure oil. Defiled oil — impure oil — doesn’t produce light. Yeah, at the window maybe, but not in the heart, not in the soul.

I’m sure you share my feelings. Sometimes you hear a word from somebody, the same word you heard from a holy man yesterday — nothing happens to you. And the next time you hear the word you heard from somebody unholy — somebody holy — someone who’s operating on pure oil — and suddenly a great light is shining inside of you. Such a deep light. So precious, so holy.

And you know, sweetest friends, do you know where we can reach? Does any of us know how high and how deep we can reach? Infinite, right? We’re [made] in G d’s image. You know what’s so special about the light of Chanukah? The Talmud says that basically G d’s light does not get that close to this world. There must be at least a little in-between of ten inches. {Ten tefachim (handbreadths). Shlomo is choosing not to get too technical here.} Chanukah, it goes all the way to the ground. You know what that means? All year long, without light, I understand “holy” is cute, sweet, beautiful, but let’s face it — it doesn’t reach down to this world, right? Really, let’s face it. Do you really think you can sell herring and be holy? Do you really think you can be a stockbroker and be honest? Let’s face it. You can’t. You know why you can’t? Cuz you have no light. If you have light? The lowest place.

And now, sweetest friends, listen to me. All of us know a lot of holy words. You know why it doesn’t change us? Because we have this little in-between. I say, “You know, don’t get too deep into me. Leave me a little space where I keep my unholy stuff. You know, really. Don’t overdo it.” So I never get anyplace. I never change. Chanukah is that moment when G d’s light reaches me in the lowest, lowest places in the world. The lowest.

And you know, friends, what’s so beautiful about it? And here I want you to open your hearts. Do you think G d wants you to be somebody else? Is there really such a thing as “low”? There is no such a thing. It is only because I had no light I thought there was high and there was low. Until the light of Chanukah reached me, I understood when I’m standing in the synagogue, I’m praying, I’m high. When I sell herring, I’m low. [On] Chanukah, I realize — what’s wrong with selling herring? It’s G d’s world, right? I can be the highest when I’m selling herring. Do you think I’m only close to G d when I yell “HaShem Echad!” G d is one? A person can come into my store and buy herring, and I give him change from a dollar, but the way I give it that person — that person knows there is one G d.

So Chanukah is so good — so good. It’s just the highest there is. And just one more thing, sweetest friends. You know what’s wrong with the world? Any person who has a little bit light in his heart, just a little bit light — they always close the doors on you. I say, “Listen, face it. You are not as high as I am. I have a lot of light, but you can stay outside,” right? “I mean, who are you? I mean, really. Let’s face it. I cannot tell you all the great mysteries of the world, of the Bible — I mean, really, who do you think you are? You have no titles — “ And whatever it is.

The holiness of Chanukah is that I’m putting the light right at the door of my house. Because if I have light, I’m just waiting for you, please, please come to my house.

One more thing, friends. G d’s light burns forever. G d’s light burns forever. Don’t worry. Sometimes we think the world is going to the dogs, ‘cause tomorrow morning nothing will be left. We don’t have to worry. It looks to you like the oil is just enough for one night. What am I going to do the rest of the week? You don’t have to worry. G d’s light is burning forever! If you have enough courage to kindle G d’s light for one night, I swear to you it’ll last forever. It’ll last forever.

Someone comes to you and he says, “Would you like to keep Shabbos?” You’ll say, “Yeh, this Shabbos it so happens that I have time. But, really, next Shabbos, I can’t.” You just keep one Shabbos. But that Shabbos will burn inside of you until you keep the next Shabbos.

Someone will tell you, you know, “It’s very bad to get angry.” So, you say, “Today I just came back from my vacation in the Bahamas, and I am relaxed. Today I can manage not to get angry, but really, tomorrow, when I’m back in my business, don’t tell me stories about ‘not getting angry’ — you cannot. You gotta yell at your secretary — you gotta yell at everyone; otherwise nothing is ever done.” According to them, the way G d created the word, first He yelled — and then he created the world. ‘Cause otherwise nothing would have been done, right?

So you tell me you can just not be angry for one day. Okay. You start. You start for one day, for one minute, and G d says, I promise you — Can I ask you why you’re laughing? [Individual answers:] “I was thinking to myself, when you said you were high selling fish, it’s the idea that you did something that you liked…so much and it made you enjoy life so much. I was talking to a dealer in Puerto Rico — “ [Shlomo interjects:] “He’s saying good stuff, this man. Okay, let’s hear it.” [Man resumes speaking:] “I was talking to a dealer in Puerto Rico, and I said, ‘What a job you have — you get to deal blackjack all day long.’ He said, ‘Not me. If you do it for a living it’s just work.’ And you were describing just how high you were, just on life.” [Shlomo says:] “How about becoming partners with me, brother?” [Man responds:] “I didn’t hear.” [Shlomo repeats himself:] “I said, how about becoming partners with me and selling herring?” [Man replies:] “Not a bad idea.”

[Shlomo strums his guitar and launches into another song.]

Temple Beth Ami in Santa Rosa, 23 Kislev, 5741 / November 30, 1980

Recorded by Reuven Goldfarb, and subsequently transcribed by him on the 29th anniversary of the event, in honor of Juliet Lowenthal, z”l, his wife Yehudit’s mother, and Eliana Devorah, his granddaughter. The two honorees share the same Hebrew birthday, 23 Kislev, the day this recording was made, though they were born 95 years apart. Eliana’s Daddy, Yeshayah Simcha, was then 2 ½ years old, and quite vocally present. Her uncle Elishama Hesed was also present, in utero. Thanks are, of course, due to Jerry and Leah Strauss, who organized Shlomo’s visit to Santa Rosa.

Categories: Chanukah, Kislew, Tevet
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