A frailichen lechtigen Chanukah! Chanukah is a wondrous time in many ways, yet it is often forgotten about. Boruch Hashem, in our generation many of the segulos and wonderful aspects of this time are known to a lot of people.
Rabbeinu Chaim Vital zt’l bring in Shaar HaKavanos from “קונטריס אדם אחר” (a small tract from someone else/not the Arizal) that in the first brocho from lighting the menorah when saying the Shem Hashem to be m’chaven on the name ע”ב (Hashem’s name spelled out with the letter “yud” as the vowel sound) and to weave it together with the shem E-he-ieh in the same form of permutation, and to the two of them brought together are the same gematria as the word “רגל” (leg/foot), which is the secret as to the latest time to light the menorah, עד שתכלה רגל מן השוק (until the “feet” are off the street). One thing we can learn from this piece of Shaar HaKavonos is the metzius that Chanukah is a Regel (meaning holiday) just like the others in the Torah. The B’Nei Yissoschor brings countless proofs from gematrios in the Torah, shown in the Rokeach and other old seforim, that Chanukah is m’rumaz (hinted at) in the Chumash itself.
As such, it is proper to rejoice in Chanukah just like any other holiday. Many rebbes and chassidim have the minhag to wear a bekitshe and shtreimel, if not all bigdei Shabbos, for lighting menorah. During the time the lights burn, there’s a specal segulah to ask for everything you need from Hashem even more than the rest of the year due to the power of the Ohr Ganuz that shines through during that time. As I wrote about previously, the B’Nei Yissoschor, as well as the Ari, teach us that Chanukah is in the same aspect as Rosh HaShanah. We can accomplish improvements in our parnassah, home-life, pekudas akaros (remembrance of the infertile, to have children), and all the possible yeshuos we need. Hashem should help us in all the ways we need, and that we should attain the proper madreigos in relation to the mitzvah of the Chanukah lights, and that we should merit to the avodah of the Kohen lighting the menorah in the Beis HaMikdash HaShlishi soon within our days.
Yismach Lev 