Chanukah lights and the Ner Tamid

So we are getting close to the end of Chanukah and preparing to experience the lights in all of their glory,all eight kindled,reflecting the Beit Hillel approach of intensifying in kedushah-sacred energy maalin bakodesh-by lighting additional lights every night,unlike the view of Beit Shammai that we light the full menorah on the first night and decrease every night to where we would only have one lone candle on the last night. One of the most endearing principles in the world of Talmud and the development of jewish law is that even if an opinion of one of the sages is not accepted as Halacha-jewish law,it is still an integral part of Torah “aylu va aylu divrei elokim chaim "Both views are the words of the living G-d”.Its more than merely acknowledging dissenting opinion out of respect,it's the opposite,it's recognizing that everyone of these opinions are indeed g-dly truths that vibrate in differing degrees of intensity throughout many different realms,the one that we accept as Halacha simply pulsates more intensely in our immediate physical realm. In keeping with that principle I would suggest we take a closer look at the opinion of Beit Shammai ,as it certainly is saying something important to us here. Beit Hillel is the hero of Chanukah for pushing for building up to more light in the present(short term).Beit Shammai on the other hand with much less glamour is thinking long term here,giving voice to a common spiritual dilemma. “What do we do when we get the “ninth night blues” ?The menorah was kindled in its entirety yesterday and the next night there is nothing! What can we do to prevent a feeling of existential emptiness in the aftermath of an uplifting spiritual experience? I hear this often from people after they return home from an inspiring trip to Israel,or after a moving high holiday experience. The Bet Shammai School of thought responds to this with some important spiritual coaching.The miracle of Chanukah must continue in us year round.The take home point of even the idea of lighting one candle on the last night, even if we don't actually do that is a confidence booster in our spiritual quest,the knowledge that even without the props and hoopla ,even when we are not all lit up, my mind remembers the steps to the sacred dance of my Neshama.This gives me the motivation to do so on the ninth and tenth night as well,when we are entirely out of the feel good Chanukah light zone. The depth of his position is the secret to leading a stable and fulfilling spiritual existence.His opinion reminds us that the lovely rhythms of daily jewish life provide us with a rich menu of one candle spiritual moments that are ours for the taking,wether its five or ten minutes in the morning wrapped in tallit or teffilin,in solitude with G-d,at peace with our lives and the world,or entering into a mindfulness space by reciting a Bracha-blessing over the food prior to eating,(and no you do not need to be orthodox to recite blessings on food,or wrap teffillin daily)or even carving out a few moments of Torah study during a busy day. So if Bet Hillel seems to be focusing on just the candles of this festival ,Bet Shammai might be looking beyond to the candles of the soul that we must keep burning year round ,the way we can also be the ner tamid (the eternal light in the temple that always remained lit!) Aylu vaylu ,We need both approaches to foster a spiritually rich,yet stable jewish experience,in order to internalize an experience of sacredness elokim ,in a manner that is truly Chaim-alive,and relevant. True we need to stock up on as many “Bet Hillel-Big ticket jewish experiences as we can,including but not limited to birthright trips to Israel, jewish overnight camps,and meaningful Jewish holiday experiences, so that we can hoard them and pull them out Bet Shammai style,on an ordinary day allowing us to be continuously nourished by “one candle-mini jewish moments” for our “years of famine” real time daily lives. With much love and Light Yossi http://www.gotjudaica.com/ProductImages/small/jeii-mnoo2.jpg