Thursday, November 28, 2013

Light and leave?

Hi,

May I light the menorah and leave my home immediately?

From the perspective of fire safety: Leaving lit candles in one's home, and particularly near window curtains, is dangerous. One who knows that he will need to leave his home should take special precautions, perhaps lighting anchored tea lights.

From the perspective of the mitzvah: One may leave the Chanukah candles, but this is not ideal, as seen in our emphasis on lighting in rooms where we live and function. Both in terms of seeing the light and thereby commemorating the miracles that the Chanukah candles publicize, and in terms of rejoicing in the mitzvah, one ought to remain in the room with the Chanukah candles for at least half an hour after lighting them, unless he is called away to perform a mitzvah.


(Rama Orach Chaim 677:3; Pri Chadash 677:1; Teshuvos v'Hanhagos 1:394; Yalkut Yosef Moadim: Achsanai b'Chanukah 1; Piskei Teshuvos 676:5)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

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