Scroll of Esther and Hanukkah

It is a positive mitzvah ordained by the Rabbis to read the Megillah at the appointed time. It is well-known that this was ordained by the Prophets. Everyone is obligated in this reading: men, women, converts, and freed slaves. Children should also be trained to read it. Even the priests should neglect their service in the Temple and come to hear the reading of the Megillah. Similarly, Torah study should be neglected to hear the reading of the Megillah. Surely, this applies to the other mitzvot of the Torah: the observance of all of them is superseded by the reading of the Megillah. There is nothing that takes priority over the reading of the Megillah except the burial of a meit mitzvah - a corpse that has no one to take care of it. A person who encounters such a corpse should bury it and then read the Megillah.

One can fulfill one's obligation by reading or by listening to another person's reading, provided one listens to a person who is obligated to hear the reading. For this reason, if the reader was a minor or mentally incompetent, one who hears his reading does not fulfill his obligation.

It is a mitzvah to read the entire Megillah and to read it both at night and during the day. The entire night is an appropriate time for the night reading, and the entire day is appropriate for the day reading. Before the reading at night, one should recite three blessings. They are: Blessed are You, G-d, our Lord, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to read the Megillah. Blessed are You, G-d, our Lord, King of the universe, who wrought miracles for our ancestors in previous days at this season. Blessed are You, G-d, our Lord, King of the universe, who has granted us life, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this occasion. During the day, one should not recite the final blessing. In places where it is customary to recite a blessing after the reading, the following blessing should be recited: Blessed are You, G-d, our Lord, King of the universe, who wages our battles and executes judgment on our behalf, who avenges the vengeance wrought against us, who exacts retribution from our enemies on our behalf, and who acquits justly all our mortal enemies. Blessed are You, G-d, the Almighty, who exacts payment on behalf of His nation Israel from all their oppressors, the G-d of salvation.

What is the appropriate time for the Megillah to be read? The Sages ordained many different times for its reading, as implied by Esther 9:31: "To confirm these days of Purim in their appointed times." The following are the days on which the Megillah is read: Every city, whether in Eretz Yisrael or in the diaspora, that was surrounded by a wall at the time of Joshua bin Nun should read the Megillah on the fifteenth of Adar. This applies even when a wall does not surround the city at present. Such a city is called a כרך. Every city that was not surrounded by a wall at the time of Joshua bin Nun should read the Megillah on the fourteenth of Adar. This applies even when there is a wall surrounding the city at present. Such a city is called an עיר.

In the capital of Shushan, the Megillah is read on the fifteenth of Adar although it was not surrounded by a wall at the time of Joshua bin Nun, because the miracle occurred within it and at that time, the Jews celebrated on that day, as Esther 9:18 states, "And they rested on the fifteenth." Why was the matter made dependent on the time of Joshua bin Nun? To give honor to the cities of Eretz Yisrael that were in ruin at the time of the Purim miracle. Although they are in ruin at present, this would allow them to read the Megillah on the fifteenth as do the inhabitants of Shushan, since they were surrounded by a wall at the time of Joshua. Thus the commemoration of the miracle would include a remembrance of Eretz Yisrael.

The Sages ordained that the inhabitants of the villages who gather in the synagogues only on Mondays and Thursdays could read the Megillah earlier, on the day when they gather in the synagogues. What is implied? If the fourteenth of Adar falls on either Monday or Thursday, the Megillah is read on that day. If it falls on a day other than Monday or Thursday, we read on an earlier date, on the Monday or Thursday that is closest to the fourteenth of Adar.

What is implied? If the fourteenth of Adar falls on Sunday, the Megillah is read on the previous Thursday, the eleventh of Adar. If the fourteenth falls on Tuesday, the Megillah is read earlier, on Monday, the thirteenth. If the fourteenth falls on Wednesday, the Megillah is read earlier, on Monday, the twelfth. Whenever license is granted to read the Megillah before the fourteenth, it should not be read unless ten are present.

In a village where the Jews do not gather together to read the Torah on Mondays and Thursdays, the Megillah should be read only on the fourteenth of Adar. When a city does not have ten people who have no other occupation but to attend the synagogue for communal purposes, it is considered to be a village, and the Megillah is read earlier, on the day when people gather in the synagogue. If a city lacks ten adult men, the very difficulty leads to its solution, and they are considered to be like the inhabitants of a large city and read the Megillah only on the fourteenth.

When does the above leniency - that it is possible to read the Megillah earlier, on the day people gather in the synagogue - apply? When Israel rules itself. In the present era, however, the Megillah is read only at its appropriate times, the fourteenth of Adar and the fifteenth. The inhabitants of villages and cities read on the fourteenth, and the inhabitants of walled cities read on the fifteenth.

The following rules apply when an inhabitant of an unwalled city travels to a walled city, or an inhabitant of a walled city travels to an unwalled city: If his intent was to return home for the day of the Megillah reading, but he was prevented from returning, he should read the Megillah on the day when it is read in his home. If his intent was not to return home until after the day of the Megillah reading, he should read the Megillah together with the people in the place where he is visiting. The following rule applies to all those homes adjacent to a walled city which are seen together with it: If there are not more than two thousand cubits between them, they are considered to be part of the walled city, and their inhabitants should read the Megillah on the fifteenth.

When a doubt exists and it is unknown whether a city had been surrounded by a wall at the time of Joshua bin Nun or whether it was surrounded afterwards, its inhabitants should read the Megillah on the day and the night of both the fourteenth and the fifteenth of Adar. They should recite the blessing only when reading on the fourteenth, since this is the time when the Megillah is read in most places in the world.

When the Megillah was read in the first month of Adar and, afterwards, the court proclaimed a leap year, the Megillah should be read again in the second month of Adar at its appropriate time.

The Megillah should not be read on the Sabbath. This is a decree, enacted so that one should not take it in one's hands and bring it to a person who knows how to read it, thus carrying it four cubits in the public domain. Everyone is obligated to read the Megillah, but everyone is not capable of reading it. Thus, there is the possibility for such an error to occur. For this reason, if the appropriate time for the Megillah to be read falls on the Sabbath, we read it earlier, on the day prior to the Sabbath. We discuss the laws of Purim on that Sabbath to commemorate the fact that it is Purim.

What is implied? When the fourteenth of Adar falls on the Sabbath, the inhabitants of the unwalled cities should read the Megillah earlier, on Friday. The inhabitants of the walled cities should read it at their appropriate time, on Sunday. When the fifteenth falls on the Sabbath, the inhabitants of the walled cities read the Megillah earlier, on Friday the fourteenth. The inhabitants of the unwalled cities also read on that day, for this is the appropriate time for them to read. Thus in such an instance, everyone reads on the fourteenth.

When a person reads the Megillah in improper sequence, he does not fulfill his obligation. If a person was reading, forgot a verse and read the following verse, went back and read the verse he forgot, and then read a third verse, he does not fulfill his obligation, because he read a verse in improper sequence. What should he do instead? He should begin from the second verse, the verse he forgot, and continue reading the Megillah in its proper order.

Should one encounter a congregation that has already read half of the Megillah, one should not say, "I will read the latter half together with this congregation, and then go back and read the first half," for this is reading in improper sequence. Instead, one should read the entire Megillah from beginning to end in order. When a person reads a portion and pauses and then goes back and continues reading, since he read in order, he fulfills his obligation, even though the entire Megillah could have been read while he had paused.

A person who reads the Megillah by heart does not fulfill his obligation. A person who speaks a language other than Hebrew and hears the Megillah read in Hebrew written in the holy script fulfills his obligation, although he does not understand what is being read. Similarly, if the Megillah was written in Greek, a person who hears it, even one who speaks Hebrew, fulfills his obligation although he does not understand what is being read.

If, however, it was written in Aramaic or in another language of gentile origin, one who listens to this reading fulfills his obligation only when he understands that language and only when the Megillah is written in that language. In contrast, if the Megillah was written in Hebrew and one read in Aramaic for a person who understood that tongue, one does not fulfill one's obligation, for one is reading by heart. And since the reader cannot fulfill his obligation, the person hearing it read by him also cannot.

A person who was reading the Megillah without the desired intent does not fulfill his obligation. What is implied? That he was writing a Megillah, explaining it, or checking it: If he had the intent to fulfill his obligation with this reading, his obligation is fulfilled. If he did not have this intent, he did not fulfill his obligation. Should one read while dozing off, he fulfills his obligation, since he is not sound asleep.

When does the statement that a person can fulfill his obligation by reading when writing a Megillah apply? When he intends to fulfill his obligation to read it by reading from the scroll which he is copying. If, however, he intends to fulfill his obligation by reading the scroll that he is writing at present, he does not fulfill his obligation, for one can fulfill one's obligation only by reading from a scroll that was completely written at the time of the reading.

A person who errs while reading the Megillah and reads in an inexact manner fulfills his obligation, for we are not required to read in a precise manner. A person fulfills his obligation whether he reads it standing or sitting. This applies even when reading for a congregation. Nevertheless, at the outset, out of respect for the congregation, one should not read for the congregation while sitting. If two, and even if ten, people read the Megillah in unison, both the readers and those who listen to the readers fulfill their obligation. An adult and a child can read the Megillah together, even for the community.

We should not read the Megillah for a congregation from a scroll that contains the other Sacred Writings. Should one read for the congregation from such a scroll, no one fulfills their obligation, unless the portions of parchment on which it is written are larger or smaller than those of the remainder for the scroll, so that it will be distinct. An individual reading for himself, by contrast, may read from such a scroll even though the portion containing the Megillah is not larger or smaller than the remainder of the scroll, and thus fulfill his obligation.

A Megillah may be written only with ink on g'vil or on k'laf, like a Torah scroll. If it was written with gall-nut juice or vitriol it is acceptable, but if it was written with other tints it is not acceptable. It must be written on ruled parchment like a Torah scroll. The parchment need not, however, be processed with the intent that it be used for the mitzvah. If it was written on paper or on an animal hide that was not processed or if it was written by a gentile or by a non-believer, it is not acceptable.

The following rules apply when the letters of a Megillah are rubbed out or torn: If a trace of the letters is discernible, the scroll is acceptable, even if most of the letters have been rubbed out. If no trace of the letters is discernible, the scroll is acceptable if the majority of its letters are intact. If not, it is not acceptable. If the scribe left out certain letters or verses and the reader reads them by heart, he fulfills his obligation.

A Megillah must be sewn together - i.e., all the parchments on which it is written must be joined as a single scroll. It should be sewn only with animal sinews, as a Torah scroll is. If it is sewn with other thread, it is unacceptable. It is not necessary, however, to sew the entire length of the parchment with animal sinews, as a Torah scroll is sewn. As long as one sews three stitches at one end of the parchment, three stitches in the middle, and three stitches at the other end, it is acceptable. This leniency is taken, because the Megillah is referred to as an "epistle" Esther 9:29.

The reader should read the names of Haman's ten sons and the word which follows, asseret Esther 9:7-10, in one breath, to show the entire people that they were all hung and slain together. It is a universally accepted Jewish custom that as the reader of the Megillah reads, he spreads the text out as an epistle (to show the miracle). When he concludes, he goes back, rolls up the entire text, and recites the concluding blessing.

On these two days, the fourteenth and the fifteenth of Adar, it is forbidden to eulogize and to fast. This prohibition applies to all people in all places, to the inhabitants of the walled cities who celebrate only the fifteenth and to the inhabitants of the unwalled cities who celebrate only the fourteenth. In a leap year, it is forbidden to eulogize and to fast on these two dates in the first Adar as well as in the second Adar. When the inhabitants of the villages read the Megillah earlier, on the Monday or Thursday before Purim, they are permitted to eulogize and to fast on the day they read the Megillah, and are forbidden to eulogize and to fast on these two dates, even though they do not read the Megillah on them.

It is a mitzvah for the inhabitants of the villages and unwalled cities to consider the fourteenth of Adar - and for the inhabitants of the walled cities to consider the fifteenth of Adar - as a day of happiness and festivity, when portions of food are sent to one's friends and presents are given to the poor. It is permitted to work on these days. It is not, however, proper to do so. Our Sages declared, "Whoever works on Purim will never see a sign of blessing." Should the inhabitants of the villages read the Megillah earlier, on a Monday or a Thursday, and give monetary gifts to the poor on the day on which they read, they fulfill their obligation. The rejoicing and festivities of the Purim holiday, by contrast, should be held only on the day of the fourteenth. If they are held earlier, the participants do not fulfill their obligation. A person who conducts the Purim feast at night does not fulfill his obligation.

What is the nature of our obligation for this feast? A person should eat meat and prepare as attractive a feast as his means permit. He should drink wine until he becomes intoxicated and falls asleep in a stupor. Similarly, a person is obligated to send two portions of meat, two other cooked dishes, or two other foods to a friend, as implied by Esther 9:22, "sending portions of food one to another" - i.e., two portions to one friend. Whoever sends portions to many friends is praiseworthy. If one does not have the means to send presents of food to a friend, one should exchange one's meal with him, each one sending the other what they had prepared for the Purim feast and in this way fulfill the mitzvah of sending presents of food to one's friends.

And one is obligated to distribute gifts to the poor on Purim. To no less than two poor individuals, one gives to each a gift, or coins, or a cooked dish, or a kind of food. As it is said: "And presents to the poor." (Esther 9:22) -- [This implies] two gifts to two poor individuals. We should not be discriminating in selecting the recipients of these Purim gifts. Rather, one should give to anyone who reaches out their hand. Money given to be distributed on Purim should not be used for other charitable purposes.

It is preferable for a person to be more liberal with his donations to the poor than to be lavish in his preparation of the Purim feast or in sending portions to his friends. For there is no greater and more splendid happiness than to gladden the hearts of the poor, the orphans, the widows, and the converts. One who brings happiness to the hearts of these unfortunate individuals resembles the Divine Presence, which Isaiah 57:15 describes as having the tendency "to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive those with broken hearts."

All the books of the Prophets and all the Holy Writings will be nullified in the Messianic era, with the exception of the Book of Esther. It will continue to exist, as will the five books of the Torah and the halachot of the Oral Law, which will never be nullified. Although all memories of the difficulties endured by our people will be nullified, as Isaiah 65:16 states: "For the former difficulties will be forgotten and for they will be hidden from My eye," the celebration of the days of Purim will not be nullified, as Esther 9:28 states: "And these days of Purim will not pass from among the Jews, nor will their remembrance cease from their seed."

In [the era of] the Second Temple, the Greek kingdom issued decrees against the Jewish people, [attempting to] nullify their faith and refusing to allow them to observe the Torah and its commandments. They extended their hands against their property and their daughters; they entered the Sanctuary, wrought havoc within, and made the sacraments impure. The Jews suffered great difficulties from them, for they oppressed them greatly until the G-d of our ancestors had mercy upon them, delivered them from their hand, and saved them. The sons of the Hasmoneans, the High Priests, overcame [them], slew them, and saved the Jews from their hand. They appointed a king from the priests, and sovereignty returned to Israel for more than 200 years, until the destruction of the Second Temple.

When the Jews overcame their enemies and destroyed them, they entered the Sanctuary; this was on the twenty-fifth of Kislev. They could not find any pure oil in the Sanctuary, with the exception of a single cruse. It contained enough oil to burn for merely one day. They lit the arrangement of candles from it for eight days until they could crush olives and produce pure oil.

Accordingly, the Sages of that generation ordained that these eight days, which begin from the twenty-fifth of Kislev, should be commemorated to be days of happiness and praise [of G-d]. Candles should be lit in the evening at the entrance to the houses on each and every one of these eight nights to publicize and reveal the miracle. These days are called Chanukah. It is forbidden to eulogize and fast on them, as on the days of Purim. Lighting the candles on these days is a Rabbinic mitzvah, like the reading of the Megillah.

Whoever is obligated to read the Megillah is also obligated to kindle the Chanukah lamp. On the first night, a person lighting [the lamp] recites three blessings. They are: Blessed are You, G-d, our Lord, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us to light the Chanukah lamp. "...who wrought miracles for our ancestors...." "...who has granted us life, sustained us...." When a person who did not recite a blessing [on his own Chanukah lamp] sees a lamp, he should recite the latter two blessings. On subsequent nights, a person who kindles the lamp should recite two blessings and one who sees a lamp should recite one, for the blessing Shehecheyanu is recited only on the first night.

On each and every one of these eight days, the entire Hallel is recited. Before [its recitation], one should recite the blessing "...who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to complete the Hallel." This applies whether the recitation is individual or communal. Even though the reading of the Hallel is a mitzvah ordained by the Sages, one may recite the blessing [stating] "who sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us," as one recites a blessing for the reading of the Megillah and for the erection of an eruv. A blessing should be recited for every definite obligation established by our Sages. In contrast, if an obligation was established by the Sages because of a doubt - e.g., tithing d'mai, - a blessing is not recited. [This principle invites a question:] Why is a blessing recited over the second day of a festival; its observance was ordained only because of doubt? [This was ordained] lest it be treated with disdain.

It is not the recitation of Hallel on Chanukah alone that is a Rabbinic ordinance, but rather, at all times - i.e., on all the days that the complete Hallel is recited, [the obligation to do so] is a Rabbinic ordinance. There are eighteen days during the year when it is a mitzvah to recite the entire Hallel. They are: the eight days of Sukkot, the eight days of Chanukah, the first day of Pesach, and the holiday of Shavuot. Hallel is not recited on Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, since they are days of repentance, awe, and fear, and are not days of extra celebration. The [Sages] did not ordain the recitation of Hallel on Purim, because the reading of the Megillah [serves the purpose of Hallel].

In places where the festivals are celebrated for two days, Hallel is recited on 21 days: On the nine days of Sukkot, the eight days of Chanukah, the [first] two days of Pesach, and the two days of Shavuot. [In contrast,] the recitation of Hallel on Rosh Chodesh is a custom and not a mitzvah. It is observed [only] communally. [To emphasize that it is a custom,] passages are skipped when it is read. A blessing should not be recited over [this reading], since a blessing is not recited over a custom. A person [praying] alone should not recite [the Hallel] at all [on Rosh Chodesh]. If, however, he began its recitation, he should complete it, skipping the passages the community would skip as he reads it. Similarly, on the other days of Pesach, [the Hallel] is read while skipping passages.

And how should one skip? One recites from the beginning of the Hallel until the phrase chalamish lema'y'no mayim. One then skips and [begins] reciting A-donai z'charanu y'varech, [continuing] until Halleluyah. One then skips and [begins] reciting Mah ashiv lA-donai, [continuing] until Halleluyah. Afterwards, one skips and [begins] reciting Min hametzar karati Yah, [continuing] until the conclusion of the Hallel. This is the common custom. Others skip [passages] according to a different pattern.

It is appropriate to recite Hallel throughout the entire day. A person who reads Hallel in improper sequence does not fulfill his obligation. If a person reads and pauses, reads and pauses, even if he pauses for a time long enough to complete the entire [Hallel], he fulfills his obligation. On the days when the entire Hallel is recited, one may make an interruption between chapters. Within a [single] chapter, however, one may not make an interruption. On the days when Hallel is read while skipping portions, one may make an interruption even within a chapter.

On all the days when the complete Hallel is recited, a blessing should be recited before Hallel. In places where it is customary to recite a blessing afterwards, a blessing should be recited [on these days]. What blessing is recited? G-d our Lord, all Your works will praise You, and the righteous and Your pious ones, who carry out Your will, and Your nation, the House of Israel, will joyously praise Your name. For it is good to praise You, O G-d, and it is is pleasant to sing to Your name. From the [spiritual] worlds to the [physical] world, You are the Almighty. Blessed are You, G-d, the King who is extolled and praised, who is glorified, living and enduring. May He reign at all times and for eternity.

There are places which follow the custom of repeating each verse from od'cha ki anitani (Psalms 118:21 until the conclusion of the Hallel. Each verse is read a second time. In places where this repetition is customary, the verses should be repeated. In places where it it is customary not to repeat, they should not be repeated.

This is the custom according to which Hallel was recited in the days of the early Sages: After reciting the blessing, an adult begins reciting the Hallel and says, Halleluyah. All the people respond Halleluyah. He then reads, Hallelu avdei A-donai, and all the people respond, Halleluyah. He then reads, Hallelu et shem A-donai and all the people respond, Halleluyah. He then reads, Yehi shem A-donai mevorach me'atah v'ad olam, and all the people respond, Halleluyah. Similarly, after every bar [of the Hallel, the people respond Halleluyah]. Thus, they respond Halleluyah 123 times throughout the entire Hallel; a sign to remember this: the years of Aaron's life.

[It is] also [customary that] when the reader reaches the beginning of each and every chapter, the people repeat the line he recited. What is implied? When he recites the line B'tzeit Yisrael miMitzrayim, the people repeat the line B'tzeit Yisrael miMitzrayim. The reader then recites beit Yaakov me'am lo'ez and all the people respond, Halleluyah. [They continue to respond Halleluyah after each bar] until the reader reads, Ahavti ki yishma A-donai et koli tachanunai, to which the people all respond, Ahavti ki yishma A-donai.... Similarly, when the reader reads Hallelu et A-donai kol goyim, the people all respond, Hallelu et A-donai kol goyim.

The reader should read, Anna A-donai hoshi'ah na, and [the people] should repeat Anna A-donai hoshi'ah na, although it is not the beginning of a chapter. He [then] reads Anna A-donai hatzlichah na, and they repeat Anna A-donai hatzlichah na. He reads Baruch haba... and they respond Baruch haba.... If the person reading the Hallel was a minor, a slave, or a woman, [the people] should repeat the entire Hallel after them word by word. The above represents the custom followed in the early ages and it is fitting to adhere to it. At present, however, I have seen different customs in all places with regard to the reading of [the Hallel] and the responses of the people, not one of them resembling another.

How many candles should one light on Chanukah? The mitzvah is that a single candle should be lit in each and every house, regardless of whether there are many members of the household, or merely one person [lives] there. A person who performs the mitzvah in a beautiful and conscientious manner should light candles for every member of the household, whether male or female. A person who is even more conscientious in his performance of the mitzvah than this and observes the mitzvah in the most desirable manner should light candles for every member of his household, a candle for each individual, whether male or female, on the first night. On each subsequent night, he should add a candle [for each of the members of the household].

What does the above imply? When there are ten members of a household, on the first night one lights ten candles, on the second night - twenty, on the third night - thirty, until on the eighth night, one lights eighty candles.

It is common custom in all of our cities in Spain that a single candle is lit for all the members of the household on the first night. We proceed to add a new candle on each and every night, until on the eighth night eight candles are lit. [This practice is followed] regardless of whether there are many members of the household or only one man [is lighting candles].

When a candleholder has two openings, it can be counted for two individuals. [The following rules apply when] one fills a bowl with oil and surrounds it with wicks: If one covers it with a utensil, each of the wicks is considered to be a separate candle. If one does not cover it with a utensil, it is considered to be a large fire, and is not counted even as a single candle.

The Chanukah candles should not be kindled before sunset. Instead, [they should be kindled] at sunset. One should not light later or earlier. Should one forget, or even if one purposely did not light at sunset, one may light afterwards until there are no longer any passersby in the marketplace. How long a duration of time is this? Approximately half an hour or slightly more than that. Should this time pass, one should not kindle the lights. One should place enough oil in the lamp so that it will continue burning until there are no longer any passersby in the marketplace. If one lit it and it became extinguished, one need not light it a second time. If it remained burning until there are no longer passersby in the marketplace, one may extinguish it or remove it if one desires.

All oils and all wicks are acceptable for use in the Chanukah lamps, even those oils that are not drawn after the wick and even those wicks that do not hold the light well. Even on the Sabbath nights of Chanukah, it is permitted to light with oils and wicks that are forbidden to be used for the Sabbath lights. [The reason for this leniency is that] it is forbidden to use the Chanukah candles [for one's own purposes] whether on the Sabbath or on a weekday. It is even forbidden to use their light to inspect or count coins.

It is a mitzvah to place the Chanukah lamp at the outside of the entrance to one's home, within the handbreadth that is closest to the doorway on the left side as one enters the home, so that the mezuzah will be on the right side and the Chanukah lamp on the left side. When a person lives in a second storey apartment, he should place [the Chanukah lamp] in a window close to the public domain. If [a person] places a Chanukah lamp more than twenty cubits [above the ground], his actions are of no consequence, because [the lamp] does not attract attention [at that height].

In a time of danger, a person may place a Chanukah lamp inside his house; even if he lit it on his table, it is sufficient. [Therefore,] another lamp must be burning in the house to provide light for one's [mundane] activities. If a fire is burning in the house, an additional candle is not necessary. For a prestigious person who does not normally use the light of a fire, an additional candle is required.

A Chanukah lamp that was kindled by a deaf-mute, a mentally incapable person, a minor, or a gentile is of no consequence. It must be kindled by a person who is obligated to light it. Should the [Chanukah lamp] be kindled inside and then taken and placed at the entrance of one's home while it is still burning, it is of no consequence. One must light it in its place. If one held a candle and stood in one place, it is of no consequence, since an observer will say, "He is standing there for his own purposes." When a lamp was burning through the entire [Sabbath] day, one may extinguish the light, recite the blessings [for the mitzvah], and relight the lamp. Kindling the lamp fulfills the mitzvah and not placing it down. It is permissible to light one Chanukah candle from another Chanukah candle.

When a courtyard has two entrances from two different directions, it requires two [Chanukah] lamps. [Were one to light at only one entrance,] the passersby from the other direction might say, "A Chanukah light had not been placed down." If, however, [two entrances to a courtyard] are located on the same side, [it is sufficient] to light at only one of them.

A guest [at another person's home, whose family] kindles [the Chanukah lights] for him at his home need not kindle [Chanukah lights] in the home where he is [temporarily] lodging. If, however, he has no home in which [Chanukah lights] are being kindled, he is required to light in the place where he is lodging. He should share in the oil [used by the owner of his lodgings]. If he is staying in a private dwelling, he is required to light in the place where he is staying, even though [Chanukah lights] are being kindled for him at home, because [of the impression created in the minds] of the passersby.

The mitzvah of [kindling] the candle for Chanukkah is very much a beloved mitzvah, and a person must be very careful with it in order to inform [others of] the miracle and to add to the praise of G-d and gratitude to G-d for all of the miracles that G-d did for us. Even if one does not have anything to eat outside of tzedakah [charity], [such] a [poor] person lends or sells their clothing and[, using that money,] acquires oil and candles and kindles [the flames].

When a person has only a single prutah and he [is required to fulfill both the mitzvot of] sanctifying the [Sabbath] day and lighting the Chanukah lamp, he should give precedence to purchasing oil to kindle the Chanukah lamp over [purchasing] wine to recite kiddush. Since both [of these mitzvot] are Rabbinic in origin, it is preferable to give precedence to the kindling of the Chanukah lamp, for it commemorates the miracle.

If [a person has the opportunity to fulfill only one of two mitzvot,] lighting a lamp for one's home [i.e., Sabbath candles] or lighting a Chanukah lamp - or, alternatively, lighting a lamp for one's home or reciting kiddush - the lamp for one's home receives priority, since it generates peace within the home. [Peace is of primary importance, as reflected by the mitzvah requiring] G-d's name to be blotted out to create peace between a husband and his wife. Peace is great, for the entire Torah was given to bring about peace within the world, as [Proverbs 3:17] states: "Its ways are pleasant ways and all its paths are peace." Blessed be the Merciful One who grants assistance. This concludes the third book.