ok, I am in 9th grade, im learning about bava basra i think and we are learning about chanuka, that bet hillel says we start from 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 candels and bet shami says just the opposite, i want to know, wut reason do both bet shamai and bet hillel have for there opinions?
We summed up the Gemara's discussion of Beis Hillel and Beis Shamai and their reasoning as follows, in our review material for Shabbos 21b. I will also include a short Insight on the topic from our Insights section. Hope this is helpful to you!
Best wishes,
M. KORNFELD
Dafyomi Advancement Forum
Beis Shamai and Beis Hillel argue whether the Mehadrin Min ha'Mehadrin start with one and add one light each night, or whether they begin with eight and deduct one each night. There are two ways of explaining the reasoning behind their argument:
1. Beis Shamai goes lights a number of candles corresponding to the incoming days (eight days to go, seven days to go, six, five etc.); whereas Beis Hillel lights a number of candles corresponding to the outgoing days (the first day, the second day, etc.).
2. Beis Shamai compares the Chanukah lights to the bull sacrifices of Sukos in the Beis ha'Mikdash. Each day of Sukos, one less bull was sacrificed. Beis Hillel on the other hand, apply the principle 'Ma'alin ba'Kodesh, ve'Lo Moridin' ("We proceed from a lower level of sanctity to a higher level, and not the reverse").
CHANUKAH AND SUKKOS
QUESTION: The Gemara says that the reason for Beis Shamai's opinion that one lights Chanukah candles in regressive order (eight on the first night, seven on the second night, and so on), is because the number of bulls that were brought as a Korban Musaf each day of Sukos were also brought in descending numbers (thirteen the first day, twelve the second day, and so on). What do the lights of Chanukah have to do with the sacrifices of Sukkos?
ANSWERS:
(a) REBBI YEHONASAN M'LUNIL explains that on Chanukah, the Chashmonaim felt that the miracle of their triumph was greater than the miracle of Pesach. On Pesach, the physical existence of the Jews was threatened, but during the time of Chanukah, the spiritual existence of the Jews was threatened as well, because the Greeks wanted to obliterate all traces of the Jewish religion. Because of this, it was decided to make the holiday of Chanukah longer that that of Pesach. They therefore made it as long as the longest holiday in the Torah, which is Sukkos (8 days).
(b) According to "SEFER CHASHMONAIM" (one of the "Apocrypha," or non-sacred Kesuvim), the Chashmonaim were not able to observe Sukos properly because of the war. Therefore, they made the Chanukah festival eight days long to make up for the lost days of Sukos.