Chanukah, a joyous celebration of family, freedom, and light, is a holiday primarily celebrated at home, beginning on the 25th day of the Hebrew month of Kislev (10 December 2020) and lasting for eight days.
We celebrate by bringing light and warmth into our homes, into our communities and into the world around us. In the Talmud, the rabbis taught that the mitzvah of Chanukah, the commandment at the heart of the observance of the holiday, is a “candle for each man and his household” (the modern Progressive understanding is that this text refers to everyone, not just men). So the actual mitzvah, or commandment, of Chanukah is to kindle the Chanukah lights at home, ideally with family and friends!
Blessings are recited when lighting the candles, which are held in a nine-branched menorah (also called a chanukiyah). In some families, members of the household, including the children, light their own Chanukah menorah. Many families use the eight-day period of Hanukkah to spend time together each night.