The Baal Shem Tov, or Besht —  the founder of Chasidism — 
met the soul of the Messiah during an ascent to heaven. 
The Besht asked him, "When will the Master come?" 
The Messiah answered, "When your wellsprings break forth to the outside!" 
(from a letter written by the Besht to his brother-in-law about one of his soul ascents) 

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A Breslov Chanukah Nigun – Uminotar Kankanim

Cantor Richard Kaplan

This nigun is just five words, taken from the fifth verse of Maoz Tzur: וּמִנּוֹתַר קַנְקַנִּים נַעֲשָׂה נֵס לַשּׁוֹשַׁנִּים "Uminotar kankanim na'asah nes lashoshanim". That's the one verse that's actually about Chanukah (the first four verses are about Messianic times, Egypt, Babylon, and the Purim story). The meaning of the words is: "And from the remaining flasks [of oil], a miracle was made for the Roses".

Shoshanim, "roses", stands for the Jewish people, as we find in the midrash on verse 2:2 of Song of Songs ("Like a rose among the thorns, so is my love among the daughters" – all of Song of Songs is interpreted in midrash as a love story between God and Israel.

The song is sung by Cantor Richard Kaplan, z"l, who passed away in the first day of Sukkot, 2021. Like the pure oil of the flask in the song, Richard shined a sweet and precious light in the world. He will be sorely missed. This track is taken from Richard Kaplan's CD, "The Kabbalah of Chanukah", which he shared with neohasid when the album first came out in 2006.

Listen to Uminotar Kankanim

"The Kabbalah of Chanukah" is an hour-long CD of Tales, Teachings, and Sacred Music for the Festival of Light with Cantor Richard Kaplan and Estelle Frankel, originally produced as a holiday special for KPFA.

Click on the image to order on Amazon

or here to listen on youtube.


The Kabbalah of Chanukah

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Design in progress © Rabbi David Mevorach Seidenberg 2006