In the Jewish tradition, the demarcation between the Sabbath and ther other six days of the week is marked by a little ceremony called Havdallah, which in Hebrew literally means "separation". On Saturday night, one hour after dark has fully fallen, tthis special braided candle is lit which symbolizs how we are all interconnected in our lives. Special blessings are said over wine (symbolizing joy), fragrant spices (symbolizing the lingering sweetness of the passing Sabbath) and as one looks at at one's fingers silhouetted in the light of the candle (symbolizing the seperation between light and darkness). Finally, the candle is extinguished into the wine and as it sizzles out, accompanied by the singing of fun but liturgical songs, the regular work week is welcomed back. It is a lovely little ritual and kids and adults all love it.
Edited by Strad on Feb 05, 2008 at 12:46 PM GMT (Reason: Edited text)
Edited by Strad on Feb 05, 2008 at 11:17 PM GMT (Reason: Edited text)
Thanks so much, Peter, my friend! I'm delighted that you like it. I had my kids helping me set this up and cosequently I had about 5 minutes to do the whole thing so I couldn't do much more than set up the camera and take the three shots I did before they were impatient to do something else.
Fond regards,
Endre
PeterBlackwood wrote:
Great exposre and composition Endre....I like it alot
Peter
Thanks, Steve, my friend! I so appreciate your warm and supportive comments on my shots and am glad you like this. Those candles are quite readily available at any shop that is devoted to selling "Judaica". We have at least a dozen or more here in LA. I'm sure they can also be purchased online. Some of them are much more elaborate. This one is about 1 1/2 feet long but they also come in much bigger sizes, too.
All best wishes,
Endre
Steven Roberts wrote:
once again, very unique and nicely done. I love the detail of the candle not to mention "where did you find such a candle"? Nicely done
Thaks so much, Jason! As always, I'm delighted to read your kind comments on my photos. Whenever I take a shoto fo something unusual, i also enjoy putting up an explanation. Glad you liked that.
All best wishes,
Endre
Jazno wrote:
Beautiful image Endre, you've done it again!
I too appreciate the explanation, very interesting.
I really like the texture of the candle itself. Your images are always ultra-sharp. The slightly offset composition and the large flame really make this interesting. The small drip of wax leaves me anticipating its drop. Well done.
Thank you so much, Louis. I'm so glad you find it interesting and I appreciate your clear analysis of what it is you like about it.
All best wishes,
Endre
Louis Simpson wrote:
I really like the texture of the candle itself. Your images are always ultra-sharp. The slightly offset composition and the large flame really make this interesting. The small drip of wax leaves me anticipating its drop. Well done.
Thanks for the comment, Dan. I'm happy you like it. It doesn't look like this one will finish anywhere near the top in the voting but I'm always grateful to get my photos picked for the finals.
All best wishes,
Endre
Dan Olmstead wrote:
Hi Strad, thanks for sharing the background of this tradition. I had no idea! Best of luck this week in the finals.
