| |
| I KINDLED my eight little candles, | |
| My Chanukah-candles—and lo! | |
| Fair visions and dreams half-forgotten | |
| To me came of years long ago. | |
| |
| I musingly gazed at my candles; | 5 |
| Meseemed in their quivering flames | |
| In golden, in fiery letters | |
| I read the old glorious names, | |
| |
| The names of our heroes immortal, | |
| The noble, the brave, and the true, | 10 |
| A battle-field saw I in vision | |
| Where many were conquered by few. | |
| |
| Where trampled in dust lay the mighty, | |
| Judea’s proud Syrian foe; | |
| And Judas, the brave Maccabæus, | 15 |
| In front of his army I saw. | |
| |
| His eyes shone like bright stars of heaven, | |
| Like music rang out his strong voice: | |
| “Brave comrades, we fought and we conquered, | |
| Now let us, in God’s name, rejoice! | 20 |
| |
| “We conquered—but know, O brave comrades, | |
| No triumph is due to the sword! | |
| Remember our glorious watchword, | |
| ‘For People and Towns of the Lord!’” | |
| |
| He spoke, and from all the four corners | 25 |
| An echo repeated each word; | |
| The woods and the mountains re-echoed: | |
| “For People and Towns of the Lord!” | |
| |
| And swiftly the message spread, saying: | |
| “Judea, Judea is free, | 30 |
| Re-kindled the lamp in the Temple, | |
| Re-kindled each bosom with glee!” | |
* * * * * My Chanukah-candles soon flickered, | |
| Around me was darkness of night; | |
| But deep in my soul I felt shining | 35 |
| A heavenly-glorious light. | |
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