Making Soul Candles: An Ashkenazi Jewish Ancestral Folk Tradition

When our cemeteries are far away or gone.

Elul 5783

Creating נשמה ליכט * Neshome Likht, or “soul candles'', is a sacred Ashkenazi Eastern European Jewish practice often done during the High Holy Day season. We create candles with wicks that we infuse with rituals that connect us to our beloved living and dead, and light them on the eve of Yom Kippur. You are invited to sing traditional tkhines, spontaneous prayers create/d by women, trans, and gender-non-conforming people, and you can make candles from scratch or with sheets of wax! This can be done alone or with a group.

In the traditional way of soul candles, all graves in the cemetery were included within the bounds of the cemetery, as wicks were laid around the circumference of the area. This included the people who had unmarked graves– poor, disabled, and marginalized members of the community. In some ways, these beloveds were claimed as part of the community more so as ancestors than they were while they were living. <Let's keep working to flip this in every way>

If our cemeteries are far away or gone– if they were destroyed by war or borders or fascism. If the bones of our ancestors are in mass graves or unmarked or crushed or burned or disturbed.  – we adapt this practice to continue it forward. We find or create objects that remind us of them. We weave stories, names, drawings into our journals to lay wicks onto. We create a bridge to them and their spirits. We bring our living relatives– chosen and familial, into this practice as well.

We are still here.

We adapt and surthrive.

Our rituals expand and take new shapes, and are still here.

Materials: things to have on hand that connect you to the beloved dead

  1. Journal and pen (paper and pens) to doodle or write names
  2. Sacred objects from chosen ancestors or familial ancestors
  3. Photographs or drawings of friends, chosen family, relatives, ancestors

Use this resource as a companion to your practice.

Candle-making materials:

Balls of pre-dipped wick

Scissors

WAX:

You can make candles the old-fashioned way, OR use pre-made wax sheets.

Wax Sheets

-OR-

5 lbs beeswax

Hot plate

Pot of boiling water

Tin can for melting wax

Cups of cold water to dip candles in for hardening wax

Dye (optional)

Suggested Outline For a Group Ritual. (1.5 HRS)

Please adapt and co-create/ re-imagine accordingly

OPENING

  • Gather, sing nigun

(15 min) TEACHING/LEARNING ABOUT THE PRACTICE

  • We’re adapting a folk custom. To learn more about this traditional Ashkenazi folk tradition, please check out this website.
  • Connecting to chosen ancestors and/or familial ancestors
  • Go around and share about sacred objects (or what you will create) aloud

 (25 min) MEASURING PRACTICE

  • Learn Tkhine for measuring
  • Folks go off to be alone with objects. Write or draw or think about intention. List names.
  • Sings nigun/tkhine to gather folks back
  • Place objects in center
  • Each person takes the wick ball and makes a circle around the center objects. Creates circle with wick as people sing, making a communal web of connection centering the objects in the middle, and hands are holding a piece of wick.  All objects are included, just as traditionally, all graves in the cemetery were included in the measuring/laying of wick.
  • (Alternatively, hand each person a cut of the wick and invite them to measure/lay the wick upon their own objects.)
  • Cut wick into sections for candles

(> 20 min) CANDLE MAKING

  • People take turns making candles, saying tkhines prayers as they dip or use wax sheets. Prayerful quiet reflective space

(10 min) CLOSING

  • Sharing: what did this practice feel like in your body?