At Former Site Of Terror, Menorah Lights Are Kindled
(lubavitch.com) Five flames danced in defiance Thursday evening against the Indian sky, as the Chanukah menorah was lit at the Gateway of India, Mumbai’s most famous monument.
Thursday evening’s event attracted nearly 1000 onlookers. The 85-foot majestic arch is a mere 20 minute walk from Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg’s Chabad house in the Colaba district. That Chabad House was destroyed, and its directors and visitors slaughtered, less than a month ago. It is also the assumed entrance point from which the terrorists entered the country. Those gathered, from Israel, the United States, and points east, were here to commemorate the miracle of Chanukah and the marvel that was the Holtzbergs.
Prior to the monumental ceremony, Rabbi Nachman and Freida Holtzberg together with Rabbi Shimon and Yehudit Rosenberg, parents of the slain couple, hosted a Chasidic gathering at the damaged Chabad house. Several of the couple’s siblings were also present to share memories and inspiration from the couple’s lives. Those gathered trooped outside as Gavriel’s father lit a 25-foot menorah before 200 onlookers.
Several hours later, Rivka’s father kindled the 16-foot menorah at the Gateway of India. It was something his son-in-law relished doing. “He lit the menorah here each year,” recalls Rabbi Yosef Kantor, Chabad’s representative to Thailand. “Gabi particularly enjoyed lighting the menorah and spreading the light.”
“Chabad is lighting the menorah to show that we are continuing strong,” asserts Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice-chairman of Merkos. “They lit it in life,” he says, “and we will persevere despite their deaths.”
Indian police and security personnel were present at the Mumbai lighting, in a city which Kantor admits, “is still not the safest place to be.” Many in the Asian Jewish community are very concerned about safety and Chabad outposts, Kantor states, “are upgrading their individual security procedures.” The Holtzberg’s many colleagues, who serve communities across the continent, are committed to “go about life as usual, and even more than usual,” in the wake of the tragedy that hit so close to home.
Chabad menorahs, of course, are no stranger to the world’s most distant and distinct locales. Representatives from Chabad-Lubavitch headquarters lit three candles at the foot of the Statue of Liberty this year; a 24-foot menorah is lit in front of Moscow’s Kremlin annually; The Eiffel Tower casts its shadow on a giant menorah in France’s capital; a 13-ton menorah is proudly lit amongst the pigeons of Trafalgar Square in London.
In total, there are more than 10,000 menorahs lit in public places each year.
-------------------------------
