The Menorah, a poem by Miriam del Banco (1886)

Source Link: https://opensiddur.org/?p=41110

Date: 2021-11-30

Last Updated: 2022-06-02

Categories: Ḥanukkah

Tags: 19th century C.E., 57th century A.M., English poetry, illuminatus, menorah as orrery, the Enlightenment

Excerpt: A poem on the meaning of the menorah. . . .

Content:

Contribute a translation	Source (English)
	The Menorah
	Ⅰ.   In the temple, softly, clearly burning, Bathing all in floods of light divine, Arch and post to gilded portal turning, Doth the light of the Menorah shine.
	Ⅱ.   Seven branches, quaint and queer, it beareth, Tipped with flame and curving gracefully, And the buds and leaves and flow’rs it weareth Are like those upon the almond tree.
	Ⅲ.   Trees like this, with golden branches seven, Gold each tiny bud and leaflet frail, Children picture in their dreams of heaven, Or the wonders of some fairy tale.
	Ⅳ.   Oil as pure and clear as crystal seeming Feeds the flame so beautiful and bright. Thus do thoughts of true and noble meaning Blossom out in words of glowing light.
	Ⅴ.   Holy Lamp! Symbolic of our nation’s Earliest activity and strife, Of its struggles, of its aspirations To a purer and a better life.
	Ⅵ.   Thou dost speak of God—His revelation; For the light of knowledge, so divine, So immortal, is His emanation,— Leads to Him and from His truth doth shine.
	Ⅶ.   And as all thy branches in their twining Towards the seventh, central light, do burn. And as this itself, in splendor shining, To the Holy Shrine doth ever turn,
	Ⅷ.   As each day that swiftly passes o’er us Leads unto the day that God hath blessed, As the toil and care we see before us End, with its approach, in peace and rest,
	Ⅸ.   So should every art—each new endeavor— The result of every passing hour, Echo back, forever and forever, Praise to God—His goodness and His power!
	Ⅹ.   Burn thou brightly, light of the Menorah! Let thy gleams through every shadow shine! Cast thy loving glances on the Torah,— Gild, illuminate its truth divine!
	Ⅺ.   Light is knowledge, and to spread its glory Far as pen can reach or tongue can tell— Rays of truth from science, art, or story— Is the blessed law of Israel!

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“The Menorah” by Miriam del Banco was first published in 1886 in The Menorah (the official magazine of Bnei Brith) volume 1, p. 36-37. Del Banco probably authored this poem especially for this inaugural edition.

As the featured image for this poem, I have associated an illustration of an orrery, a mechanical model of the solar system. Although del Banco does not mention an orrery outright, I sense its resonance in the seventh stanza “And as all thy branches in their twining / Towards the seventh, central light, do burn. / And as this itself, in splendor shining, / To the Holy Shrine doth ever turn,” and in the line in the last stanza, “Arch and post to gilded portal turning.” This last stanza, asserting that “Light is knowledge” and that Truth in art, science, and the humanities is synonymous with Torah, is a powerful revisionist framing of an enlightened Judaism. –Aharon Varady

Source(s)

 

Contributor: Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)

Co-authors:

• 
  Name: Aharon N. Varady (editing/transcription)
  Bio: Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)
  Website: https://aharon.varady.net
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/aharon-varady
• 
  Name: Miriam del Banco
  Bio: Miriam del Banco (27 June 1858 - 6 November 1931) was a writer, poet, translator, and educator. She was the daughter of Rabbi Max Del Banco (1825-1864), a reform rabbi with a congregation in Evansville, Indiana at the time of his death. Johanna (née Meyer), Miriam's mother, moved to St. Louis and there Miriam began her education in its public schools, displaying remarkable poetic talent. Later she was sent to her uncle at Cape Girardeau, Missouri, where she attended the State Normal School. After graduating with honors, she rejoined her mother, who in the mean time had moved to Chicago. There, in 1885, Ms. Del Banco began teaching in the public schools, and from 1889 onward, as the assistant principal at the Von Humboldt School. Later on she served as the principal of the McClellan and Motley schools in Chicago. In 1921, at the age of 63, she earned a PhD from DePaul University. She was a frequent contributor to both the Jewish and general press, having written a large number of poems, both Jewish and secular, and often under the pseudonym, "the Pansy" (after her favorite flower).
  Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miriam_Del_Banco
  Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/miriam-del-banco

Featured Image:

Title: Orrery_by_ant_ix
Caption: Orrery (credit: ant_ix)