The Yahrzeit Candle

.      Parshas Hashavua      בהעלתך את הנרות            נר ה' נשמת אדם משלי כ' כ"ז The widespread מנהג of lighting a candle on the day of a Yahrzeit is not mentioned anywhere in ש"ס, רמב"ם,טור,שו"ע*  The first to mention נר נשמה is likely the. כל בו הלכת יום כיפורים. The כל בו writes to light a נר for deceased parents, on ערב יו"כ so they will have a כפרה. The parents have a כפרה, because of ברא מזכה אבא, Mitzvohs a child does benefit the deceased parents. The טור writes (630) There is a special ענין to have many  candles in Shul on Yom Kippur. The need for lots of candles was because some people spend the whole night & day in Shul. Others spend there from morning until the evening.  It is therefore quite plausible that the חכמים encouraged people to donate נר למאור, and to motivate them, they associated this practice with the segulah of kapparah for the מתים. Over time, the pasuk "נר ה' נשמת אדם" became linked to what we now call the Yahrzeit candle. The Chasam Sofer (Shu"t #6:27) writes that he is unaware of a so-called מצוה רבה (sarcastic) to light Yahrzeit candles at home or even at the קבר.  According to the Chasam Sofer, the only meaningful purpose of such a candle is to serve a practical mitzvah, such as providing light in the shul so that people can daven and learn. *In ברכות נ"ג ע:א &  כתובות ק"ג ע"א is not referring to Yahzeit candles

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