Doorposts

The doorway is an area of ambiguity between the home and the street, a place where these two realms overlap and interact with each other.

Two mitzvot are connected with the doorway: the mezuzah and the Chanukah lights. The mezuzah points inward, while the Chanukah lights are oriented outward.

The mezuzah serves to safeguard the home and define it as a sanctum of holiness and Divine presence. The function of the Chanukah lights is to illuminate the street, to disseminate their message to places still untouched by the warmth and light of the Jewish home.

The mezuzah marks the doorway as the entrance to the home; the Chanukah lights exploit it as the gateway to the outside.