In the Tanach
(Bible), Kislev is referred to as the ninth month, as it is the
ninth month after Nisan. Although most famous for having
Chanukah within it, Kislev is also a month with significant
Biblical happenings.
The first
rainbow, observed after the Flood, was seen in Kislev. "And
God said: 'This is the sign of the covenant which I set between
Me, and yourselves, and between every living being that is with
you, unto eternal generations. I have placed my bow in the
cloud, and it shall be a sign of a covenant between Me and the
Earth.' " "This is the sign of the covenant" -
God showed Noah the bow and said to Him: "This is the sign
of which I spoke" (Bereishit 9).
Rosh Chodesh
Kislev, which refers to the transition day or days between
months, consists at times of one day, and at times of two. The
preceding month of Cheshvan sometimes consists of twenty nine
days, and sometimes of thirty days. In the former instance Rosh
Chodesh Kislev consists of one day, which is the first of Kislev;
in the latter, of two, with the first day of Rosh Chodesh
counting also as the 30th day of Cheshvan, and the second day of
Rosh Chodesh counting as the first day of Kislev.
From the days
of the Hasmoneans, as long as the Beit Din, also known as the
Sanhedrin, or Jewish Supreme Court, sanctified the month through
the testimony of witnesses, who testified as to when they had
seen the New Moon, where in the sky they had seen the New Moon,
and exactly what it looked like, messengers of the Beit Din went
out to places distant from Yerushalayim, to make known when the
new month had been sanctified.
The Beit Din
needed to do this only during months in which festivals
occurred, so that people knew on which day to observe the
festival. Therefore, when the month of Kislev was sanctified,
messengers were sent out, so that people living far from
Yerushalayim would know when Chanukah was to begin. Chanukah has
the status of a festival, although it is Rabbinic in origin, and
not directly mentioned in the Torah.
