The lighting of a candle, a ner nishamah, or “soul candle,” marks the entry of a child into the covenant. This candle represents the new light that has entered the world with the birth of a new soul. It also memorializes the souls of those for whom our daughter is named, my maternal grandfather Shmuel (Samuel) Weinstein and my paternal aunt Esther Lefkovitz. We light this candle in gratitude for our fortune.
A possible blessing:
Blessed are you, source of all life, for the light you have brought into our lives, for love, for birth, for our daughter. May she come to know You and study Your ways. May she be blessed always with the Shechinah—Your divine presence, so that she can reflect divine light wherever she goes.
