Candles
A candle loses nothing if it is used to light another candle.
A candle gives a soft, warm light and there doesn't seem to be much else to say about it. Other than because a candle gives a soft, warm light, it is usually considered a 'good' thing. It is aesthetically more pleasing to have a candle-lit dinner than dinner under a fluorescent tube, even though the latter gives more light to enjoy the dinner setting.
Candles are more than just lovely ornaments; they add a bright and warm ambience to any situation. Whether scented with incense or packed with dust to emit sparks when lit, candles are alive.
Candles
Le jeu ne vaut pas la chandelle is what the French might say about English 'cuisine'. It means 'not worth a candle', and implies English food is so lacking in appeal that it's not worth using a candle to create sufficient light to see it. 'Not worth a candle' can be used to deride anything; an object, person, activity, which we want to say is worthless. Even though a candle is so cheap, using it would nevertheless be a waste of money.
Yet even though candles are cheap, we use them on very special occasions. Take for example....
Weddings
A popular candle arrangement for wedding celebrations is a dozen or so small candles organized in the shape of a heart. The heart has long been a symbol of love, and a candle heart layout gives a special warmth.
During some wedding ceremonies, the mothers of the bride and groom reverently light two small candles, which the bride and groom then use to light a single larger candle. The couple carrying the flame from their mothers' lights and merging them into a single light, symbolizes the joining of the two families (Genesis 2:24). The lighting also invokes the light of Christ and this Light will guide the couple through their married life together (John 8:12).
In contrast to the bride's veil and wedding rings, the so called Unity Candles are not an ancient Pagan or Christian rite; rather a relatively modern idea which has increased popularity over the past fifty years or so.
At about 13 lumens of visible light and 40 watts of heat, the candle is well-suited for representing married life. It is ignited by the heat of another flame, just as the bride and groom's wedding is celebrated by their families and friends. As the candle wick is lit, it first melts and then vaporizes a small amount of the candle wax fuel. Once vaporized, the fuel combines with oxygen in the atmosphere to form a flame. This flame then provides sufficient heat to keep the candle burning via a self-sustaining chain of events: the heat of the flame melts the top of the mass of solid fuel, the liquefied fuel then moves upward through the wick via capillary action, and the liquefied fuel is then vaporized to burn within the candle's flame. Once a couple begin married life together, they can enjoy sustaining each other through the rest of their married lives.
Candle wicks sometimes need trimming. Similarly, marriages sometimes need external help to overcome difficulties. The wedding ceremony is attended by families and friends who will be there for such assistance.
Another advantage of candles is that they can be stored for a lifetime. The couple may decide to retain the main candle after the wedding (and the two smaller candles if they are part of a set) and light them during wedding anniversary dinners.
Prayers
Prayer candles
Candles are lit by Christians, especially Catholics and Orthodox Christians, to support a prayer. "Light a candle for me" is asking somebody to pray for me as I go through some particularly difficult experience. "Light a candle for my grandmother who has just passed away" asks somebody to pray for the grandmother's soul. It may just be a figure of speech or the candle may be a real stick of beeswax, perhaps lit in a chapel. In this case it is called a Votive Candle. Votive means 'sacrifice' and this is symbolically made by dropping some coins in a collection box in the chapel. Offering a sacrifice to the gods is a pre-Christian tradition that survives to this day through donating money for a votive candle. A related tradition is tossing coins into a wishing well for luck, as a symbolic sacrifice to water deities.
Easter
At Easter time, votive candles are ideal for arranging in different formations - a Votive Candle Cross for example. Alternatively, a small candle might be held in a cross-shaped candle holder. The Easter Candle Cross has the advantage of giving a certain life and brightness to a cross. (See also Rising Sun Cross and Glory Cross.)
In contrast to the votive candles, which are tiny, the Paschal Candle is huge. Sometimes called Easter Candle, this is lit in a darkened church at the beginning of Easter and remains lit throughout the Easter period. The light represents the light of Christ coming into the dark world. (It is also sometimes lit at baptisms and funerals.) A nicely decorated Pascal Candle, perhaps 10cm wide and 1.5 metres high (4" x 60" for the metrically challenged) might burn for a week or so and cost several hundred dollars. Hmmm....
Christmas
Christians also use candles during Advent, on the Altar, at Baptisms, in the Sanctuary, at vigils, and other sacramentals. They even have a special ceremony called Candlemas 40 days after Christmas when celebrations are held to commemorate the presentation of baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem (Luke 2:22–40). At Candlemas, candles are blessed with holy water for their use in the coming year.
Other religions
Menorah
Hanukkah
Christianity is not the only religion to use candles. Jews light a candle at the beginning and end of the Sabbath. A special candle is lit on Yom HaShoah, the day of remembrance for victims of the Holocaust. The Menorah was used with the tabernacle and its seven-branch design dictated by God to Moses (Exodus 25:31-40). The Hanukkah reminds us of the miracle where lamp fuel sufficient for one day lasted for eight days, which gave enough time to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.
Buddhists place candles in front of images to represent the light of the Buddha's teachings. In Thailand, huge elaborately carved candles are paraded through the streets during their Ubon Ratchathani Candle Festival.
Indian yoga camp
Hindus similarly consider the candle to be representative of spiritual enlightenment and yogis might use a candle as a meditation aid.
