Challah: The Blessing in the DoughSample

The Spiritual Meaning of Challah

Each ingredient of challah is symbolic. As we add each ingredient, we meditate on its meaning and say appropriate prayers. In addition, the time of kneading the dough is traditionally a time for prayer. Many women do not speak to anyone while kneading dough and only utter words of prayer.

FLOUR – RENEWAL. Flour is the product of God's daily sunshine, air, water (either from above or below) and earth. Just as God renews these forces daily, allowing wheat to grow and thrive, we ask that He renew us as well. Just as flour is the product of hard work, we ask that God replenish our strength so that we can effectively perform all our tasks in life.

SUGAR – SWEETNESS. Sugar is what makes our challah sweet. We ask God to add sweetness to our life – just enough to make our lives pleasant and joyful, but not too much that the sweetness overwhelms us to the point of distracting us from our life's purpose.

SALT – ENHANCEMENT. Salt brings out the flavor in all other foods. So, too, we pray that we will be like salt and bring out the best in all who live in our homes or who visit. In addition, we fill the tablespoon close to the top, but not completely full. This symbolizes our desire to leave room for others in our lives. It's not just about fulfilling our own potential but helping others become their best as well.

YEAST – BLESSINGS. Yeast makes our bread grow. As we add yeast, we ask God to shower us with blessings to help us thrive. Specifically, we meditate on blessings for protection, sustenance, peace in the home, health, and a faithful heart. Appropriately, there is a custom to fill the tablespoon of yeast so that it slightly overflows, signifying our prayer for overflowing blessings in our lives.

WATER – TORAH. God's Word, the Torah, is symbolized by water in Jewish tradition and in multiple places in the Bible. As we add water, we pray that our homes and our lives be saturated by God's Word and that it infiltrates the lives of those who live in our home.

OIL – UNIQUENESS. As we learn in the Bible, oil was used to anoint prophets and kings. Oil symbolizes our unique talents and treasures. We pray that we utilize our special God-given gifts to serve our family members and contribute to the world. We also pray that our friends and family find their own unique talents and realize their potential.

EGGS – REBIRTH. Eggs represent the potential for new life. As we add eggs, we pray that we can once again be reborn as better, stronger, more faithful individuals, unattached to our sins and mistakes from our past.