tamid - regularly. which refers to the regular, daily ritual of lamp lighting. The term sometimes means "continually," but that is not its plain sense here. Later, Jews paired tamid with the preceding word ner to form the term ner tamid, the name for the ever burning, or "eternal" light that is suspended in front of a synagogue's ark. (Footnote on Exodus 27:20 in the Women's Torah Commentary, page 475.)
Rashi suggested it meant "routinely kindled," while Nachmanides understood it as "continually burning."(Women's Torah Commentary, page 490)
The ner tamid was historically placed on the western wall of the synagogue as a reminder that the Holy of Holies was to its west. (Plaut, 575) Also Sifra Emor 13.7, the eternal lamp of synagogues recalls the menorah of Temple times which was the westernmost or cenral lamp of the menorah in the Temple.
Abarbanel (1437-1508 - o n Exodus 27:20) wondered why there is so much attention given to something as specific as the Tabernacle’s lamps before the Tabernacle is even built. Abarbanel notes that the ner tamid must be something special if it is described with such reverence, an essential component for a Tabernacle yet to exist. It’s like choosing light fixtures for a new kitchen without even having blueprints for the home.
For many temples, the sanctuary is dedicated upon lighting the ner tamid. Why is this such a central component of our sanctuaries?
Rabbi Ana Bonnheim: The synagogue where I grew up, Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, TX, had an oil ner tamid and a group who maintained it, alluringly named the Keepers of the Light, which only added to the mystery. The Keepers of the Light protected the sacred flame for the whole community.
What is the role of the ner tamid?
Is it always burning or continually lit?
Where is it located in the sanctuary?
What impact does it have for you in your memory or time while sitting in the sanctuary?
Exodus 27:20 (Exodus Rabbah 36:2) suggests that God, the Source of light, doesn't need light. Rather, the ner tamid is for the people so that "you can return light to Me as I give light to you."English
Zohar (2:99b) offers a spiritual understanding of the ner tamid when it states that "ner" is an acronym for n'shamah-ruah"soul-spirit." Together, soul and spirit represent a perfect union of masculine and feminine. Together, they can bring forth light; but separated, they are powerless and in the dark. Women's Torah Commentary pg. 490
“Every Jew must light the ner tamid in his own heart.” Aharon Yaakov Greenberg, Itturei Torah, vol. 3, Heb. Ed. (Tel Aviv: Yavneh Publishing House, Ltd., 1995), p. 229
Rabbi Jerome David points out, "This portion challenges each of us to light the ner tamid in our own heart. (Itturei Torah, 20) We must work to be more sensitive to the needs, feelings, and strivings of others while simultaneously doing the same for ourselves. Only then will we come closer to dispelling the darkness and doubt that exist in our world."
(23) For the commandment is a lamp, The teaching is a light, And the way to life is the rebuke that disciplines.
The text sees the performance of mitzvot as bringing light. How do you feel about this? Are there mitzvot that bring light to our world?
Does it not seem ironic that the name of Moses is, in fact, missing from this entire portion in the Book of Exodus?
Why are Aaron and the next generation of priests chosen to enact this ritual?
One explanation offered by the Gaon of Vilna is that God knew that the day of Moses' death would be on 7 Adar, during the very time that Tetzaveh is read at worship services. Thus the portion may be anticipating the absence of Moses' physical presence while acknowledging his spiritual presence through the symbol of light.
See how the words of Torah give light to one who studies them. . . . Those who study Torah give forth light wherever they are. It is like one standing in the dark with a lamp in his hand; when he sees a stone he does not stumble, neither does he fall over a gutter because he has a lamp in his hand, as it says, 'Your word is a lamp to my feet, a light for my path' (Psalms 119:105). . . . What is the lamp of God? The Torah, as it says, 'The commandment is a lamp, and the teaching a light' (Proverbs 6:23). (Sh'mot Rabbah 36:3).