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What is the Order of lighting Kwanzaa candles?
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Feb 23, 2024 · The order of lighting Kwanzaa candles is from left to right, starting with the black candle in the center (Umoja), followed by the red candle to the left (Kujichagulia), and then the green candle to the right (Ujima).
- Overview
- Preparing the Kinara and Kwanzaa Table
- Lighting the Candles
- Continuing the Kwanzaa Celebration
Kwanzaa is a joyous time of reflection and celebration of African heritage that takes place each year between December 26th and January 1st. A central part of the celebration is the nightly lighting of the kinara, a special candelabra. Learn how to prepare for the kinara lighting and how to light the candles each night of Kwanzaa.
Get out your Kwanzaa items on the morning of December 26th.
Kwanzaa starts the evening of December 26th, so you'll need to get all your items together that morning and afternoon. If you celebrate Christmas or any other holiday, put those decorative items away before you set up for Kwanzaa.
You can still celebrate other holidays, but be sure the only holiday decorations up on December 26th are for Kwanzaa.
Buy or make a kinara.
The kinara is the candle-abra used to hold the seven Kwanzaa candles. You can buy a readymade one online or at a local African goods store, or you can even make one yourself if you know anything about wood or metal-working.
Get candles in the correct colors.
Kwanzaa is celebrated each night from December 26th to January 1st, so you’ll need to wait until after sundown to get started. You don’t have to light the candles at a precise time, but you should try to light them around the same time each night.
Gather your family and friends around the kinara. The mood should be joyous, yet respectful. Be sure everybody is there and is attentive. Turn off any TVs, radios, or cell phones in the room.
Light the black candle on the first day of Kwanzaa.
On December 26th, light the black candle in the center of the kinara. You can use the lighting method of your choice, but be sure it’s respectful--no lighters with characters or logos on them!
Drink or pour from the kikombe cha umoja (unity cup).
After the candle is lit, each person should drink from the unity cup. Any water left over should be poured over the bowl of crops as a libation. You can also pour directly from the cup onto the crops. If you've chosen to place a plant on your Kwanzaa table, it can be the receptacle for the water.
Light the black candle first each night.
Each night of Kwanzaa, replace the black candle and light it first. You should be starting with a fresh black candle each night--a single candle won’t last seven days!
Light one more candle each day, from left to right (red to green).
For the second through seventh days of Kwanzaa, light the candles from left to right, with the red ones being lit first. Each day, replace all the used candles and light all the previous candles before lighting that night’s candle. So on the third night of Kwanzaa, you would replace the two candles you’ve already used up, and then light them first before lighting the third one.
Some families choose to alternate red and green candles, to symbolize hope even in the midst of struggle.
Repeat the rest of the ceremony each night.
Dec 7, 2020 · The primary symbols of Kwanzaa are the seven candles ( Mishumaa Sabaa ), which represent the seven principles (more on that below), the candle holder ( Kinara ), unity cup ( Kikombe cha Umoja), placemat ( Mkeka ), crops ( Mazao ), corn ( Muhindi ), and gifts ( Zawadi ).
Dec 7, 2021 · There are seven candles: one black candle, three red candles, and three green candles. Each candle represents one of the seven principles guiding Kwanzaa. These are placed in the kinara in a specific order. Each candle is lit on a specific day of the Kwanzaa seven-day celebration.
- Lovetoknow Staff
- Umoja (Unity) To strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race. Song for reflection: Worth His Weight in Gold (Rally Round the Flag), Steel Pulse.
- Kujichagulia (Self-Determination) To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves. Song for reflection: I am the Black Gold of the Sun, Rotary Connection & Minnie Riperton.
- Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) To build and maintain our community together and make our community’s problems our problems and to solve them together.
- Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) To build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses and to profit from them together. Song for reflection: We’re a Winner, Curtis Mayfield.
Mishumaa Saba (The Seven Candles) These are symbolic of the Nguzo Saba, the Seven Principles, the matrix and minimum set of values which African people are urged to live by in order to rescue and reconstruct their lives in their own image and according to their own needs.
Oct 14, 2009 · The three green candles, representing Nia, Ujima, and Imani, are placed to the right of the Umoja candle, while the three red candles, representing Kujichagulia, Ujamaa, and Kuumba, are...
