Q) Where is the optimal place to light the Shabbat candles?
A) The principal mitzvah of Shabbat candles is to light them in the room that one eats his Shabbat meal. However even in other rooms one must ensure there is enough light for to enable him to see and make his way around without stumbling. However, this can be in the form of regular electric lights. One recites the Bracha when lighting the candles in the room that one will eat the Shabbat meal.
One must be careful to place the candles in a location in which they will not blow out from the wind. One is also forbidden to cause the candles to extinguish, even indirectly. Therefore, if one mistakenly lit candles that are attached to the door, one may not open or close the door. However if the candles were lit behind the door, one is permitted to open and close it providing they take care not to extinguish the candles. One is permitted to open and close windows or doors that are far from the candles if this will not cause the candles to extinguish.
The Ashkenazic custom is to place the candles on the table that the meal will take place. However, this practice is not recommended for several reasons; firstly, moving the table may extinguish the flame, also, according to Kabbalah one’s table should be in the Northern side of the room and the candles in the South. One who does have the Minhag to light the candles on the table, must ensure that the table does not rock or move easily.
(Source: Maamar Mordechai Shabbat Vol 1, Chapter 12).
Where to light the Shabbat candles
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