Nun
Nothing happens.
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GameDreidel Spin: shall we play?
Hanukkah is a time to light candles, gather with people you love, and spin a dreidel. We brought that game into Torah App so you can sit at one table, even if you are far apart. Up to six people share the table. Instead of coins, the bowl holds sparks: wisdom of the day, a quiz, and the weekly portion earn them.
How to play
Turns go around the table. Each person spins the dreidel, and the letter on the face decides what happens to the shared bowl. Nun: nothing happens. Gimel: you take the whole bowl, and a new round starts. Hey: you take half the bowl for yourself. Shin: 10 sparks leave your stack and go into the bowl.
Up to six people share one table. The round starts when there are two of you. If you have never played dreidel, that is fine: the same rules are written in the game.
Gimel
You take the whole bowl. A new round starts.
Hey
You take half the bowl for yourself.
Shin
10 sparks leave your stack and go into the bowl.
Why play dreidel on Hanukkah?
A dreidel is a four-sided top. Its faces carry four Hebrew letters: nun נ, gimel ג, hey ה, and shin ש. Together they are read as “Nes gadol haya sham”: a great miracle happened there. In Israel the last letter is often pey, “Nes gadol haya po”: a great miracle happened here. Dreidel Spin uses nun, gimel, hey, and shin.
There is a well-known tradition, not a chronicle. When learning Torah was forbidden, people hid the books and spun the top. The guard saw only a toy, and the learning went on.
Hanukkah lasts eight evenings. It remembers oil enough for one day, while the light burned for eight. Today a dreidel is spun at home: with children, with friends, with the whole family.
There is a tradition that learning Torah was once forbidden. Even so, children gathered by candlelight and whispered over a scroll, so the words would not be lost.
When a guard filled the doorway, they hid the scroll and spun a dreidel. “Just a game!” The guard saw only a toy, and the learning went on.
Nes gadol haya sham
The same four letters can be read as “Nes gadol haya sham”: a great miracle happened there. Tap the dreidel, and the words light up below.
Where do sparks come from?
In Torah App, sparks come from small steps: wisdom of the day, a quiz, and the weekly portion. In Dreidel Spin a round starts with 100 sparks.
The game continues what you already do in the app: learn a little, then sit at the table and invite other people.
Sparks are only for learning and play. They have no cash value, and they cannot be cashed out or exchanged for money.
Shall we play?
This is the table: the dreidel spins, sparks move through the bowl, and players pass short lines to each other. Invite friends, even if they are far away. Dreidel Spin can be one more way to feel Hanukkah.
Common questions
What is Dreidel Spin?
It is a dreidel game in Torah App, inside Telegram. Up to six people share one table and one top.
How do you play dreidel in Dreidel Spin?
Turns go around the table. The letter decides what happens to the shared bowl. Nun: nothing. Gimel: you take the whole bowl, and a new round starts. Hey: you take half the bowl. Shin: 10 sparks leave your stack and go into the bowl. The round starts when two people are at the table. You start with 100 sparks.
What do the letters nun, gimel, hey, and shin mean?
Nun: nothing happens. Gimel: you take the whole bowl, and a new round starts. Hey: you take half the bowl into your stack. Shin: 10 sparks leave your stack and go into the bowl. The table adds nothing on top: sparks only move between the players.
What is nes gadol haya sham?
It is the four words spelled by a dreidel’s letters: nes, gadol, haya, sham, “a great miracle happened there.” In Israel pey often replaces shin: nes gadol haya po, a great miracle happened here. Dreidel Spin uses nun, gimel, hey, and shin.
How many people can play dreidel together?
Up to six people share one dreidel. The round begins when two people are at the table.
Where do you play Dreidel Spin?
In Torah App, in Telegram. Open the game and invite friends to your table.
How is Dreidel Spin different from a dreidel played for coins?
At home the bowl is often coins, nuts, or chocolate. In Dreidel Spin the bowl is sparks. Wisdom of the day, a quiz, and the weekly portion earn them. Sparks cannot be cashed out or exchanged for money.