But the Dreidel is more than a mere toy or plaything. As a Jewish custom, it also has a deeper meaning. Let us examine the anatomy of the Dreidel to learn its spiritual symbolism. Our five components in Jewish mysticism, according to human behavior, is driven by four primary factors: The Ego, Bodily Desires, Reason, and a Destructive Compulsion.

Each of us has an ego, a craving for power and dominance. Each of us has bodily demands. We have the power of reason, to make sense out of life's reality. We also have a compulsion toward evil and destruction. For many of us, this bad impulse is merely in a dream or just a thought; others actualize it in behavior.

This last impulse rarely displays its true ugly face. Our compulsion toward evil usually hides and disguises itself behind the veil of other human qualities, by employing the ego, the bodily needs, or human reason to explain and justify its abominable ends. Yet at the root of this urge is a basic craving deep in the human psyche toward evil and destruction.

Beneath these four familiar components of our personality, lies a fifth and deeper dimension, our 'higher' or 'inner self." The moral conscience of the human spirit, the spark of G-d within us drives us to seek truth and idealism, and reflects the good of its Creator.

If any of the four elements of the human engine are detached from the higher divine self, it can become dangerous. A self-serving ego can drive us to destroy all who stand in our way. Our bodily urges and temptations can plunge us into the abyss. Our power of reason may rationalize any type of behavior and breach moral boundaries. Finally, our evil impulse can cause suffering and devastation to innocent human beings.

On the other hand, if we listen to the Divine essence within us and hear its beautiful melody, we can utilize these four components as aspects of our spiritual and moral growth.

Our egos, bodily desires, and intellectual reasoning may be used in a constructive and good manner. Even our impulse to destroy can be channeled to eradicate the evil within ourselves and the world around us.

In Kabbalah, the microcosm, reflects the macrocosm and conversely.

Kabbalah explains that these four elements of the human psyche are represented by the four Global Empires that dominated the world and the Jewish people during our long history.

The first was the Babylonian Empire, notorious for its ambition of unbridled power and dominance. Its first king, Nebuchadnezzar, who destroyed the first Temple in Jerusalem and exiled our people to Babylonian (present day Iraq), is described as the egotist par excellence (Daniel 2:37-38; 7-4 and Ner Mitzvah ibid).

Then came the Persian Empire, notorious for its indulgence in materialistic pleasure (Kedushin 72a and Ner Mitzvah ibid). Achashverosh, the Persian king, threw a party that lasted for 187 days! (Esther chapter 1)

The Greek Empire followed the Persian Empire. Their contribution to civilization was philosophy. To the Greeks the human mind was the zenith of existence.

Then came the Roman Empire, led mostly by cruel Ceasars, who destroyed the Second Temple and massacred millions of Jews and other innocent people.

Each of these Empires tried to crush Judaism and the Jewish people. What were they seeking to destroy? The fifth element of the human spirit, "the higher self."

This was the Jewish contribution to civilization: The Jews gave humanity a universal morality based on a living G-d. The Jews were chosen to bestow on human history the dignity of purpose and to refine and sublimate the ego, the body, the reason and the evil impulse as instruments to serve the moral and spiritual essence of mankind.

The Dreidel's four sides represent the four dimensions of the human psyche: ego, body, reason and evil. The four Hebrew letters of Nun, Gimmel, Shin and Heh also stand for the words: Nefesh, Guf, Sechel and Hakol.

(In Israel the Shin is replaced by the Hebrew letter Pei. Following this explanation, the Pei stands for "philosophy," similar to the word "Sechel" in the diaspora dreidel.)

Nefesh, meaning "self" or "identity," reflects the human ego. Guf, meaning body, represents the bodily urges and temptations. Sechel, which means reason, defines human cognition and understanding. Finally, Hakol, meaning everything, symbolizes the evil force in man, which cloaks itself in everything and anything to reach its ugly goal of destruction (as mentioned above).

The sharp point at the foundation of the Dreidel represents the fifth, divine component of the human spirit. This spark of infinity cannot be defined by space and time, and serves as the foundation and quintessence of each human being.

On Chanukah we kindle our inner G-dly flame, represented by the Chanukah candles. Chanukah is therefore opportune for spinning our psychological four-sided Dreidel on its point, directing the four components of our personality and reorienting them to express the pure love and spirituality of the soul.