$58.00 $51.04
This 925 Silver Pendant is shaped as the Hebrew word “חי” (CHAI, which has a numerical value of 18).
The Chai symbol can be worn by Jews as a medallion around the neck, similarly to other Jewish symbols, such as the Star of David and the Hamsa.
Jews often give gifts and donations in multiples of 18, which is called “giving chai”.
Mailings from Jewish charities usually suggest the amounts to give in multiples of chai (18, 36, 54 dollars, etc.) rather than the usual multiples of 25.
Consequently, the custom has arisen in Jewish circles to give donations and monetary gifts in multiples of 18 as an expression of blessing for long life as 18 is considered a blessed number because of it is the numerical value of “חי”.
In Judaism, in the Talmud; Pirkei Avot (5:25), Rabbi Yehudah Ben Teime gives the age of 18 as the appropriate age to get married (“Ben shmonah esra lechupah”, at eighteen years old to the Chupah (marriage canopy).
