Reply To: Dvar Torah Wiki: Why 8 days?

There are Rishonim who explain that it is asser lehishtamesh leara, not to use the light as the commemoration of the menorah of the Mikdash remembering the neis, so we cannot make a menorah of seven, as the halacha there. To distinguish whether to increase or decrease we must not light seven because on the fourth day would not be a difference in how we light. 1 2 3 ‘4’ 5 6 7 or
7 6 5 ‘4’ 3 2 1.