I used my brother's menorah on Chanuka , did I perform the mitzvah correctly or does the menorah have to be mine?
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judaism.stackexchange.com/a/22603/759– Double AA ♦Dec 22, 2015 at 23:21
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With or w/o their permission? E.g. A Tallis can be used w/o their permission, usually, but Tefillin are more of an issue. Only for Lulav do we find that the Mitzva object has to belong to you, IIRC. (And the wedding ring and Get too.)– Danny SchoemannDec 23, 2015 at 9:15
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@DannySchoemann please bring a source, I always heard that teffilin is not a problem, but a talles that is not yours you can not say a brocho (the opposite of what you wright)– hazorizDec 24, 2015 at 13:38
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Probably the problem is the candles/oil not the menorah itself (is a stolen shofar does the job, since the mitzvah if only the voice/sound, not the horn itself)– hazorizDec 24, 2015 at 13:40
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@hazoriz - Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 9:11 - מֻתָּר לִטֹּל טַלִּית שֶׁל חֲבֵרוֹ בְּאַקְרַאי בְּעָלְמָא גַּם שֶׁלֹּא מִדַּעְתּוֹ לְהִתְפַּלֵּל בּוֹ וּלְבָרֵךְ עָלָיו, מִשּׁוּם דְּמִסְּתָמָא נִיחָא לֵהּ לֶאֱנָשׁ דְּלֶעְבָּד מִצְוָה בְּמָמוֹנֵהּ בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁאֵין חֶסְרוֹן כִּיס. You definately say a Brocho on borrowed Tefillin - but I have in mind that borrowing them w/o explicit permission is an issue - can't find it now.– Danny SchoemannDec 24, 2015 at 14:00
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2 Answers
Various Halachic issues are at play here, in theory.
Laws of Chanukah:
You shouldn't both light in the same Menora (or Chanukiya as it's usually referred to) at the same time, unless it's very clear what night it is. (Maybe first 2 nights, no way on the 4th night.)
There's no need for the Menora to belong to the person lighting. Most of the time the Mitzva object doesn't need to belong to you, unless the Torah explicitly says so, like in Lulav where it says take for yourself.
Propert laws
One may not use other people's property without their permission, unless one is 100% certain they don't mind.
If one used a stolen Menora (or borrowed without permission) the Mitzva may be flawed as it comes with a sin. But it probably didn't invalidate the Mitzva, as the Menora is incidental to the Mitzva - and may not even be required. (See here for an opinion that a Menorah is required.)
If one used stolen oil/candles then possible the Mitzva is invalidated as it was done with an object causing a sin.
Summary
Assuming the simple case:
If your brother let you use his Menora while he wasn't using it, then the Mitzva was done properly.
answered Dec 24, 2015 at 14:47
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what if after using your brother's menorah w/o permission your brother is okay with it– sye81397Dec 29, 2015 at 20:01
Q: What happens if I lit someone else’s menorah by accident (can easily happen in a yeshiva)?
A: One has fulfilled his mitzvah and does not have to relight. We can rely that the owner doesn’t mind someone using his menorah for a mitzvah. (Rav Shmuel Kamenetsky Kovetzs Halachos 1:14)
