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Notable Sources
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The Breath of Life
TANAKH
The divine act of God breathing life into the first human highlights the unique and sacred nature of the human soul. The book of Genesis describes how God formed the first human from the soil and gave him life by blowing into his nostrils.
The Resurrection of Isaac
MIDRASH
Death is sometimes described in Jewish sources as the soul leaving the body. On rare occasions, this departure of the soul is only temporary, as in the account of the binding of Isaac found in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, an eighth-century midrashic work, which presents the story as a foundation for the concept of the resurrection of the dead.
The Soul of Sarah
COMMENTARY
The emotional and spiritual impact of the Akeida on Sarah was so profound that it caused her soul to depart from her body, according to midrashic tradition. Rabbi Francis Nataf explores the tragic and untimely death of Sarah upon hearing about the Binding of Isaac, offering a deep emotional and spiritual analysis.
The Path of the Righteous Souls
MUSAR
Mystical sources describe the journeys of souls in the afterlife. The 17th-century ethical and mystical work, Kav HaYashar, by Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Kaidanover, quotes from the Zohar Chadash describing the route of righteous souls.
The Universal Journey of Souls
KABBALAH
The idea of reincarnation of souls is a focus in some streams of Jewish mysticism. Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag, a prominent 20th-century Kabbalist, argues that the notion is not limited to humanity or even life, but is a general phenomenon of reality.
Elijah's Return and the Immortality of the Soul
JEWISH THOUGHT
Menasseh ben Israel wrote On Resurrection of the Dead in the 17th century to gather evidence from the Jewish canon for the belief in the immortality of the soul and the ultimate resurrection in the messianic age. In this excerpt, Menasseh ben Israel discusses a verse from the prophecy of Malakhi about Elijah.
The Structure of Gehinnom
KABBALAH
Jewish mystical tradition includes descriptions of reward and punishment of souls in the afterlife. The Zohar, a foundational work of Jewish mysticism, describes the many gates of Gehinnom, and the experience of the souls of the wicked there.
Moses and His Soul
REFERENCE
The midrashic literature depicts an intimate dialogue between Moses and his soul as his death approached. Gershom Bader quotes this story from Devarim Rabbah and Midrash Tanchuma as an example of Rabbi Yitzchak's style of teaching.
The Divine Spirit Within
SECOND TEMPLE
The human soul is described as a 'divine spirit' breathed by God, emphasizing its ethereal and superior nature. Philo of Alexandria, a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher, merges Jewish theology with Greek philosophy to explore the divine origin of the soul.
The Conditional Eternity of the Soul
GUIDES
Different ideas about the fate of souls after death appear in the rabbinic tradition. Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, a renowned 20th-century scholar, explores the conditional nature of a Jew's share in the World-to-Come in his introduction to a chapter of the Talmud.
Remembering the Deceased on Holidays
HALAKHAH
The Yizkor prayer is a communal practice of commemorating souls of departed relatives on major holidays. Rabbi Eliezer Melamed, in his contemporary presentation of Jewish law, Peninei Halakhah, details the customs and significance of reciting Yizkor, including promising charity in order to raise their souls up.
Gratitude for a New Day
LITURGY
Each morning, Jews express gratitude to God for the daily restoration of their soul. The prayer 'Modeh Ani' is recited upon waking, thanking God for granting another day of life.
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