The Last Exile

As a rule I don’t post much on esoteric Judaism because, well, uhmm, I am not even close to being considered a poorly schooled novice, but in keeping with the spirit of the fallacy of Judeo-Christian tradition/belief; I thought this article by Rabbi Lazer Brody from Breslev World would merit a raised eyebrow and a little food for thought.

People often ask me if reincarnation is a tenet in Judaism. The answer is a very definite yes. Not only is Jewish esoteric literature full of this concept, especially the Zohar and the Gate of Reincarnation (Shaar HaGilgulim) in the writings of the Ariza’l, but Jewish ethics literature mentions it as well. For example, one who slanders others with a wagging tongue is known to reincarnate as an animal with a wagging tongue, namely a dog. Also, one who sells unkosher meat as kosher is known to reincarnate as an unkosher animal. Rabbi Chaim ben Attar, the famed and holy “Or Hachaim” who was one of the Judaism’s most magnificent scholars of Torah and Kabbalah, writes in his elaboration of Torah (Breishit 1:26) an explanation of reincarnation as a soul correction, based on a concept brought forth in the Zohar (see Shmot, 94), as follows:

A soul that has left this world with an uncorrected transgression – in other words, the person failed to make teshuva for that particular misdeed even though he could be a very pious and upright individual – must attain a soul correction. The Or Hachaim explains that if the transgression is minor, the person could be reincarnated as a fish. He will then attain his soul correction when someone eats him in holiness, especially during a Shabbat or other mitzvah-oriented meal. For that reason, many people are careful to eat their Shabbat fish with holy intent, for it is known that the souls of tzaddikim reincarnate in the fish.

The Or Hachaim continues and explains that if a person makes a more severe transgression, could be reincarnated as a kosher fowl that requires “half” slaughter, in other words, that either trachea or esophagus must be ritually cut. If the transgression is even worse, the offender could be reincarnated as a kosher animal that requires “full” slaughter, when both trachea and esophagus must be cut. Transgressions of a progressively more serious nature lead to reincarnations of the lower orders of creation, whose soul corrections are longer and more tedious. Our sages teach us that a good measure is 500 times stronger than an equivalent bad measure (see Rashi on Shemot 34:7). If a reincarnation for transgression leads to a soul correction, than a reincarnation for a mitzvah leads to a reward that’s worth 500 soul corrections. This is a basic law of Jewish spirituality.

And did I mention there is no concept of ‘original sin’ in Judaism?