Prohibition of Blood/2

Prohibition of Blood

Exegetical Approaches

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Blood is the Soul

Blood is prohibited from consumption since blood is the source or symbol of the animal's soul and life force. This position subdivides regarding why this is problematic:

Sacredness of Life

Refraining from eating blood, representative of an animal's vitality and soul, reminds one of the sanctity of all life. Eating it would be repugnant and both demonstrates and invites cruelty.

Sources:Jubilees6:1-217:24-4511:1-321:1-25About Jubilees, JosephusAntiquities of the Jews 1:3:8Antiquities of the Jews 3:11:2About Josephus, RambanVayikra 17:11About R. Moshe b. Nachman #2,¹ Sefer HaChinukh148About Sefer HaChinukh,² AbarbanelVayikra 17Devarim 12:20About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel #3,³  Keli Yekar, ShadalDevarim 12:23About R. Shemuel David Luzzatto,⁴ R. D"Z HoffmannVayikra 3:17Vayikra 17:11-14Devarim 12:23-25About R. David Zvi Hoffmann #2,⁵ R. Kook

"כִּי הַדָּם הוּא הַנָּפֶשׁ" – These sources point to this phrase as the basis for the prohibition.⁶ They offer a variety of explanations as the import of the fact that "blood is the soul":

• Jubilees links the prohibitions of murder and eating blood, suggesting that the latter is prohibited because it, too, is similar to taking a life.  R. Hoffmann elaborates, pointing out that originally man was not meant to eat meat at all.  Though this was allowed after the flood, at Sinai, killing animals was once again restricted, permitted only if the animal was being sacrificed to Hashem.  Even, so, though, Hashem did not not allow consumption of its blood for that would be like eating the animal's very vitality and invite cruelty.⁷ 
• Ramban explains that it is not proper for a "soul to eat a soul" for all souls are somewhat equal and belong to Hashem (even if the animal and human soul are qualitatively different).
• Abarbanel likens the prohibition to that of אבר מן החי, suggesting that eating flesh and blood is like eating of an animal while it is still alive. Shadal similarly suggests that the prohibition is aimed at preventing man from eating blood when it is still hot and flowing from the animal, "an act of immense cruelty".

"וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם" – According to this approach, these words complement the prohibition, teaching that animal blood is not meant for human benefit except for the role it plays in atonement.  It might not be consumed, but it should  be sprinkled on the altar.

Scope of the prohibition – According to this approach, it is logical that the prohibition extends to all animals.  The Dead Sea sect and Karaites maintain that even the blood of fish is prohibited.

Prohibition to Noach – Jubilees, Josephus and Ramban all understand the prohibition to Noach of "" to refer to eating blood.  As soon as Hashem allowed consumption of animals, he simultaneously added the restriction that though the flesh may be eaten, the blood, symbolic of the soul, may not.

Mixing of Animal and Human Nature

Ingesting an animal's blood/soul introduces animal-like characteristics into the human soul.

Sources:Ibn EzraVayikra 3:17Devarim 12:25Bereshit First Commentary 9:4About R. Avraham ibn Ezra,⁸ RambanVayikra 17:11About R. Moshe b. Nachman #3, Sefer Hachinukh148About Sefer HaChinukh,⁹ RalbagVayikra 3:16-17Vayikra 17:11-14Vayikra Toalot 3:17About R. Levi b. Gershom #3,¹⁰ Abarbanel Vayikra 17Devarim 12:20About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel#2,¹¹ SefornoVayikra 17:14Vayikra 19:26Devarim 12:23About R. Ovadyah Seforno,¹² Or HaChayyimVayikra 17:10Vayikra 17:11Vayikra 17:13About R. Chayyim b. Atar, R. HirschVayikra 3:17Vayikra 7:26Vayikra 17:10-12Devarim 12:23About R. Samson Raphael Hirsch, NetzivVayikra 17:11-14Devarim 12:23About R. Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin¹³

"כִּי הַדָּם הוּא הַנָּפֶשׁ" – These sources point to this phrase as the basis for the prohibition.

"וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם"

Scope of the prohibition

Sanctified to Hashem

Since the blood of animals is thrown on the altar and sanctified to Hashem, it is not fit for human consumption.

Sources:Ibn EzraVayikra 3:17Devarim 12:25Bereshit First Commentary 9:4About R. Avraham ibn Ezra, R. Yosef Bekhor ShorVayikra 7:23Vayikra 17:11Vayikra 19:19About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor,¹⁴ RambanVayikra 17:11About R. Moshe b. Nachman #1, RalbagVayikra 3:16-17Vayikra 17:11-14Vayikra Toalot 3:17About R. Levi b. Gershom #2, AbarbanelBereshit 9:1Vayikra 3Vayikra 17Devarim 12:20About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel #1, R. Avraham SabaTzeror HaMor Vayikra 17:3About R. Avraham Saba (Tzeror HaMor), NetzivVayikra 17:11-14Devarim 12:23About R. Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, R. David Zvi HoffmannVayikra 3:17Vayikra 17:11-14Devarim 12:23-25About R. David Zvi Hoffmann #1¹⁵

"וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם" – This verse forms the basis for this approach, but commentators focus on different aspects of it, leading to two related, but somewhat distinct understandings of the prohibition:

• Apportioned to Hashem – According to Ibn Ezra, R"Y Bekhor Shor, and Ramban, the crucial point of the verse is that the blood is dedicated to the altar.¹⁶ Blood is off limits to man because it is Hashem's portion of the sacrifice (חלק גבוה).
• Role in atonement – Ralbag, Abarbanel and R. Hoffmann, instead, focus on the blood's role in atonement.
• R. Hoffmann explains that if the animal's blood is supposed to represent and substitute for the sinner's soul, being sacrificed in the sinner's stead, it is inappropriate for it to be consumed.¹⁷
• Ralbag adds that Hashem wanted to ensure that man recognize the atoning powers of blood so that he feel that his sacrifice was effective in achieving penance. As such, Hashem prohibited its consumption, highlighting its unique role.¹⁸

"כִּי הַדָּם הוּא הַנָּפֶשׁ" – According to this approach, this phrase comes to explain not why it is prohibited to eat blood, but why blood was chosen to serve as atonement and is sprinkled on the altar. Since blood represents or is the source of the animal's soul, it can represent man's soul and act as its substitute on the altar.

Why is blood of non-sacrificial meat prohibited? As only the blood of domesticated animals being offered as a sacrifice is sanctified to Hashem and used for atonement, this approach must explain why blood of "בשר תאווה"  (meat eaten for pleasure) and non domesticated animals and birds are also prohibited:

• Safeguard – Ramban suggests that this is simply a safeguard to ensure that no one err and eat the blood of animals which can be sacrificed.
• Distinct prohibition – R"Y Bekhor Shor and the Netziv,¹⁹ though, concede that this reasoning cannot account for the prohibition regarding non-domesticated animals and suggest that they are prohibited for other reasons.²⁰

Spilling vs. covering blood – These sources explain that since the blood of non-domesticated animals is not sprinkled on the altar, it was necessary to institute a different reminder that it is prohibited to eat of it and thus it is covered. No such reminder is necessary for domesticated animals eaten for pleasure, since those animals are associated with sacrifices and it is known that their blood in general serves to atone on the altar (even if in this particular instance the animal is being eaten).²¹

Prohibition to Noach – If the prohibition of blood is related to the sacrificial service, one might question why Noach was already commanded, "אַךְ בָּשָׂר בְּנַפְשׁוֹ דָמוֹ לֹא תֹאכֵלוּ" (Bereshit 9:4), centuries before the service was instituted:

• Different prohibition – Most of these sources follow Bavli Sanhedrin 59a and assume that the prohibition to Noach did not refer to eating blood but rather to  eating a limb from a live animal (אבר מן החי). 
• Blood sacred even then – Ibn Ezra and Ramban, in contrast, understand that blood was already prohibited to Noach. If so, perhaps from the very first sacrifices brought by man, blood was already allotted to Hashem and not to man.²²

Connection to fat – These sources assume that the two prohibitions share a single explanation; both fat and blood are Hashem's portion and therefore prohibited to man.  It is for this reason that the two prohibitions are often mentioned together.

Biblical parallels – R"Y Bekhor Shor compares the prohibition regarding blood to several other commandments which similarly stem from the fact that an object is sanctified to Hashem. He points to the prohibitions of making incense and the anointing oil or wearing wool and linen (a mixture reserved for priestly garments)²³, pointing out that in all these cases "דהוה ליה כמשמש בשרביטו של מלך ואסור", it is as if one is using the scepter of the king and is prohibited.

General view of sacrifices

"לֹא תֹאכְלוּ עַל הַדָּם" – These sources suggest that this is a distinct prohibition and says nothing about not eating blood itself. Most, looking to the verse's immediate context of sorcery, relate it to idolatrous divination practices in which blood of an animal was spilled and a meal was eaten in the belief that this would invite demons who could foretell the future.

Distancing from Idolatry

Consuming blood is prohibited since it is related to idolatrous practices.

Sources:RambamMoreh Nevukhim 3:46About R. Moshe b. Maimon, RalbagVayikra 3:16-17Vayikra 17:11-14Vayikra Toalot 3:17About R. Levi b. Gershom #1, SefornoVayikra 17:14Vayikra 19:26Devarim 12:23About R. Ovadyah Seforno, ShadalVayikra 7:26Vayikra 17:13Devarim 12:23About R. Shemuel David Luzzatto #2²⁴

Connection between blood and Idolatry – Ramban explains that idolaters would eat blood, believing it to be the nourishment of demons and that by participating with them in a meal, the demons would divine the future for them.

"לֹא תֹאכְלוּ עַל הַדָּם" – These sources suggest that the two prohibitions are intricately related. Rambam explains that those idolaters who found eating blood abhorrent would instead spill it  into a vessel, eat around it, and invite the demons to the shared meal. Thus, it is prohibited not only to eat blood, but also to eat "on blood".  The ending of the verse, "לֹא תְנַחֲשׁוּ וְלֹא תְעוֹנֵנוּ", supports this reading as it too speaks of divination practices.

Context in Vayikra 17 – One of the advantages of this understanding is that it connects the two prohibitions of Vayikra 17, giving a common explanation for both. The first half of the chapter deals with the prohibition of slaughtering and sacrificing outside of the Mikdash, with the reason given being, "וְלֹא יִזְבְּחוּ עוֹד אֶת זִבְחֵיהֶם לַשְּׂעִירִם", lest the people come to sacrifice to goat-demons.  This is parallel to the reason for not eating blood, the subject of second half of the chapter.

"וְנָתַתִּי פָנַי בַּנֶּפֶשׁ הָאֹכֶלֶת אֶת הַדָּם" – Rambam points to the language of the crime's punishment, "וְנָתַתִּי פָנַי בַּנֶּפֶשׁ הָאֹכֶלֶת אֶת הַדָּם" (Vayikra 17:10) as further proof of his understanding.  The phrase  "וְנָתַתִּי פָנַי בַּנֶּפֶשׁ/ בָּאִישׁ" appears only by three prohibitions: blood, necromancy, and worship of the Molekh, implying that the three are related (all being idolatrous in nature).²⁵

"וַאֲנִי נְתַתִּיו לָכֶם עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם" – This approach suggests that there is nothing intrinsically positive about sprinkling the blood on the altar; this is simply the safeguard to ensure that it not be used for idolatrous purposes.  Rambam further suggests that since idolaters viewed the blood as impure, Hashem wanted to disabuse people of this notion (and thus of blood's connection to demons). He, therefore, purified it and gave it a purifying role

Scope of the prohibition – As this approach does not focus on the sacrificial role of blood, it is logical that the prohibition includes the blood of both sacrificial and non-sacrificial animals, as their blood too was used for idolatry.

Covering vs. spilling – The blood of non-domesticated animals is not only spilled but also covered to ensure that it is not used to invite demons.²⁶  This is more necessary for their blood than for blood of animals eaten for pleasure since the latter were only permitted after arrival in Israel, at which point the lust for blood had mitigated somewhat.²⁷  In addition, demons were believed to reside in the Wilderness and other barren areas, so it was more likely that non-domesticated animals killed in the wild would be used for such purposes than domesticated animals slaughtered in one's yard.

"כִּי הַדָּם הוּא הַנָּפֶשׁ" – Ramban questions this approach,²⁸ pointing out that in explaining the prohibition, the Torah emphasizes the connection between blood and the soul, which this approach ignores. The Ritva responds that these words explain why idolaters thought that blood was the food of demons to begin with.  It was specifically because of the blood's connection to the soul that they thought that the quasi-spiritual (and basically non-corporeal) demons ate of it.

Prohibition to Noach – One might question this approach from Hashem's prohibition to Noach, "אַךְ בָּשָׂר בְּנַפְשׁוֹ דָמוֹ לֹא תֹאכֵלוּ" (Bereshit 9:4), which appears to prohibit blood even in an era when no idolatry existed.

• This position might respond that this prohibition is related to  אבר מן החי rather than to eating blood. 
• Ritva, instead, questions the assumption that there was no idolatry in Noach's generation. Even if previous idolators were wiped out in the flood, it would not be long before others took their place.

General view of sacrifices – Rambam's approach to this prohibition is in line with his understanding of the sacrificial service as a whole. According to him, sacrifices (like the prohibition of blood) have no inherent value and are commanded only as a means to wean the nation from idolatry. See Purpose of the Sacrifices for elaboration.

"רַק חֲזַק לְבִלְתִּי אֲכֹל הַדָּם" – According to this approach there is a need to encourage the people to "be strong" and not eat of the blood since there was a real desire for it.²⁹

Connection to fat – Rambam assume that the prohibition of fat is distinct from that of blood, and is related to health benefits rather than prevention of idolatry. The prohibitions might be linked in the verses only because they are both prohibited foods which happen to be sacrificed on the altar.³⁰

Biblical parallels – Rambam is consistent in understanding many laws to be aimed at distancing the nation from idolatry.  See, for instance, his understanding of sacrifices, the Mishkan, the laws of hybrids, and Orlah.

¹ Ramban also speaks of the blood's detrimental effects on human nature and its being allocated to Hashem as reasons for the prohibition.

² He also cites the Ramban regarding how eating of the animal's soul introduces animalistic traits into the human soul.

³ Abarbanel brings many reasons for the prohibition; this is the third possibility he raises in his commentary on Vayikra 17 and Devarim 12.

⁴ He also connects aspects of the prohibition to idolatrous practices.

⁵ See his comments to Devarim 12.  In his commentary on Vayikra 3 and 17, R. Hoffmann also suggests that the prohibition relates to the fact that the blood is sanctified to Hashem.

⁶ Variations of the phrase appear four times in Vayikra 17 and once more in Devarim 12:23, supporting the idea that Torah views this as a central component of the prohibition.

⁷ See Sefer HaChinukh who similarly makes this last point, "יהיה באכילתו קצת קנין במדת אכזריות שיבלע האדם מבעלי חיים כמותו בגוף, אותו הדבר שבהן, שהחיות ממש תלוי עליו, ונפשם נקשרת בו".

⁸ In his comments to Vayikra 3, he explains that blood is prohibited since it Hashem's portion.  It is possible that he differentiates between the reason for the prohibition with regards to domesticated animals (which are fit for sacrificing) and non-domesticated animals (which are not fit for sacrificing).  Since the blood of the latter is not allocated to Hashem, there must be a different reason for the prohibition.

⁹ He assumes that blood is detrimental on both the spiritual and physical level.

¹⁰ Ralbag is somewhat exceptional in this category in that he maintains that eating animal blood affects one's physical health rather than a person's spiritual health.

¹¹ Abarbanel brings many reasons for the prohibition; this is the second possibility he raises in his commentary on Vayikra 17 and Devarim 12.

¹² He also relates the prohibition to idolatrous practices.

¹³ Netziv distinguishes between the reason for the prohibition of eating the blood of domesticated and non-domesticated animals and maintains that only the latter is related to the negative effects it will have on man's nature.

¹⁴ He maintains that  this only relates to animals which are fit for sacrifices.  The blood of such domesticated animals is prohibited for two reasons - its being apportioned to Hashem as atonement and the fact that it is the animal's soul.  Non domesticated animals and birds are prohibited only for the second reason.

¹⁵ In his comments to Devarim 12 he explain that blood is prohibited also due to the fact that it is an animal's soul.

¹⁶ The verse's mention of the blood's role in atonement is somewhat secondary, mentioned only to explain why specifically the blood was chosen to be Hashem's portion.

¹⁷ He elaborates that the animal's blood, standing in for the human soul, takes on a somewhat spiritual status. As such, it cannot simply be absorbed by the body, for the physical and spiritual must remain distinct.

¹⁸ See Purpose of the Sacrifices that Ralbag asserts that people need an active process through which they can feel that their sins are forgiven to enable them to start afresh.  Had a person simply confessed his sins or repented in his heart, he would not think that this sufficed to achieve penance, so therefore Hashem provided an active ritual for him to partake in.  The sprinkling of blood, and accompanying prohibition of its consumption, is an important part of this process.

¹⁹ As many of the other sources here also point to multiple reasons for the prohibition of blood, they might agree.

²⁰ R"y Bekhor Shor suggests that they are forbidden because it is inappropriate to eat the life force of an animal, while Netziv points to the detrimental affects that eating non-domesticated animal blood have on human nature.

²¹ Ramban adds that in the Wilderness period, eating meat for pleasure, not as part of a sacrifice, was prohibited regardless, so the scenario never arose. By the time the nation settled in Israel, there was less of a need for a reminder, as the people were already accustomed to not eating blood.

²² Hashem's command comes right after Noach offered his sacrifices, where the text points out that Noach offered only "pure" animals.  If so, it is possible that already in his time, there were certain norms regarding sacrificial procedures which might have included allotting the blood to Hashem.

²³ See Purpose of the Laws of Hybrids for elaboration.

²⁴ This is the first explanation he offers for the command to cover the blood of birds and non-domesticated animals.  Though he does not explicitly state that it is also the reason for the initial prohibition of blood, the two would seem to be connected. [He does, hoever, appear to prefer other reasons for the command.]

²⁵ See, though, Giving One's Seed to Molekh, that not all understand this prohibition to relate to idolatry.

²⁶ See above that even those who did not eat the blood themselves would often collect it for demons.

²⁷ Ralbag explains that the desire to eat blood was stronger in the first generation that left Egypt, as they had been accustomed to such practices in Egypt.  By the time the nation arrived in Israel and eating meat for pleasure was permitted, there was less of a lust for blood and so less of a need to make a reminder.

²⁸ He does not disagree in theory with Rambam, but questions the approach on textual grounds.  He writes, "ואלו דברים מיושבים, אבל הכתובים לא יורו כן".

²⁹ See R. Yehuda in the Sifrei and Ramban on Devarim 12:23.

³⁰ Ralbag raises two possible reasons for the prohibition of fat, pointing to health benefits and the fact that it is Hashem's portion. As he thinks that these apply to the prohibition of blood as well, according to him it is logical that the two are connected in the verses.