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Anger in Judaism is treated as a negative trait to be avoided whenever possible. The subject of anger is treated in a range of Jewish sources, from the Hebrew Bible and Talmud to the rabbinical law, Kabbalah, Hasidism, and contemporary Jewish sources.
In the Book of Genesis, the patriarch Jacob condemned the anger that had arisen in his sons Simeon and Levi: "Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel." [1]
Some Bible commentators point to God's punishment of Moses, not allowing him to enter the Land of Israel, as being due to Moses's anger at the Jewish people. [2] This anger caused Moses to forget the word of God, curse the Israelites, and ultimately bring death on himself.[ citation needed ]
Restraining oneself from anger is seen as noble and desirable, as Ethics of the Fathers states:
"Ben Zoma said: Who is strong? He who subdues his evil inclination, as it is stated, 'He who is slow to anger is better than a strong man, and he who masters his passions is better than one who conquers a city' (Proverbs 16:32)." [3]
Elsewhere, "Rabbi Eliezer says... Do not be easy to anger." [4]
The Talmud also emphasizes the negative effect anger has on a person.
Anger will cause a sage to lose his wisdom, a person who is destined for greatness to forfeit it.
— The Talmud. [5]
The Talmud links anger to conceit, stating “One who is angry does not even consider the presence of Hashem important." [6]
One who becomes angry is as though that person had worshipped idols.
In its section dealing with ethical traits a person should adopt, Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried in his Kitzur Shulchan Aruch states: "Anger is also a very evil trait and it should be avoided at all costs. You should train yourself not to become angry even if you have a good reason to be angry." [9]
Rabbi Chaim Vital taught in the name of his master, Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, the Arizal, that anger may be dispelled by immersing in a ritual bath ( mikvah ) twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays. While immersing, one should meditate on the idea that the numerical value ( gematria ) of the Hebrew word "mikvah" (Hebrew : מקוה) (ritual bath) is the same as the Hebrew word for anger ("ka'as, Hebrew : כעס). [10] [11]
The Rabbi Yisroel Baal Shem Tov, founder of Hasidism, taught that anger may be dispelled by the emphasis on love for God and joy in performing the commandments. [12] : 1:326
Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi interprets the parallel between anger and idol worship stems from the feelings of the one who has become angry typically coincides with a disregard of Divine Providence – whatever had caused the anger was ultimately ordained from God – through coming to anger one thereby denies the hand of God in one's life. [13]
As with anything else, the way to correct [the traits of anger and pride] is step by step. The first step is to wait. Don’t express your anger or pride verbally. In this way, those emotions will not gain momentum, as can be seen in practice.
— The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson. [14]
Rabbi Harold Kushner finds no grounds for anger toward God because “our misfortunes are none of His doing.” [15] In contrast to Kushner’s reading of the Bible, David Blumenthal finds an “abusing God” whose “sometimes evil” actions evoke vigorous protest, but without severing the protester’s relationship with God. [16]
In a teaching attributed to Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, when anger is a mode of life or when expressed in an unjustified manner, is prohibited by Judaism. But if a person is wronged, he or she is allowed to express their natural feelings, including anger. [17]
Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writing, and thus corresponds with the Hebrew term Sifrut Chazal. This more specific sense of "Rabbinic literature"—referring to the Talmudim, Midrash, and related writings, but hardly ever to later texts—is how the term is generally intended when used in contemporary academic writing. The terms mefareshim and parshanim (commentaries/commentators) almost always refer to later, post-Talmudic writers of rabbinic glosses on Biblical and Talmudic texts.
According to Jewish tradition, the Torah contains 613 commandments. This tradition is first recorded in the 3rd century CE, when Rabbi Simlai mentioned it in a sermon that is recorded in Talmud Makkot 23b. Other classical sages who hold this view include Rabbi Simeon ben Azzai and Rabbi Eleazar ben Yose the Galilean. It is quoted in Midrash Shemot Rabbah 33:7, Bamidbar Rabbah 13:15–16; 18:21 and Talmud Yevamot 47b. The 613 commandments include "positive commandments", to perform an act, and "negative commandments", to abstain from an act. The negative commandments number 365, which coincides with the number of days in the solar year, and the positive commandments number 248, a number ascribed to the number of bones and main organs in the human body.
Shneur Zalman of Liadi was an influential Lithuanian Jewish rabbi and the founder and first Rebbe of Chabad, a branch of Hasidic Judaism, then based in Liadi in Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later in the Grodno Governorate of the Russian Empire. He was the author of many works, and is best known for Shulchan Aruch HaRav, Tanya, and his Siddur Torah Or compiled according to the Nusach Ari. Zalman is a Yiddish variant of Solomon and Shneur is a Yiddish composite of the two Hebrew words "shnei ohr".
Dov Ber ben Avraham of Mezeritch, also known as the Maggid of Mezeritch or Mezeritcher Maggid, was a disciple of Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, the founder of Hasidic Judaism, and was chosen as his successor to lead the early movement. Dov Ber is regarded as the first systematic exponent of the mystical philosophy underlying the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov, and through his teaching and leadership, the main architect of the movement. He established his base in Mezhirichi, which moved the centre of Hasidism from Medzhybizh, where he focused his attention on raising a close circle of disciples to spread the movement. After his death the third generation of leadership took their different interpretations and disseminated across appointed regions of Eastern Europe, rapidly spreading Hasidism beyond Ukraine, to Poland, Galicia and Russia.
The Tanya is an early work of Hasidic philosophy, by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the founder of Chabad Hasidism, first published in 1796. Its formal title is Likkutei Amarim, but is more commonly known by its first Hebrew word tanya, which means "it has been taught", where he refers to a baraita section in "Niddah", at the end of chapter 3, 30b. Tanya is composed of five sections that define Hasidic mystical psychology and theology as a handbook for daily spiritual life in Jewish observance.
Tzadik is a title in Judaism given to people considered righteous, such as biblical figures and later spiritual masters. The root of the word ṣadiq, is ṣ-d-q, which means "justice" or "righteousness". When applied to a righteous woman, the term is inflected as tzadika/tzaddikot.
A maggid, also spelled as magid, is a traditional Jewish religious itinerant preacher, skilled as a narrator of Torah and religious stories. A chaplain of the more scholarly sort is called a darshan. The title of maggid mesharim probably dates from the sixteenth century.
Jewish meditation includes practices of settling the mind, introspection, visualization, emotional insight, contemplation of divine names, or concentration on philosophical, ethical or mystical ideas. Meditation may accompany unstructured, personal Jewish prayer, may be part of structured Jewish services, or may be separate from prayer practices. Jewish mystics have viewed meditation as leading to devekut. Hebrew terms for meditation include hitbodedut or hitbonenut/hisbonenus ("contemplation").
Vayelech, Vayeilech, VaYelech, Va-yelech, Vayelekh, Wayyelekh, Wayyelakh, or Va-yelekh is the 52nd weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the ninth in the Book of Deuteronomy. It constitutes Deuteronomy 31:1–30. In the parashah, Moses told the Israelites to be strong and courageous, as God and Joshua would soon lead them into the Promised Land. Moses commanded the Israelites to read the law to all the people every seven years. God told Moses that his death was approaching, that the people would break the covenant, and that God would thus hide God's face from them, so Moses should therefore write a song to serve as a witness for God against them.
Hasidic philosophy or Hasidism, alternatively transliterated as Hasidut or Chassidus, consists of the teachings of the Hasidic movement, which are the teachings of the Hasidic rebbes, often in the form of commentary on the Torah and Kabbalah. Hasidism deals with a range of spiritual concepts such as God, the soul, and the Torah, dealing with esoteric matters but often making them understandable, applicable and finding practical expressions.
Chitas is a Hebrew acronym for Chumash, Tehillim (Psalms), and Tanya. These are considered basic Jewish texts according to the Chabad Jewish community, an ultra-orthodox Chasidic group. They have the custom to study these works according to a yearly cycle, which is known colloquially as "doing ChiTaS."
Tinok shenishba is a term that refers to a Jew who sins as a result of having been raised without sufficient knowledge and understanding of Judaism. The term originates from a theoretical discussion in the Talmud regarding a Jew who was kidnapped by Gentiles as an infant and therefore sins inadvertently, for lack of halakhic knowledge. In contemporary Orthodox Judaism, its status is widely applied to unaffiliated Jews or Jews who were educated in modern Jewish denominations.
Sifrei Kodesh, commonly referred to as sefarim, or in its singular form, sefer, are books of Jewish religious literature and are viewed by religious Jews as sacred. These are generally works of Torah literature, i.e. Tanakh and all works that expound on it, including the Mishnah, Midrash, Talmud, and all works of halakha, Musar, Hasidism, Kabbalah, or machshavah. Historically, sifrei kodesh were generally written in Hebrew with some in Judeo-Aramaic or Arabic, although in recent years, thousands of titles in other languages, most notably English, were published. An alternative spelling for 'sefarim' is seforim.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Judaism:
Chabad philosophy comprises the teachings of the leaders of Chabad-Lubavitch, a Hasidic movement. Chabad Hasidic philosophy focuses on religious concepts such as God, the soul, and the meaning of the Jewish commandments.
A Baal Shem was a historical Jewish practitioner of Practical Kabbalah and supposed miracle worker. Employing the names of God, angels, Satan and other spirits, Baalei Shem are claimed to heal, enact miracles, perform exorcisms, treat various health issues, curb epidemics, protect people from disaster due to fire, robbery or the evil eye, foresee the future, decipher dreams, and bless those who sought his powers.
Happiness in Judaism and Jewish thought is considered an important value, especially in the context of the service of God. A number of Jewish teachings stress the importance of joy, and demonstrate methods of attaining happiness.
The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, first published in 1864, is a work of halacha written by Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried. The work was written in simple Hebrew which made it easy for the lay person to understand and contributed to its great popularity.
