Language:
English
Year of publication:
2020
Titel der Quelle:
Review of Rabbinic Judaism - Ancient, Medieval, and Modern
Angaben zur Quelle:
23,2 (2020) 165-182
Keywords:
Body odor
;
Odors in the Bible
;
Odors in rabbinical literature
;
Ethics in the Bible
Abstract:
Perceiving the odor emitted by one’s body or clothes as a manifestation of moral identity is a cross-cultural sociological and literary phenomenon. Odors were perceived as a mark that set social boundaries and they made it possible to distinguish between groups of people by their status or identity. In the Christian, Muslim, and Bahai traditions holy people, such as prophets, martyrs, and shahids, were perceived or described as smelling good. In Jewish cultural discourse, smell is a sociological-religious indicator that distinguishes, whether symbolically or realistically, between the good and the corrupt. The term “foul smell” is mentioned in association with negative people, mainly with regard to sexual promiscuity. In contrast, a good fragrance is emblematic of the Patriarchs (Abraham), people with stringent sexual morals (Joseph), and Torah scholars.
DOI:
10.1163/15700704-12341368
URL:
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