Re-Genesis - Parshat Tazria-Metzora

(44) For I, the Eternal One, am your God: you shall sanctify yourselves and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not make yourselves impure through any swarming thing that moves upon the earth. (45) For I the Eternal am the One who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God: you shall be holy, for I am holy.

(46) These are the instructions [This is the Torah of] concerning animals, birds, all living creatures that move in water, and all creatures that swarm on earth, (47) for distinguishing between the impure and the pure, between the living things that may be eaten and the living things that may not be eaten.

Parshat Tazria

(1) The Eternal spoke to Moses, saying: (2) Speak to the Israelite people thus: When a woman conceives and bears a male, she shall be impure seven days; she shall be impure as at the time of her menstrual impurity.— (3) On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.— (4) She shall remain in a state of blood purification for thirty-three days: she shall not touch any consecrated thing, nor enter the sanctuary until her period of purification is completed. (5) If she bears a female, she shall be impure two weeks as during her menstruation, and she shall remain in a state of blood purification for sixty-six days. (6) On the completion of her period of purification, for either son or daughter, she shall bring to the priest, at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. (7) He shall offer it before the Eternal and make expiation on her behalf; she shall then be pure from her flow of blood. Such are the instructions for one who bears a child, male or female.

When a woman conceives - Rabbi Simlai said: Just as the formation of the human took place after that of every cattle, beast and fowl in Creation of the world, so, too, the Torah of the human being is given after the Torah of the cattle, beast and fowl.

(Leviticus Rabbah 14:1).

(20) God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and birds that fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky.” (21) God created the great sea monsters, and all the living creatures of every kind that creep, which the waters brought forth in swarms, and all the winged birds of every kind. And God saw that this was good. (22) God blessed them, saying, “Be fertile and increase, fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” (23) And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

(24) God said, “Let the earth bring forth every kind of living creature: cattle, creeping things, and wild beasts of every kind.” And it was so. (25) God made wild beasts of every kind and cattle of every kind, and all kinds of creeping things of the earth. And God saw that this was good.

(26) And God said, “Let us make the human being in our image, after our likeness. They shall rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the cattle, the whole earth, and all the creeping things that creep on earth.” (27) And God created the human in God's image, in the image of God, God created him; male and female God created them.

The Holy One gazed into the Torah and created the world.

When a woman conceives - This is like what is written [in Psalms 139:5], "You have created me behind and before." Said Rabbi Yochanan: If the human being merits, they inherit two worlds, this one and the coming one - as it is written: "You have created me behind and before (in front)." And if not, they have to face judgment and give an accounting, as it says, "And You laid your hand (kapcha) on me." [ibid], as it is written, [Job 13:21] "Withdraw your hand (kapcha) far from me."

Said Rav Shmuel bar Nachman: The Holy Blessed One, when creating the first human being, created it as an Androgynos. Reish Lakish said: When it was created, it was created with two faces, and then it was split so that it has two backs - one back was male, and one back was female.

They challenged his interpretation: [But doesn't it say in Genesis 2:21] "And God took one of his ribs (tzela)"!? He said to them, that means 'one of his sides', as it is written, "and to the side (tzela) of the Tabernacle" [Exodus 26:20].

Said Rabbi Berachiya and Rabbi Chelbo and Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachman: When God created the first man, from one end of the world to the other end, God created him to fill the entire world. How do we know from east to west? As it says, "You created me back to east (kedem)." How do we know from north to south? As it says, [Deuteronomy 4:32] "From the ends of the heavens to the ends of the heavens." How do we know that it was the expanse of the world? As it says, "And You laid your hand on me." Said Rabbi Elazar: "Behind" - that's the first day [of creation]. "Before" - that's the last day. For the opinion of Rabbi Elazar, there is the verse, [Genesis 1:24]: "Let the earth bring forth the living soul (nefesh chaya) to its kind." "Living soul" - that's the spirit of the first man. Said Reish Lakish: "Behind" - that's the last day. "Before" - that's the first day. For the opinion of Reish Lakish, there is the verse: [Genesis 1:2] "And the spirit of God wavered upon the water" - that is the spirit of the king messiah. If man merits, we say to him: "You were created before all of creation." If not, we say to him, "The mosquito preceded you." Said Rabbi Yishmale b'Rabbi Tanchum: "Behind" on all creation, "before" (first) in all punishments. Said Rabbi Yochanan: Even man's praise only comes last, as it says [Psalms 148:110]: "Beasts and all cattle creeping things and flying fowl". And afterwards, [Psalms 148:11]: "Kings of the earth and all peoples."

Rabbi Simlai said: Just as the formation of the human took place after that of every cattle, beast and fowl in Creation of the world, so, too, the Torah of the human being is given after the Torah of the cattle, beast and fowl - as it is written, "This is the Torah of cattle" [Leviticus 11:46], and afterwards, "when a woman conceives..."