Is it Better to Never have been Born

The Sages taught the following baraita: For two and a half years, Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disagreed. These say: It would have been preferable had man not been created than to have been created. And those said: It is preferable for man to have been created than had he not been created. Ultimately, they were counted and concluded: It would have been preferable had man not been created than to have been created. However, now that he has been created, he should examine his actions that he has performed and seek to correct them. And some say: He should scrutinize his planned actions and evaluate whether or not and in what manner those actions should be performed, so that he will not sin.

This is the line of Noah.—Noah was a righteous man; he was blameless in his age; Noah walked with God.— Noah begot three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. The earth became corrupt before God; the earth was filled with lawlessness. When God saw how corrupt the earth was, for all flesh had corrupted its ways on earth, God said to Noah, “I have decided to put an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with lawlessness because of them: I am about to destroy them with the earth.

I further observed all the oppression that goes on under the sun: the tears of the oppressed, with none to comfort them; and the power of their oppressors—with none to comfort them. Then I accounted those who died long since more fortunate than those who are still living; and happier than either are those who have not yet come into being and have never witnessed the miseries that go on under the sun. I have also noted that all labor and skillful enterprise come from men’s envy of each other—another futility and pursuit of wind! [True,]The fool folds his hands togetherAnd has to eat his own flesh. [But no less truly,]Better is a handful of gratificationThan two fistfuls of labor which is pursuit of wind.

For thus said GOD,The Creator of heaven who alone is God,Who formed the earth and made it,Who alone established it—Who did not create it a waste,But formed it for habitation:I am GOD, and there is none else.

And if you say he should be idle and not marry, but isn’t it true that the world was created only for procreation, as it is stated: “He did not create it to be a waste; He formed it to be inhabited” (Isaiah 45:18)? Rather, for the betterment of the world we force his master to make him a freeman, and the slave writes a bill to his master accepting his responsibility to pay half his value to him. And Beit Hillel ultimately retracted their opinion, to rule in accordance with the statement of Beit Shammai that a half-slave must be set free.

Now, this was certainly said only from the standpoint of this world. Considering the adversities of this world and the afflictions which each and every person suffers here, it certainly would have been better to have not been created at all. But from the standpoint of the World to Come, it certainly is better to have been created, because specifically through this one attains the ultimate purpose, as mentioned above. And even in this world: Better one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world than the entire life of the World to Come (Avot 4:17).