- Many verses in the Torah describe children as continuing the name of the parents.
- The Zohar connects the concept of "gilgul" to Yibum and this concept.
- Thus, the deep meaning behind "gilgul" is really that we continue to live on through others.
The first child that she bears shall be accounted to the dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out in Israel.
The above verses describe how children, or even others can continue a person's life.
The below Zohars now extend this metaphor as describing "reincarnation" which is really about how other people, especially heirs, carry on our name, and can fix our mistakes.
Rabbi Shimon Said: The soul, which is an expression of the higher Yesod = Foundation = life, when it sins, a higher fire dominates it. One type to its own type. And in the body, a bad fire dominates. Peace should be to Israel.
And the person who says that someone who leaves this world without children comes again to this world says the truth.
וְאִית לָנָא רְאָיָה מִנָּדָב וַאֲבִיהוּא, כִּדְכָתִיבְנָא, דְּמִיתוּ פַּלְגֵי גוּפָא הֲווֹ בְּגִין דְּלָא אִנְסִיבוּ.
וְעוֹד אִית לָנָא סֶמֶךְ, מֵעִנְיַן יְבָמָהּ יָבֹא עָלֶיהָ. בְּגִין דְּלָא יִשְׁתַּרֵשׁ זַרְעֵיהּ, וְלָא יִצְטְרִיךְ לְמֵיתֵי זִימְנָא אָחֳרָא בַּגּוּף.
וְתוּ אוֹלִיפְנָא מֵאוֹנָן, דַּאֲמַר הַכָּתוּב בֵּיהּ, (בראשית ל״ח:ט׳) לְבִלְתִּי נְתָן זֶרַע לְאָחִיו.
And we have a source from Nadav and Avihu, who dies at hailf their life because they did not wed.
And we also have support from the concept of Yibum. [this mitzvah is there] in order that his seed not be uprooted, and should not need to come another time in his body.
And we also learn from Onan, who the script says about him "not to give seed to his brother"
And also, those sinners that are "flying in the air" until their sins are atoned, and afer enter again into a body in order to purity it, if it is rightious then it doesn't need to come again into a body. If not, it goes into a third body, as it is written, "lo, all of these is tone twice or three times with a person." And if he, God forbid, is not rightious in any of these three times, he has no more fixing. This is what it means "he shal surely be cut off." Because of this, a person needs to be careful with himself, lest he come another time.
Another source is "and a son was born to Naomi." Naomi did not give birth, rather Ruth gave birth to him! Rather, this comes to teach that Oved was actually Machlon, and Machlon dies without children.
We see here that the child of the Yavam is a reincarnation of the deceased.
"And one of them died and did not have a son." If he would have had children, he would not need this. Rabbi Tanchum Said in the name of Rabbi Yosi: "Her yavam will come to her" why do we need this? In order not to detract from the "form that includes all forms."
The form that includes all forms is Adam, who refers to all of Mankind. In essence, in order that mankind as a whole be not deficient anything.
וְחָלְצָה נַעֲלוֹ, כְּמָה דְאַתְּ אָמֵר (הושע ה) חָלַץ מֵהֶם. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אֲמַר רַבִּי חִיָּיא, כְּתִיב, (שמות ג) אַל תִּקְרַב הֲלֹם שַׁל נְעָלֶיךָ מֵעַל רַגְלֶיךָ, וְכִי מִנְעָל מְטַהֵר אֶת הַמָּקוֹם, אוֹ מְטַמֵּא אֶת הַמָּקוֹם. אֶלָּא אָמַר רִבִּי אַבָּא, מְלַמֵּד שֶׁצִּוָּה לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּדֶרֶךְ כָּבוֹד לְהִתְפָּרֵשׁ מֵאִשְׁתּוֹ מִכֹּל וָכֹל. בְּמשֶׁה כְּתִיב נְעָלֶיךָ, וּבִיהוֹשֻׁעַ כְּתִיב נַעַלְךָ, שֶׁלֹּא יִתְפָּרֵשׁ מֵאִשְׁתּוֹ מִכֹּל וָכֹל, אֶלָּא לְעִתִּים מְזוּמָנִים.
"And she should untie his shoe" Just as it is written "relase from them" Rabbi Yehuda said in the name of Rabbi Chiya: it is written "Don't come near, take of your shoes from your feet" Lo, a shoe does not make pure or unpure the place! Rather, Rabbi Abba says, this is to teach us that the holy one blessed be he, in an honorable way, to seperate from his wife completely.
By moses, it is written "your shoes" by Joshua it is written "your shoe" because he did not complely seperate from his wife, but only sometimes.
Rabbi Jochanan said, a man needs to rely on his Owner, and aquire a wife and have children, so that he not go barren into the next world. As we learn "what is written "and they shall die barren" that anyone who has no children in this world, it is as if he never was created or was, and he is called "barren" from this world and the next.
Rabbi Jochanan said: After a man married a woman, and has children, he is called a "servent of God" and inherits this world and the next world, as it is written, "to place a blessing in your house"
A metaphor: What is this like? A king who gave a deposit [the soul] to three people. One kept this deposit, another lost his deposit completely, the third make it dirty, and he gave of himself to another [his heir] to watch it. Later, the king came to demand his deposits back. The one who kept it, the King praised and made him the "trusted of his house" [like Moses]. The second, who lost his deposit, the king banishes him from the world, adn commands that he should have no remenant. The third, that made his deposit dirty, and left it to another, the king says, let this one be until we see what the other [his heir] what he does with what was left to him in his hand. And this way, the third person does not leave the house of the king.
If this other [the heir] is worthy, this man goes free. If he is not, the king says, give this man a punishment for dirtying the deposit, and leave the deposit in the hands of the other. Rav Huna says: once it enters, it enters.
And if he dirties the deposit and does not leave it in the hands of another go guard it, we make him leave the house of the king, until another comes and fixes what he dirtied, and the deposit is taken from the hand of this one, and given to the other who fixes it.