Anon asked Staff ago Hello,
I greatly enjoy reading the pilpuls on your site.
As a secular person, my Aramaic is a little rusty, so it is more convenient for me to read the pilpul in contemporary Hebrew. I noticed that in a not inconsiderable number of pilpuls the discussion revolves around sex with animals, discussing not the prohibition, “but what would happen if…”
And I ask – isn’t sleeping with an animal an absolute prohibition?
If the Gemara talks about Jews who have had sex with animals “accidentally,” then apparently it’s not so forbidden.
Similarly, the Gemara constantly blames the gentiles for having sex with animals — where does this approach come from? Just a sense of superiority, or is there some other basis?
David
jsadmin Staff answered 19 years ago
Dear David,
In the Daily Pilpul A Jew who has accidental sexual relations with an animal and a gentile who has sexual relations with an animal we wrote: “If a man has sexual relations with an animal or a woman has brought an animal to have sexual relations with her, the animal, the man, and the woman are all sentenced to death (by stoning). It is written “And if a man lie with a beast, he shall surely be put to death, and you shall slay the beast. And if a woman approach any beast and lie down for it, you shall kill the woman and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them” (Leviticus 20:15-16).” From here you learn that bestiality is utterly forbidden.
As to the view of gentiles, it would seem that it was Chazal’s custom to attribute to gentiles an exaggerated amount of sexual licentiousness, and due to their licentiousness they elevated the Jews. For example, they said “They [the gentiles] prefer the animals of Jews over their own women,” as we quoted in the Daily Pilpul Gentiles customarily have intercourse with animals belonging to Jews, but not with their own animals.
Another thing: you must remember that society, in the era of Chazal, was agrarian, and apparently bestiality was a common occurrence. Proof of this is that some sages prohibited being alone with an animal, lest one come to sleep with it. The sage Abaye did not remain in the field with animals for fear his inclinations would overcome him, and when the sage Rav Chanan visited his colleague Rav Kahane, he saw his friend sitting and learning with an animal in front of him. Rav Chanan asked him: is it not forbidden to be alone with an animal? Rav Kahana answered that he did not notice there was an animal there with him (Kiddushin 81b). This implies that there were sages who admitted to the reality of sexual desire for animals and therefore forbade being alone in their company.
Sincerely,
Daat Emet