From <https://www.thetorah.com/article/when-gehenna-is-not-enough-the-sinners-spirit-is-forced-to-wander>:linebreak[Go there for notes, bio, better format]linebreak==========================linebreaklinebreakWhen Gehenna Is Not Enough, the Sinner's Spirit Is Forced to WanderlinebreaklinebreakIn 1571, a widowed woman, unable to light a fire, screams "to Satan with you" at the flint and tinder and soon finds herself possessed by an evil spirit. Notably, she also does not believe in the exodus. Only after she repents does the kabbalist Hayyim Vital exorcise the spirit through her little toe. Before doing so, Vital interrogates the spirit to learn why it has not yet entered Gehenna (hell) and how it has been wandering the earth from Hormuz to Gaza to Shechem.linebreakDr. Morris M FaiersteinlinebreaklinebreakSaul's Evil SpiritlinebreakAfter angering God and losing divine support for his dynasty, [1] causing the divine spirit to alight upon David, King Saul is overcome by an evil spirit:linebreaklinebreak1 Samuel 16:4 And the spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him. 16:15 And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee. 16:16 And he said, My lord, let thy servants now seek before thee a man that is a skilful player: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God shall be upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and it shall be well with thee. 1 Sam 16:14 Now the spirit YHWH had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from YHWH began to terrify him. 16:15 Saul's courtiers said to him, "An evil spirit of God is terrifying you. 16:16 Let our lord give the order [and] the courtiers in attendance on you will look for someone who is skilled at playing the lyre; whenever the evil spirit of God comes over you, he will play it and you will feel better." [2]linebreaklinebreakSaul's servants find David, and at first, his playing the lyre helps relieve Saul:linebreaklinebreak1 Samuel 16:23 And the Spirit of God came upon Saul, and David took the harp, and played with his hand: and the spirit came upon Saul, and he was well, and the evil spirit departed from him. 1 Sam 16:23 Whenever the [evil] spirit of God came upon Saul, David would take the lyre and play it; Saul would find relief and feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.linebreaklinebreakEventually, however, the evil spirit overcomes Saul, and he attempts to murder young David while playing his lyre:linebreaklinebreak1 Samuel 18:10 And it came to pass in the evening, that an evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied within the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times, and the harp was in Saul's hand. 18:11 And Saul cast down the harp, and said, Achish, David, and Bacchides: and David turned himself about before him. 1 Sam 18:10 The next day an evil spirit of God gripped Saul and he began to rave in the house, while David was playing [the lyre], as he did daily. Saul had a spear in his hand, 18:11 and Saul threw the spear, thinking to pin David to the wall. But David eluded him twice. [3]linebreaklinebreakThe Bible never explains in any detail what this evil spirit is, although the story depicts it as causing or representing paranoid behavior of an aggressive/depressive nature. [4]linebreaklinebreakDemon Possession in the Second Temple PeriodlinebreaklinebreakBy the late Second Temple and rabbinic periods, this kind of uncharacteristic behavior was often understood to be a result of possession by shedim or mazikin , [5] ie, "demons." [6] The gospels tell stories of Jesus exorcising demons, [7] as does Josephus, who claims that this knowledge of exorcism goes back to King Solomon. Josephus describes an exorcism of a demon performed by a Jewish exorcist named Eleazar, in the presence of the future emperor Vespasian:linebreaklinebreakJosephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 8.45 And God granted him (Solomon) knowledge of the art used against demons for the benefit and healing of men. He also composed incantations by which illnesses are relieved, and left behind forms of exorcisms with which those possessed by demons drive them out, never to return.linebreaklinebreak8.46 And this kind of cure is of very great power among us to this day, for I have seen a certain Eleazar, a countryman of mine, in the presence of Vespasian, his sons, tribunes, and a number of other soldiers, free men possessed by demons.linebreaklinebreak8.47 And this was the manner of the cure: he put to the nose of the possessed man a ring which had under its seal one of the roots prescribed by Solomon, and then, as the man smelled it, drew out the demon through his nostrils, and when the man at once fell down, adjured the demon never to come back into him, speaking Solomon's name and reciting the incantations which he had composed. [8]linebreaklinebreakEvil Spirit Possession 2.0linebreaklinebreakIn the 16 th century, R. Isaac Luria (1534–1572)—known popularly as the Ari or Arizal, the originator of Lurianic kabbalah—and his students applied exorcism to "evil spirits," eventually renamed "dybbuk," ie, Hebrew for "that which clings." [9] While this term is familiar from the biblical story of Saul, Luria and his followers understood the "evil spirit" who possesses a person not as his own supernatural being, like a demon, but as the soul of a deceased Jewish man [10] whose sins were so severe that he has been denied entrance to Gehenna for purgation.linebreaklinebreakThus, the evil spirit is trapped between this world and the next and has to wander the earth until expiation is found for the sin. Only once it has suffered enough, can the soul be judged and sent to Gehenna for its official, 12-month punishment and then on to the Garden of Eden for its reward. While it wanders the earth, the soul can only find rest by possessing or joining with another entity or being, animate or inanimate.linebreaklinebreakA look at one such story in depth—when R. Hayyim Vital (1542–1620), the chief student of R. Isaac Luria, exorcizes an evil spirit from a widow in Safed—clarifies how Luria and his followers exorcised such evil spirits from their hosts, and how they would also learn much about the nature of punishment and the soul from them. [11]linebreaklinebreakVital's own record of this story in his Sefer Hezyonot [Book of Visions], his mystical diary, [12] is quite terse (see appendix). Nevertheless, a more expansive version, rich in detail, was written up by Rabbi Shloimel Dresnitz, a kabbalist from Moravia, in an appendix to the third of a set of three letters he sent to Rabbi Issachar Baer of Krementz, [13] describing what he had learned in Safed. These three letters were published by Joseph Solomon Delmedigo (1591-1655)—known as Yashar of Candia—in his Mysteries of Wisdom . [14]linebreaklinebreakLuria Sends a Possessed Woman to VitallinebreaklinebreakThe story begins by describing the pain that the widow was feeling under the evil spirit's possession:linebreaklinebreakMysteries of Wisdom 4:–5: An incident occurred in the days of the holy and pure Rabbi, the divine Kabbalist, as the late Rabbi Yitzchak Luria Ashkenazi, in Safed, in the case of a widowed woman who was filled with great and intense sorrow. Many people entered her house and spoke to her. And the Spirit answered each one, telling him the troubles of his heart and the need that would be lacking for him. Mysteries of Wisdom 49b–50b A story occurred in the days of the holy and pure Rabbi and divine kabbalist, our teacher, Rabbi Isaac Luria Ashkenazi, of blessed memory, in Safed, may it quickly be rebuilt, concerning a widow into whom a Spirit entered. She had great pains and torments. Many people came to her and spoke with her. The Spirit responded to each one and told them the afflictions of their heart and what deficiencies they had.linebreaklinebreakLuckily for the widow, among the many rabbinic visitors was a rabbi who knew the spirit from when he was alive:linebreaklinebreakAnd among those who came, a wise man entered his presence, and his name was the wise man Mohar Rabbi Yosef Ashkenazi, may God have mercy on him. Immediately the spirit said to him, "Welcome, my master and teacher and rabbi. I remember, sir, that I was your student in Egypt for a long time, and my name is so-and-so, and my father's name is so-and-so." Among those who came was a sage by the name of Rabbi Joseph Ashkenazi, of blessed memory. The Spirit immediately said to him: "Welcome my teacher and master. Does not my master remember that I was his student for a long time in Egypt? My name is so and so, and my father's name is so and so."linebreaklinebreakThe family members then take the case to Luria, who recommends that Vital perform the exorcism:linebreaklinebreakAnd now, when the woman's relatives saw her pain and sorrow, which was so great that they went to the holy rabbi, Rabbi Yitzhak Luria, to anoint his face, to go with them to the woman, and to have the spirit removed from the woman. When the woman's relatives saw that her pain and anguish were very great, they went to the holy rabbi, our teacher, Rabbi Isaac Luria, of blessed memory, to beg him that he should go with them to the woman and expel the Spirit from the woman. And since Rabbi Lilach had no time to go there, he sent his student, Mohar Rabbi Chaim Kalivers, with them, and laid his hands on him and gave him the names of the names. He also ordered him to pronounce denunciations and banishments on him and to expel him by force. However, the Rabbi, of blessed memory, was not free to go with them, so he sent his student, Rabbi Hayyim [Vital] Calabrese, [15] of blessed memory, with them. He (Luria) put his hands on him (Vital) and transmitted the kavvanot [16] and [divine] names. He also commanded him that he should decree bans and excommunications and should expel him against his will.linebreaklinebreakAt this point, we get the part of the story Vital recorded in his diary (see appendix), about the initial refusal of the evil spirit to face him and why:linebreaklinebreakAnd when the Rabbi, Mahar Chaim, entered, the woman immediately turned her face to the wall. The Rabbi, Mahar Chaim, said to her, "You wicked one, why have you turned your face away from me?" The Spirit of God replied, "I cannot look at your face, for the wicked cannot see your face, the face of the Shekhinah." Immediately the Mahar Chaim ordered him to turn his face away. So he turned his face away immediately. When Rabbi Hayyim, of blessed memory, came in to her, the woman immediately turned her face to the wall. The Rabbi [Vital], of blessed memory, said to her: evildoer, why have you turned your face away from me? The Spirit responded and said to him: I could not look at your face, since the evildoers cannot look at your face, the face of the Shekhinah . Rabbi Hayyim, of blessed memory, immediately commanded him to turn his face, and then he turned his face.linebreaklinebreakAngels Punish Him for AdulterylinebreaklinebreakKnowing that this is a spirit of a deceased Jewish man who sinned, Vital asked him what he did to bring about this punishment of becoming a wandering spirit, and the spirit explains:linebreaklinebreakEl-Rav: Tell me what sin you have committed and what crime you have committed, that you may be punished with such a severe punishment. The spirit answered him and said: I have sinned by having a husband and have given birth to bastards. And now for twenty-five years I have been wandering in the land, and I have not had any rest, not even for an hour or a moment. The rabbi immediately said to him: tell me what sins and transgressions you committed that you were punished with such a severe punishment. The Spirit responded to him: I committed adultery and I caused bastards [ mamzerim ] to be born. It is now twenty-five years that I am wandering the earth, without even an hour or a moment of rest.linebreaklinebreakIt isn't merely that his spirit wanders the earth in pain, but he is followed by angels who humiliate and torture him:linebreaklinebreakAnd behold, three angels of destruction always accompany me to all the places where I go, and they punish me with severe blows, even to the point of death, and they proclaim before me, saying: "Thus shall it be done to the man who brings many abominations upon Israel." Three angels of destruction are always with me everywhere I go. They punish me and flog me mercilessly, and announce before me, saying: "'thus, will be done to a man' who increases bastards in Israel."linebreaklinebreakThe phrasing here is meant to mimic the curse announced about a man who refuses to perform levirate marriage (Deut 25:9), and perhaps also what Haman is forced to say about Mordechai (Esth 6:9, 11), although that case is positive. Most likely the angels announce for what sin he is being punished. [17] The spirit then asks Vital whether he sees these angels himself:linebreaklinebreakThe spirit also said to the Rabbi of old: "My lord, do you not see how A stands on my right and A on my left, and they are crucifying me, and the third stands and strikes me with a deadly blow." The Spirit said further to the Rabbi, of blessed memory: "Does not my master see one standing to my right and one to my left, and they announce before me, and the third one beats me with deadly blows."linebreaklinebreakVital doesn't answer; perhaps the question was rhetorical.linebreaklinebreakVital Learns the Rules of Pre-Gehenna PunishmentlinebreaklinebreakVital then asks how it is that the spirit is being punished for longer than twelve months, and the spirit explains that Vital misunderstands the rules of afterlife:linebreaklinebreakRabbi Val asked him: "And doesn't Arzal (Babbi Rosh Hashanah 17th) say, 'The trial of the wicked in Gehenna is on the 12th day of the month'?" The Rabbi asked him, and said to him: "Did not the Talmudic sages say (b. Rosh Hashanah 17a), 'The judgment of evildoers in Gehenna is twelve months'"? The Spirit of God replied: "I did not go into detail, sir, in the article mentioned, which states that 'the judgment of the wicked in hell' is accurate, after they suffered all their punishment except for hell in their incarnations, and severe judgments remain." The Spirit responded and said to him: "My master was not precise with regard to the passage mentioned. The Talmudic sages said 'punishment in Gehenna' specifically, but this is after they have suffered all punishments outside Gehenna, in transmigrations and other harsh decrees. Then they take him to Hell, and there stand twelve new ones, combing and bleaching him to remove all the stains of the soul from him so that he will be ready and ready to enter the Garden of Eden." Afterwards, they bring him into Gehenna, and he remains there for twelve months while they purify and perfect them, in order to remove from them all the stains from their souls, so that they would be prepared and ready to enter the Garden of Eden.”linebreaklinebreakGehenna, the spirit explains, is actually only a small part of the punishment a sinful soul suffers after death:linebreaklinebreakAnd he is like a specialist doctor who first gives the wound hard and bitter markers until the living flesh of the wound is eaten. Then he gives the wound cold and good anointings and ointments on top of the wound in order to grow and cool the flesh as before. This is the matter of Gehenna, because the pain of Gehenna is not part one of the fifty parts that the soul and the sinful mind suffer before it is sent to Gehenna. "It is comparable to an expert physician who puts difficult and bitter potions on the wound so that they should eat the infected flesh in the wound. Afterwards, he puts bandages and bindings on the wound in order to heal and cool the flesh as it was originally. So too is the matter of Gehenna: The pain of Gehenna is not even one part of the fifty parts that the soul and spirit of the sinner suffer before their entrance into Gehenna."linebreaklinebreakDeath by Suffocation: In Accordance with the MishnahlinebreaklinebreakThe spirit explains to Vital that he was killed by suffocation, albeit in an unconventional way, in accordance with the death penalty assigned to adulterers in the Mishnah (San 11:1):linebreaklinebreakSo the late Rabbi asked him: How was your death? Then the Rabbi, of blessed memory, asked him: How did you die? The Spirit and the Lord replied: My death was by suffocation, but according to the law of the fourth degree, the second degree of death is nullified, the law of the fourth degree of death is not nullified, and I left Alexandria on a ship to go to Egypt, and at the place where the Nile enters the sea, the ship sank, and I and other Jews who were with me on the ship drowned. The Spirit responded and said: "My death was by strangulation. Even though the four forms of death by the court have been abrogated, the law of the four deaths has not been abrogated. [18] I went from Alexandria on a ship to Cairo, and the ship sank in the place where the Nile enters the sea. I and other Jews that were with me on the ship drowned."linebreaklinebreakVital then asks why the spirit didn't at least confess his sins before he died, and is told that he simply didn't have the opportunity:linebreaklinebreakSo the late Rabbi asked him: Why didn't you say the confession at the time of your soul's departure from your body? Maybe it would have been beneficial for you? Then Rabbi Hayyim, of blessed memory, asked him: Why did you not recite the confession as your soul left your body? Perhaps it might have helped you? The spirit replied: I did not have time to say the confession, immediately the water choked me in my throat, and immediately I drowned in the sea. My mind was lost and I was not in the right mind to confess. The spirit responded to him: I did not have time to recite the confession, because the water immediately choked me in my throat, and I immediately drowned in the water. I was distraught and did not have the presence of mind to confess.linebreaklinebreakThe Spirit's Journey after He DiedlinebreaklinebreakVital then asks the spirit an open-ended question about what happened after he died:linebreaklinebreakSo the Rabbi asked him, "Tell me what happened to you after you drowned in the sea and after your soul left your body?" Then the rabbi asked him: "Tell me what happened after you drowned in the sea, and after your soul left your body?"linebreaklinebreakThis encourages the spirit to present a long description of the journeys his soul engaged in while on earth.linebreaklinebreakAttacked by an Angel —The spirit begins by relating how he was attacked by a cruel angel:linebreaklinebreakThe spirit answered him and said: Know that when the news of the shipwreck became known in Egypt, the Jews immediately left Egypt and entered the sea and took us out of the sea and buried us. And then immediately after the Jews had recovered from the house of life, a cruel angel came with a blazing torch in his hand and struck his grave with a blazing torch. Immediately the grave split in two from the blow, which was very great and very strong. And that angel said: "Wicked, wicked, arise in judgment." The Spirit responded and said: You should know that when the matter became known about the sinking of the ship, the Jews of Cairo immediately went out, entered the water, and took us from the water and buried us. Immediately after the Jews left the cemetery, a cruel angel came with a fiery staff in his hand and strongly smote my grave with the staff. The grave immediately split into two from the blows that were great and mighty, and the angel said to me: "evildoer, evildoer, arise for judgment." He immediately took me and put me in the slingshot and shot me with one shot from Egypt to the entrance of Gehenna in the wilderness, and I fell there before the entrance of Gehenna. Immediately, a thousand thousand wicked people who were condemned to Gehenna came out of Gehenna, and they all shouted at me and said to me (2 Samuel 16:7): "Come out, come out, bloody man," get out of here, "you troubler of Israel" (1 Kings 18:17; 1 Chronicles 2:7). And they cursed me with strong curses, and said to me: You are not yet worthy to enter Gehenna, and you still do not have permission to enter here. He immediately took me and put me in the hollow of the sling and slung me with one shot, from Cairo to before the gate of Gehenna that was in the desert. As I fell there, before the gate of Gehenna, many thousands of evildoers who had been sentenced to Gehenna came out, and all of them shouted at me and said to me (2 Sam 16:7): "Go, go, man of blood," leave here "sullier of Israel" (1 Kgs 18:17; 1 Chron 2:7). And they cursed me with many curses and said to me: "It is not yet appropriate for you to enter Gehenna, and you do not yet have permission to enter here." Then immediately they quickly shot me from mountain to mountain and from hill to hill, and always other angels of destruction walk with me and proclaim before me and always prepare me. Also at every moment and at every moment other angels of destruction and evil spirits, and Shadyn and Lilin, and upon hearing the proclamation that proclaims before me, they also continue to strike me with great and severe blows. And these draw me here, and this draws me here until all the joints of my soul are in doubt. They immediately slung me from mountain to mountain and hill to hill, and these three angels of destruction always accompanied me, and announced before me and beat me. Also, every time that other angels of destruction, evil spirits, demons, and Lilith's [19] encountered me and heard the announcement that was announced before me, they also beat me with great and terrible blows. These [angels] also dragged me here, and this led me here, until all the vertebrae of my Soul were dislocated.linebreaklinebreakSinners of Hormuz —the spirit then narrates how he went to Hormuz to try and possess a Jew, but they were all too sinful there:linebreaklinebreakAnd so I went, wandering in the land until I reached the city of Hormuz, which is a large city near the land of India, and I intended to enter the body of a Jew. Perhaps from those plagues and torments and troubles. And when I came to that city and saw those Jews who were wicked and sinned greatly against God, Thus, I wandered the earth [20] until I reached the city of Hormuz, [21] which was a large city close to the land of India. My intention was to enter the body of some Jew. Perhaps I would be spared the blows, torments, and troubles. When I came to that city, I saw some Jews who were evildoers and great sinners against God. [22] I could not enter into the body of one of them because of the many forces of impurity that reside within and around them. If I were to enter into the body of one of them, I would add impurity to my impurity and damage to my damage. They had sexual relations with gentile women and committed other sins. I was not able to enter the body of any of them, because of the many powers of impurity that dwelled in them, and in their surroundings. If I had entered the body of one of them, I would have added impurity to my own impurity, and damage to my own damage.linebreaklinebreakThe Doe of Gaza —the spirit then narrates how he possessed the body of a doe, and how unpleasant it was too live as an animal and why:linebreaklinebreakSo I returned and walked quickly from mountain to mountain until I came to the Gaza desert, and there I found a deer passing by, and out of great sorrow and as if in a dream I entered its body. And this was after seven years of going through many and terrible troubles. And when I entered the body of the deer, I had a very great sorrow, I again returned to going from mountain to mountain and hill to hill until I came to the desert of Gaza. I found a pregnant doe there, and out of my great anguish and pain, I entered her body. This was after seven years of enduring great and evil troubles. When I entered the body of the doe, I had immense pain, Since the soul of a human being and the soul of an animal are not equal to each other, one walks upright and the other walks crouched, and the soul of an animal is also full of filth and disgust, and smells bad before the soul of a human being. Also, what is eaten is not eaten by a human being. Since the spirit of the person and the spirit of an animal are not similar to each other. One of them walks upright and the other walks horizontally. Also, the spirit of the animal drinks water that is impure and full of despicable things, and it smells bad for the spirit of the person. It also eats food that is not food for a human. And I also had great sorrow for the fetus in her womb. Likewise, the ewe had great sorrow for me, and she opened her belly, and ran in the mountains until she burst open and died. And in addition, I had great anguish from the fetus that was in her womb. The doe also had great anguish because of me, and her abdomen was pinched (or "swollen"). She ran over hills and valleys until her abdomen split and she died.linebreaklinebreakThe Kohen of Shechem —he then travels to Shechem and there, he possesses a kohen (a man from a priestly family), but the combined forces of Jewish and Muslim exorcists forces him out of that man's body:linebreaklinebreakFrom there I went out to the city of Shechem and entered in the body of a Jewish priest, and immediately that priest sent for the holy and shaved heads of the Ishmaelites, and for most of the spells and the swearing of the names of impurity, as well as the amulets of the names of impurity that hung around his neck, I could not bear them and stand in his body, and I left there. I left there and came to the city of Shechem, where I entered the body of a Jew who was a kohen. The kohen immediately sent for the holy men [ kedoshim ] and clergy [ galohim ] [23] of the Ishmaelites [Muslims], to increase the incantations and adjurations with impure names, also for amulets with impure names, which they hung around his neck. I was not able to tolerate them and remain in his body.linebreaklinebreakThe Widow of Safed —and this, he explains, is how he came to possess the widow whom Vital is treating:linebreaklinebreakImmediately, I fled from there and came here, Safed, and entered the body of this woman. And today, for me, it has been twenty-five years that I have not rested or been quiet, only every day they add sorrow to my sorrow and pain to my pain. I left him and immediately escaped from there and came here to Safed, may it be quickly rebuilt, and entered the body of this woman. Today is twenty-five years that I have not had tranquility and quiet, but every day they add anguish to my anguish, and pain to my pain.linebreaklinebreakThe Length of Pre-Gehenna PunishmentlinebreaklinebreakHaving heard this long ordeal, Vital asks how long this pre-Gehenna punishment will last:linebreaklinebreakOh, the late Rabbi, how long will you have this sorrow, and will you never be resurrected? The Rabbi, of blessed memory, said to him: how long will you have this pain, and is there never any recovery for you? The spirit answered him and said, "Until all the bastards I have begotten die, for as long as they live and exist I have no remedy." Then all the people who were there, a very large crowd, all wept bitterly, for the fear of judgment had fallen upon them, and there was a great and great awakening throughout the country from that deed. The Spirit responded to him and said: until all the bastards that I gave birth to would die. As long as they are alive and exist, there is no repair for me. At that moment, all of the people who were present, a very large crowd, cried very much, because the fear of Divine Judgment fell upon them. It caused a very great revival in the country because of that event.linebreaklinebreakWhy the Widow Vulnerable to PossessionlinebreaklinebreakNow Vital turns back to the possession of the widow:linebreaklinebreakSo the rabbi asked him, "Who gave you permission to enter this woman's body?" The rabbi asked him: who gave you permission to enter the body of this woman?linebreaklinebreak"To Satan with you!" —The spirit explains that she sinned by cursing in anger:linebreaklinebreakThe spirit replied and said: I spent one night in her house and in the early hours of the morning this woman got up from her bed and wanted to make fire from the stone and iron, but the burnt rag did not accept the sparks. And the woman begged a lot, but she could not. The Spirit responded and said: I slept one night in her house and before dawn this woman got up from her bed to strike a spark from the flint and steel. The tinder did not catch from the sparks and the woman pleaded very much, but she did not succeed. Then the woman became very angry and threw the stone, the iron, and the burnt rag, all of it, to the ground. She said with great anger, "To the devil!" and immediately gave me permission to enter her body. Then the woman became very angry, and she threw the flint and steel and the tinder, everything in her hands, to the ground, and said in great anger, "go to Satan." [24] I was immediately given permission to enter her body.linebreaklinebreakVital is unconvinced by this explanation:linebreaklinebreakThe late Rabbi asked him and said: And was it for such a minor sin that they gave you permission to enter her body? The Rabbi, of blessed memory, asked him and said: you were given permission to enter her body, because of such a small sin?linebreaklinebreakDisbelieves in the Exodus — the spirit admits that the woman did more than curse; she is a non-believer:linebreaklinebreakThe spirit replied, "Know, wise master, that this is not a good thing, because it does not believe in the miracles that the Blessed One performed for Israel, and in particular in the exodus from Egypt." The Spirit responded and said: know my master and sage that this woman was not as she appeared. She does not believe in the miracles that the Holy One did for Israel, and particularly the exodus from Egypt. [25] And every Passover night, all of Israel is happy and good-hearted, saying the Great Hallel and recounting the Exodus from Egypt. The child is vain in her eyes, laughing and thinking in her heart that there has never been such a miracle. Every Passover eve when all Jews are joyful and happy, recite the Great Hallel, and recount the story of the Exodus from Egypt, in her heart she thinks that there never was such a miracle, and it is all a projection and a joke.linebreaklinebreakA Repentant WomanlinebreaklinebreakHearing this, Vital gives the woman a chance to respond, or perhaps repent:linebreaklinebreakImmediately, the Rabbi said to such-and-such a woman, "Do you believe with complete faith that the Holy One, blessed be He, is one and only, and created heaven and earth, and in His hand is the power and ability to do whatever He wishes, and there is no one who can tell Him what to do?" The Rabbi immediately said to the woman: So and so, do you believe with complete faith that the one and only Blessed Holy One created heaven and earth, and with His hands, has the strength and ability to do whatever He wants, and there is nobody who can tell him what to do? The woman replied and said: Yes, I believe everything with complete faith. The woman responded and said: Yes, I believe it all with complete faith. The late Rabbi also said to her: Do you believe with complete faith that God brought us out of Egypt from the house of slavery and parted the sea for us and performed many miracles for us? The Rabbi, of blessed memory, further said to her: Do you believe with complete faith that the Holy One took us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery, split the sea for us, and did many miracles for us? The woman replied, "Yes, my wise master, I believe everything with complete faith, and if I had a different opinion, I regret it," and the woman began to cry. The woman responded: Yes, my lord sage, I believe it all with complete faith, and if at times I had other beliefs I regret it, and the woman began to cry.linebreaklinebreakVital Exorcises the Spirit Through Her Little ToelinebreaklinebreakHaving heard the woman affirm her faith in the divine miracles of the exodus, Vital commands the spirit to leave her body:linebreaklinebreakThe Rabbi immediately decreed that the spirit should not come out through any organ that would harm it, but only through the little toe on the left foot. The reason is that through the organ through which it comes out, that organ is completely nullified. The rabbi immediately decreed upon the Spirit that he should leave, and he should not leave through any organ that would harm her, but through the smallest toe of her left foot. The reason being that the limb through which it leaves might be permanently damaged. And the rabbi pointed to the names that his late rabbi had given him. Immediately the finger swelled and became calloused, and he came out through there. The Rabbi concentrated on the [Divine] names that had been taught to him by his teacher, of blessed memory. The toe immediately swelled up and reddened, and it exited through there.linebreaklinebreakThe spirit keeps coming back, begging to return, so the family sends to Luria again:linebreaklinebreakLater, for several nights, the wind came to the windows of the house and the door of the house and frightened the woman into returning and entering in her body. And the woman's relatives returned to the Kabbalist, the Ari, zt'l. Afterwards, for several nights, the Spirit came to the windows and door of the house and frightened the woman so that she would let him return and enter her body. The woman's family members went back to the kabbalist, Rabbi Isaac Luria, of blessed memory.linebreaklinebreakMezuzah Problem —Luria suggests that their vulnerability to this pressure comes from a faulty mezuzah, and sends Vital to deal with the problem:linebreaklinebreakThen the late Rabbi returned and sent his student, Rabbi Chaim, and ordered him to check the mezuzah to see if it was fit for the song or not. Rabbi Chaim went to check the mezuzah and found the opening without a mezuzah. The Rabbi, of blessed memory, again sent his disciple, our teacher, Rabbi Hayyim [Vital], of blessed memory, and commanded him to examine the mezuzah , to see if it was proper, or defective. Rabbi Hayyim, of blessed memory, went to check the mezuzah and found that the door had no mezuzah . The rabbi immediately ordered a mezuzah to be placed on the door, and they did so, and from then on he never returned. The Rabbi immediately ordered that a proper mezuzah be put on the door. They did so, and from that time forward, it never returned.linebreaklinebreakEvil Spirit as Spiritual TeacherlinebreaklinebreakThe unique position of the ruaḥ raʿah in Lurianic kabbalistic thinking allows for a paradox. On one hand, the spirit is a nuisance, like the demons of the Second Temple period, and requires someone with mystical knowledge to exorcise them from their hosts. At the same time, these spirits were once members of the Jewish people, and as such, can communicate their experiences to these living kabbalists, advancing Jewish knowledge about souls and afterlife.linebreaklinebreakIndeed, it would seem that Vital first learns about the pre-Gehenna punishment of souls, forced to wander the earth while being tortured by cruel angels, from this encounter with a spirit whom he eventually exorcizes anyway. Moreover, in this thinking, the hosts themselves are vulnerable due to their own sins, so part of the exorcism is leading them to repent or fixing their ritual problems.linebreaklinebreakThe soul itself cannot be helped, as his punishment is already in the hands of those same angels, and only time and suffering will eventually allow them the relief of entering Gehenna for their last twelve months of punishment, and then finally, paradise in the Garden of Eden.linebreaklinebreakAppendixlinebreaklinebreakVital Records that He Exorcised an Evil Spirit from a Widow in SafedlinebreaklinebreakVital records this incident in his posthumously published diary:linebreaklinebreakChaim Vital, Book of Visions Part 1: The Year of the Dog. While I was in Safed, my late teacher taught me to cast out evil spirits with a special power that he taught me. Vital, Book of Visions 1:25 "5331 (1571). [26] When I was in Safed, my teacher, of blessed memory, taught me how to exorcise evil spirits with the power of a unification that he had taught me.linebreaklinebreakA "unification" ( yiḥud ) is a mystical meditation. [27] Vital first commands the spirit to face him:linebreaklinebreakAnd when I went to him, the woman was lying on the bed and I sat next to her and he turned his face from facing me to another side. I told him to turn to me and talk to me, but he left, and he didn't want to. When I came to him, a woman was lying on the bed. When I sat down by her side and [the evil spirit] turned his face away from me. I told him to turn his face towards me and speak to me, that he should leave, but he refused.linebreaklinebreakHaving been refused, Vital hits the spirit—ie, the possessed widow—and the spirit explains why it had refused his request:linebreaklinebreakAnd I struck his face with my hand. And he said to me: And is it because I did not turn my face away from the Kittim? I did not do this with wickedness, but because your face burns with a great burning fire, and my soul is burned if I look at you, because of your great holiness. I slapped his face with my hand and he said to me: "Because I would not turn my face you hit me? I did not do this maliciously, but because your face burns like a great flame and my soul would be burned if I looked at you, because of your great holiness."linebreaklinebreakVital's diary actually records one further example of such an exorcism.linebreaklinebreakExorcising the Spirit of Judah GanolinebreaklinebreakMany years after Vital had left Safed and was living in Damascus, the spirit of Judah Gano [28] warns him one night that he needs to be exorcised:linebreaklinebreakChaim Vital, Book of Visions, Part 2: On the first night I saw in a dream a rich man who died here in Damascus a year before I came, and his name was Judah Gano, and I had never seen him before. And he prayed to God that I would correct his soul, because there is no one else worthy of correcting in this generation, and behold, tomorrow I will take you to your house. And I woke up. I saw in a dream a wealthy man who had died here in Damascus, a year before I came. His name was Judah Gano, and I had never seen him. He begged me, for God's sake, that I should repair his soul, because there is nobody else in this generation who is worthy to repair [souls]. Tomorrow, I will come to your house, so you can fix me. And I woke up.linebreaklinebreakThe next morning, he learns that Gano's spirit had possessed a girl, who showed up at his door, to have the exorcism performed.linebreaklinebreakAnd it came to pass on that day, that a girl, A., daughter of Daniel Romano, who was afflicted with an evil spirit, came to my house, and was possessed by it. The next day, a girl came to my house who was the daughter of Daniel Romano. She was possessed by an evil spirit, and I healed her.linebreaklinebreak~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~linebreakDr. Morris M. Faierstein is an independent scholar of Hasidism, Kabbalah, Early Modern Popular Jewish Culture and Early Modern Yiddish literature. His MA is from JTS and his Ph.D. from Temple University [...]linebreak