A Chunk of Meat

Reincarnation is a major tenet in Judaism. It is taught that we are given another opportunity to correct past transgressions if we have not done so in our former lifetimes. This seems nice, and may mislead some people into spiritual complacency- but don’t be fooled. Just because we are given another chance to correct it doesn’t mean that our situations will be identical. In fact, we are put at a greater disadvantage in the next life; just ask the turkey and the steer…

Here are two stories that vividly emphasize how important modesty is:

Story 1: There was once a group of men praying at the grave site of a tzaddik (I forget who) when all of a sudden, a bunch of wild turkeys flocked over to the grave and started making quite a ruckus with all of their noises and wing flapping. The men tried and tried to shoo them away, but they kept returning time after time. It seemed that they, too, wanted a chance to pray at the grave of the tzaddik. For what purpose, though? Eventually, the rabbi’s wife figured it out (of course she did; I always said women were smarter!).

She noticed that the turkeys had a very unusual appearance. The areas around the eyes were big circles of turquoise blue, and the wattles (the hanging skin at the throat) were dark red. These colors stood out too much in comparison to regular turkeys, and there had to be some reason why.

She thought and thought about it, and the answer came to her. These turkeys were reincarnations of female souls that were too proud of their appearance! In a past life, these women probably were very beautiful, and went to great length (and expense) to enhance their beauty. It likely resulted in plenty of men staring at them and desiring them, and could have led to many broken marriages. Therefore, they had to come back with painted faces, albeit in a painful and embarrassing way in order to correct their previous actions.

Once the rabbi’s wife assured the turkeys that she would pray for them, they miraculously left the group alone and went off on their way.

Story 2: This I saw from a great lecture from Rabbi Zechariah Wallerstein. He used to travel quite a bit for business, and in one trip he ended up in Texas. His hosts knew he was religious and wouldn’t go to bars or non-kosher restaurants, so they were at a loss over how to entertain him. Then they got the bright idea to take him to a cattle auction- hey, it was something that would certainly be a novelty for him!

So one night, there he was, probably the only religious Jew standing in a sweaty, crowded stadium of a few hundred men, wondering what in the world Hashem put him there for. With much ceremonial pomp, the show began. A cowboy led a huge steer into the middle of the stage, with the men cheering and yelling. Without delay, the bidding began. The auctioneer egged the crowd on, yelling, “Look at that neck! Look at that thigh!” He measured that steer from every angle; the width of the thigh, the chest, the fat of its neck…meanwhile the bidders were going crazy.

Rabbi Wallerstein thought he fell into some parallel universe. He even wondered if he was hallucinating the entire experience. Maybe he was still in New York and someone slipped something into his coffee?

Nope- this was really happening. Watching incredulously as one cow after another went through the same experience of being the center of a bidding war, he still couldn’t understand for the life of him what he was doing there. After all, Hashem doesn’t do anything without a purpose, right?

The moment that really threw him off was when he made eye contact with one of the steer and he could swear that he saw it crying…

Even after he returned the New York the experience remained fresh in his mind and continued to haunt him. Eventually, the light bulb on top of his head lit up- a crowd of hundreds of men…cheering…whistling at the steer standing in the center of the room…its body being measured and examined from all angles…humiliation in its eyes…

OMG the steer was a reincarnation of a woman who used her looks to get attention from other men! Imagine- a woman walking down the street…tight-fitting clothes that show every curve of her body…construction workers (or cowboys) whistling at her and checking her out…her ego getting a boost from all the attention…

Sounds too far-fetched? Fantastical thinking? Male chauvinist propaganda?

I don’t think so. Judaism, true Torah Judaism, is the most pro-feminist religion I know of.

Dear ladies, the whole point of covering up your body is to keep it sacred and special for one man only. Is it really worth showing off your painted faces when it could potentially destroy another couple’s marriage? We don’t see how far the spiritual effects of our actions reach.

In the end, what’s the difference between the woman in high heels and tight pants parading down the street and the steer being paraded in the stadium?

After all, they’re both looked at as just a chunk of meat…