Amulets and talismans are found among the most different peoples, on all continents, from the beginning of History to the present day. Among us Jews, their history spans several thousand years.

And what are amulets and talismans? These are objects generally worn around the neck or wrist, with the aim of protecting or helping the person carrying them against negative spiritual forces. It is necessary, however, to emphasize that there is a clear difference between amulets and talismans. The first are used by the person as a form of protection and defense against some evil. The talisman, on the other hand, acts in the opposite way, as it is believed to empower the person who uses it, attributing some power or positive energy to the person who possesses it.

Historians and archaeologists believe that practically all ornaments used by people in Antiquity were originally amulets. This premise is based on the fact that most of these ornaments usually bear the image of idols or were consecrated to them. In the Book of Genesis, for example, we read that our Patriarch Jacob buried under a tree “all the strange gods that (those who lived in his house) had in their power, and the hoops of their ears” (Genesis 35:4).

In Judaism, a purely monotheistic religion that completely rejects anything that resembles idol worship, the role of amulets and talismans is to serve as a conduit for Divine blessings. Therefore, Judaism allows only those amulets and talismans made and used in accordance with the laws of the Torah. The Talmud teaches us that these objects usually contain inscribed words one of G-d's Names or even passages from the Torah (Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 115b).

However, it is worth asking, why does the Torah sanction the use of amulets and talismans? One of the reasons would be the following: as Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism, teaches, human beings live in a physical world, therefore they need to use materiality to attract and transmit Divine plenitude to the world. The staff used by Moshé and Aaron to perform miracles – the 10 plagues in Egypt and the parting of the Sea of ​​Reeds – are a great example of this.

Jewish amulets are usually made of texts (letters or graphic symbols) engraved on some type of material; they may even contain plants or precious stones. They most often have a specific purpose, such as facilitating birth, promoting recovery or healing from an illness, promoting an improvement in business, and so on.

The Hebrew word for amulet, Kamêa1, relates to the notion of tying or uniting. A Jewish amulet, therefore, must be “bound or tied around something.” Most of the time, amulets are worn around a person's neck or tied around their wrist; or, in the case of a baby, stuck to your clothes. Sometimes, amulets are worn directly on the person's body, in a hidden way. In Antiquity, it was common to find amulets on the bodies of brave Jewish warriors.

The greatest evidence of the use of amulets by Jews dates back to the time of the Sages of the Talmud. The discussion that revolved around whether or not it was permissible to carry amulets on Shabbat is found in the Shabbat Treaty, along with an affirmative answer – one could wear the amulet as long as the person who made it was a Jew specialized in its production or that the amulet was, in fact, an object whose effectiveness had been proven (Mishnah, Shabbat 6.2; Babylonian Talmud, Shabbat 61a).

The Talmud thus defines a strong amulet: as the Sages taught in Tosefta2,What constitutes an effective amulet? He is the one who healed a person once, and healed him again, and healed him a third time. This is the criterion for an effective amulet and applies to both a written amulet and one made from herb roots; It is necessary that its effectiveness has been proven in curing a patient in a serious condition or in curing a patient in a not so serious condition.

The value and effectiveness of an amulet or talisman also depend on the spirituality of its author, since his spiritual powers are what will determine the strength of the amulet or talisman. The amulets considered valid were composed and engraved by masters in the subject, known as the Ba'alei Shem (the Masters of the Sacred Name).

The Five Books of the Torah only make mention of amulets, while Talmud-era and post-Talmud passages, as well as Kabbalah texts, provide more information on this subject. Even the Book of Proverbs, written by King Solomon, Shlomó HaMelech, the wisest man who ever lived, refers to consecrated conceptions about amulets.

The use of genuinely Jewish amulets – and not those borrowed from non-Jewish sources, was very intense in the rabbinic period, that is, from about the 1st century to about the 7th century of the Common Era. Consequently there are several mentions of amulets in rabbinic literature. As the Talmud does not prohibit the use of amulets, we see that throughout History their use was widespread and practiced among the Jews. It flourished in Spain, the East and throughout Europe. On the European continent, belief in the occult powers of amulets was widespread among Jews and non-Jews, at all levels of society.

The amulets could be strips of parchment with letters of the Name of G-d, anagrams and transpositions thereof, passages from the Torah and other similar texts. They were often a small metal plaque containing the letters of the Divine Name. Amulets were worn wrapped around the arm or wrist; or exceptionally they were carried by hand. Women and children generally wore them on neck chains, rings or other adornments.

Contradictory opinions about amulets

Amber Hai Gaon, a rabbi and scholar who was the master of the Talmudic Academy of Pumbedita in Babylon in the early 11th century, denied the powers of certain amulets, as, for example, that a piece of papyrus, inscribed with the Name of D' us, could scare away thieves; or that this Sacred Name engraved on a new tile could calm the seas. However, it is interesting to note that he admitted that amulets could be effective as a means of healing and protection. As he wrote, “everything depended on the author of the text and the moment of its application.”

Rabbi Moshé ben Nachman, Nachmanides, permitted the use of a metal plate with the image of a lion as a remedy against a severe cough. This type of belief was universal and is also mentioned by Manasseh ben Israel, from Amsterdam – Portuguese rabbi, cabalist, writer, diplomat, painter, editor and founder of the first printing house in Hebrew characters in Amsterdam, in 1626.

It is worth mentioning, however, that not all of our Sages agreed on the use and power of amulets. There was strong opposition to their use among certain Sages over the centuries, including Maimonides, who declaredly condemned them. He denied that they had any strength or virtue, writing of “the madness of those who make amulets, who hope to achieve miracles with permutations of the Divine Name.”

However, important 18th-century rabbis such as Rabbi Yonatan Eybeschütz and Rabbi Naftali ha-Kohen Katz (who served as rabbi in Poznan and Frankfurt am Main) were known for writing amulets. In his will, Rabbi Katz ordered that his great amulet be divided into five parts, one for each of his five children.

Many of the books written by Kabbalists in the 17th and 18th centuries include texts on amulets. Its use was also practiced by Hasidim, having been written and recorded by a series of distinguished Rebbes.

It is interesting to note that amulets were not just a phenomenon of medieval Jewish life. Even today, many Jews believe in its power. As an article written by the Assaf HaRofeh Hospital in Tel Aviv demonstrates, amulets and talismans remain part of contemporary Jewish practice. For two months, hospital staff asked parents of all children admitted to the Pediatric ICU to fill out a questionnaire with demographic data about the patient and their family members, use of talismans or other folk medicine practices, as well as their perception of the effects of such practices on the patient's well-being.

And they found, to their surprise, that 30% of Jewish families used amulets and talismans in the ICU, regardless of the family's socioeconomic situation or the severity of the hospitalized child's illness. The results indicated that these objects were significantly more used by religious Jews, by families with a higher level of education and in cases where the children were younger.

mezuzah

Any controversy regarding the permission to use amulets according to Judaism depends on the definition given to these objects. For example, one of the most well-known commandments of the Torah, which is mentioned twice in the text of the prayer of Shema Israel, is to place a mezuzah on the doorposts of the house. On the one hand, the placement of the mezuzah fulfills a commandment of the Torah. But, on the other hand, it also fulfills the role of an “amulet”, as it protects the inhabitants of the home where it is displayed.

Since ancient times, there are records of people who used mezuzah as an amulet. In fact, the Mishnah mentions that some had the custom of using a staff with a hollow part where a mezuzah for your protection.

Let's look at the protective powers of mezuzah: on the outside of your parchment, there is one of the Names of G-d, Sh-a-dai (י-ד-ש). Kabbalists explain that in addition to constituting a Divine Name, these three letters are also the acronym for Shomer Delatot Israel – “Guardian of the gates of Israel,” in allusion to the protection given by mezuzah. In view of this, in the Responsas of post-Talmudic times, there is a discussion of the following: protection can be obtained only with a mezuzah placed correctly, according to the commandment – ​​or it can come from any mezuzah?

Many are of the opinion that, in fact, there is some measure of protection in the mezuzah, even if it is not affixed to the door frame. In this regard, the Lubavitch Rebbe recommended that certain individuals who dealt with matters related to health always carry a mezuzah – obviously in addition to having Mezuzot kosher posted on the portals of your home.

The protective powers of mezuzah serve as a paradigm for amulets and talismans kosher – that is, those that are made and used in accordance with the laws of the Torah. Several Jewish sources, including the Talmud, teach that, in ways similar to Mezuzot, the Tefillin They are also permitted amulets, preserving the Jewish People from the force of evil and their enemies.

Figuratively, the main amulet of the People of Israel is the Torah itself, as it is the channel that leads all Divine blessings, forgiveness and kindness to us, human beings.

Kamêa, interesting to mention, is what Magic Squares are called, one of the methods of numerical organization.

Tosefta is a second compilation of the Oral Law, during the period of drafting of theMishnah,c. 200 of this Age.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Amulet, article by Ludwig Blau published on the website https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles

Contemplative and Practical Kabbalah, article by Rabbi Moshe Miler published on the website http://www.chabad.org/kabbalah

Kaplan, Aryeh, Meditation and Kabbalah, 1989. Rowman Littlefield Publishing