searching soul
New Member
I'm wondering what the subjective experience of believing things unclean is like. I imagine it would vary between individuals, but I'd like a general idea of how this affects people. Also how you think about these particular laws. Any thoughts would be appreciated. 
What is it like to see someone do something that makes them unclean? I'm vegetarian and sometimes feel upset and physically sick when I see people eat meat, depending on how easy it is for me to block the thought of what they're doing from my mind. Is that your experience? Or is it an entirely cerebral reaction, in which you think that it is bad in some way and decide not to do the same to inkeep with your principles? Or, as with me, is it a mixture of the two? Would you ever ask someone to stop, or exit the situation?
If you were raised Muslim, have you find that the thought of unclean things used to horrify you as germs do some children, until you grew older and began to rationalise why those things were forbidden from you? Since I've understood what germs actually are and why everyone seemed obsessed with them I've become less phobic of them, though I still avoid them because it is logical to do so. Is that an accurate analogy?
Do you speculate very intensely about why things are described as unclean? Or do you trust that God has His reasons and think little of it? I know some Jews think it is because those things are bad for physical health, but that wouldn't have seemed so obvious to people at the time the laws were written, and it's hard to imagine how that would apply to things like touching pork. Is it an arbitrary way of testing your priorities and integrity? Might it symbolise a higher value for mankind? Or do unclean things affect the soul or character in some direct way, independent of the individual's disobedience? Which do you think most likely?
Thanks in advance.
What is it like to see someone do something that makes them unclean? I'm vegetarian and sometimes feel upset and physically sick when I see people eat meat, depending on how easy it is for me to block the thought of what they're doing from my mind. Is that your experience? Or is it an entirely cerebral reaction, in which you think that it is bad in some way and decide not to do the same to inkeep with your principles? Or, as with me, is it a mixture of the two? Would you ever ask someone to stop, or exit the situation?
If you were raised Muslim, have you find that the thought of unclean things used to horrify you as germs do some children, until you grew older and began to rationalise why those things were forbidden from you? Since I've understood what germs actually are and why everyone seemed obsessed with them I've become less phobic of them, though I still avoid them because it is logical to do so. Is that an accurate analogy?
Do you speculate very intensely about why things are described as unclean? Or do you trust that God has His reasons and think little of it? I know some Jews think it is because those things are bad for physical health, but that wouldn't have seemed so obvious to people at the time the laws were written, and it's hard to imagine how that would apply to things like touching pork. Is it an arbitrary way of testing your priorities and integrity? Might it symbolise a higher value for mankind? Or do unclean things affect the soul or character in some direct way, independent of the individual's disobedience? Which do you think most likely?
Thanks in advance.