It’s hot hot summertime, and as I sit by the pool, watching my children play in the water, watching dozens of others, of all shapes and sizes, I have bodies on the brain. Today, we Americans alternately are exhorted by secular culture to venerate our bodies, to primp, pump and de-plump, or seduced by other faith traditions that devalue the body, that urge us to transcend our dirty, unholy bodies, to move to a higher, disembodied plane.  

What’s a Jew to do?  

Looking back on our tradition, one can see that the above story about Rabbi Hillel is but one example of our being directed towards being deeply rooted in our bodies. When we arise in the morning, we give thanks for our physical selves, offering gratitude to God for “making for us all the openings and vessels of the body.” We put on tallit and tfillin, adorning our body as we wrap ourselves in the presence of God.

Tradition holds that we are forbidden to commit suicide, because we understand that our bodies belong to God, and are only on loan to us. Similarly, we are forbidden tattoos, which permanently change the body that God has given us. After death, we cannot be cremated, for that too would desecrate the body. Instead, our bodies are honored with a loving ritual, a meeting of the hevra kedisha, at which the body is washed, dressed, and prepared for burial.  

The body is vital because our role in this world is vital. Jews understand that, as there is no way to know what will happen to us after our deaths, we must instead concentrate on tikkun olam, on making this world a better place. Without our bodies, without being in physical health, that would be impossible. As Rabbi Brad Artson writes, “one need not share every Talmudic belief about the afterlife to recognize great wisdom in preserving a sense of awe and gratitude for the human body. In an age awash in self-destructive drugs, too busy to exercise or to eat carefully, respect for our bodies is dangerously low on our agenda.”

The book of Isaiah contains the verse, “[Adonai] will make strong your bones.” On this, Rabbi Eleazar comments: “This is the most perfect of blessings” (Yevamot 102b). This lazy August month, concentrate on your body, on your bones, on your physical being, “the most perfect of blessings.” How do you take care of it? How could you respect it a little more? What work do you do in the world to help others take care of their bodies? May we all be blessed to be conscious of our bodies, the houses of our souls.