Divine scents and presence

Abstract

This chapter describes employs olfaction, and particularly that of pleasing aromas, as a lens through which to view how the rabbinic movement reinterpreted Judaism and the Hebrew Bible after the destruction of the Temple and during the rise of a Christian Roman empire. The primary form of communication with God as described in the Hebrew Bible was through sacrifice. Rabbinic tradition cites Judah, the Roman-appointed Patriarch, as the Mishnah's compiler and editor. Rabbinic Judaism grew out of the rabbinic desire to infuse every aspect of daily life with sanctification. The contrast between Israelites and Romans, as perceived by the rabbis, comes to the fore in rabbinic interpretation. The reference to the 'table of kings' alludes to the table of God and to the wealth of kings. The image of Israel placed on the table of the king in the world and the next is highly suggestive of sacrifice upon the altar, death and rebirth, and Israel's current situation.

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