Niddah 31a § 2
The Soul Preserves the Body
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Passage Content
This is an example of the popular folk saying:
Shake off the salt from the meat and
you can throw the meat to the dogs.
Rashi explains (note 24), salt is what preserves
the meat and prevents it from becoming putrid.
Once this preservatice is removed, the meat
will decay and will no longer be fit
for human consumption. Similarly, the soul
is the preservative to the body, keeping it vital.
Once the soul is taken from the person,
the body decomposes and becomes putrid.
Shake off the salt from the meat and
you can throw the meat to the dogs.
Rashi explains (note 24), salt is what preserves
the meat and prevents it from becoming putrid.
Once this preservatice is removed, the meat
will decay and will no longer be fit
for human consumption. Similarly, the soul
is the preservative to the body, keeping it vital.
Once the soul is taken from the person,
the body decomposes and becomes putrid.