This week is Halloween, so I thought I'd post about ghosts in the Jewish faith.
And the one I kept coming across is the Dybbuk. The Dybbuk is a malicious possessing spirit, believed to be the dislocated soul of a dead person, which leaves the host body after accomplishing its goal.
Writer S. Ansky wrote a play called The Dybbuk. The story follows a young woman named Leah'le, who wants to marry a man named Hannan. Leah'le's father objects to the marriage, as he wants her to marry a rich man (sound familiar, anyone?). Anyway, Hannan dies, and on her wedding day, Leah'le is possessed by his spirit, by the Dybbuk.
This story has been adapted into movies, operas, and even a ballet, composed by Leonard Bernstein and created by one Jerome Robbins, director of the original production of Fiddler.
It's pretty creepy stuff. I'm including a clip below. Many, many clips are available on YouTube, including the whole film, if you really want to creep yourself out.
But, to end on a lighter note, there is also another spirit called the ibbur. This is a positive possession, when a righteous soul temporarily possesses a body. This is done so that the soul can perform a mitzvah.
Happy Halloween!
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