Jewish mythology Jewish mythology is the body of myths associated with Judaism. Elements of Jewish mythology have had a profound influence on Christian mythology and on Islamic mythology, as well as on Abrahamic culture in general. Christian mythology directly ...

, the luz () is a

bone A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, ...

in the

spinal column The spinal column, also known as the vertebral column, spine or backbone, is the core part of the axial skeleton in vertebrates. The vertebral column is the defining and eponymous characteristic of the vertebrate. The spinal column is a segmen ...

that houses the

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

of the human body. In Hebrew, "luz" means

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

, though in some editions of the Bible, it is translated as

hazel Hazels are plants of the genus ''Corylus'' of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family, Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K ...

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

ish traditions teach that the luz is the bone from which the body will be rebuilt at the time of

resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions involving the same person or deity returning to another body. The disappearance of a body is anothe ...

, and share the idea that this bone does not decay. Rabbi

Shraga Simmons Shraga Simmons (born 1 July 1961) is an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, journalist, filmmaker, brand builder and leader in Torah-themed marketing. He is the co-founder of Aish.com, the educational website and co-founder of HonestReporting, the pro-Israel ...

teaches that destruction of this bone by

cremation Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a corpse through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India, Nepal, and ...

could prevent resurrection. Interpretations disagree as to where in the spine the ''luz'' is located. Some say it refers to the small, almond-shaped bone at the top of the

(the first cervical vertebra, C1 or the Atlas), underneath the brain, on the top of the spine, (the bone where the knot of the

tefillin Tefillin (Modern Hebrew language, Israeli Hebrew: / ; Ashkenazim, Ashkenazic pronunciation: ; Modern Israeli Hebrew, Modern Hebrew pronunciation: ), or phylacteries, are a set of small black leather boxes with leather straps containing scrolls o ...

rests). Other tradition however identified it with the

coccyx The coccyx (: coccyges or coccyxes), commonly referred to as the tailbone, is the final segment of the vertebral column in all apes, and analogous structures in certain other mammals such as horse anatomy, horses. In tailless primates (e.g. hum ...

, at the bottom end of the eighteen vertebrae. The Talmud, for example, mentions a small bone at the end of the spine, identified as the luz by some. Julius Preuss discusses the Rabbinic views on this and agrees that the luz refers to the coccyx. Similarly, Saul Lieberman also mentioned that popular Jewish tradition identified the luz with the end of the spine, and understand it to be the coccyx. Within

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...

, there is an

aggadah Aggadah (, or ; ; 'tales', 'legend', 'lore') is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, particularly the Talmud and Midrash. In general, Aggadah is a compendium of rabbinic texts that incorporat ...

(non-legalistic exegetical story) involving a dispute regarding the luz bone between the Roman Emperor

Hadrian Hadrian ( ; ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. Hadrian was born in Italica, close to modern Seville in Spain, an Italic peoples, Italic settlement in Hispania Baetica; his branch of the Aelia gens, Aelia '' ...

and the rabbi

Joshua ben Hananiah Joshua ben Hananiah ( ''Yəhōšūaʿ ben Ḥănanyā''; d. 131 CE), also known as Rabbi Yehoshua, was a leading tanna of the first half-century following the destruction of the Second Temple. He is the eighth-most-frequently mentioned sage in t ...

. Hadrian asks how man would be resurrected at the end times, and Joshua replies it would be "from (the) ''luz'' of the spine". When asked to prove his claims, Joshua demonstrates the bone's apparent indestructibility: it could not be softened by water, cremated by fire, crushed by a mill, and when placed on an anvil and struck with a hammer, both the hammer and anvil were broken, but the bone remained undamaged. In

Kabbalah Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ...

, the ''

Zohar The ''Zohar'' (, ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work of Kabbalistic literature. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material o ...

'' states that the luz is the bone in the spine that appears like the head of a snake, implying that it is the

sacrum The sacrum (: sacra or sacrums), in human anatomy, is a triangular bone at the base of the spine that forms by the fusing of the sacral vertebrae (S1S5) between ages 18 and 30. The sacrum situates at the upper, back part of the pelvic cavity, ...

at the bottom of the spine, because the sacrum is the only bone in the spine that looks like the head of a snake. The sacrum has similar significance to the luz as a source of resurrection in Egyptian and Greek cultures contemporary to the ''Zohar'' and

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

. Likewise, in

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic thought, the bone's status as the indestructible nidus of human resurrection is repeated in several

hadith Hadith is the Arabic word for a 'report' or an 'account f an event and refers to the Islamic oral tradition of anecdotes containing the purported words, actions, and the silent approvals of the Islamic prophet Muhammad or his immediate circle ...

s. The sacrum has a pattern of dimples and shape that appear similar to those of the

shell.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Luz Talmudic mythology Bones of the vertebral column