PHYSICAL PURITY IN THE DSS by Kimberly Noble (14 May 1995) Religious Studies 225: The Dead Sea Scrolls (R.Kraft) The Dead Sea Scroll community strongly shunned people who showed evidence of a variety of physical irregularities which were classified as impure. Such physical impurity, which was transferred to other people and objects via direct contact, represented a sort of moral impurity, as well. Impurity appears to have lasted for seven days, during which time, at least in theory, the impure were to be completely ostracized from the life and practices of the main community. At the end of this time, they were able to undergo purification, which consisted of some form of actual or symbolic bathing. Disease is one of the most abundant examples of physical impurity found in the scrolls. Various documents list rules for dealing with people with specific diseases. For instance, the Damascus Document (4Q267, Fragment 9, Column 1, GM 53) lists the "regulation for ringworm of the head or beard" (line 5). It states that if "living hairs have been added to the dead ones during seven days, he [[that is, the patient]] is impure; but if liv[ing] (hairs) have not been added...that disease is healed" (lines 11-13). Clearly, the disease is considered to cause impurity in the patient. The "regulation of the law of leprosy" in the same fragment lists precisely how leprosy, one of the most discussed diseases in the Scrolls, is deemed impure. First the priest sees if the rash has "taken hold of living skin" (line 3). He examines the patient on the seventh day of the infection. If "something live has been added [to the dead]," it is deemed "malignant" (lines 4-5). In line 13 it states that the regulation of the law of leprosy is "for the sons of Aaron, so that they can differentiate [...]" Though the text is cut off, it is reasonable to conjecture that the law provides the community with specific guidelines with which they may differentiate between the pure and the diseased impure. Unfortunately, though both 4Q271, Fragment 7 and 4Q272, Fragment 1 are copies of the material, neither provides the end of this phrase. The notion that the impurity of disease may be spread through contact with a diseased person is supported in the Temple Scroll, which states that a separate zone east of the city must be constructed for lepers (11Q19, Column 46, lines 16-18, GM 168). In addition, in Column 48, it states, "in every city you shall make places for those contaminated with leprosy, infection, and scabies so that they do not enter your cities and defile them..." (GM 169, lines 14-15). Clearly, those who are diseased have the potential to contaminate others; however, the extreme quarantine suggests not merely a physical impurity, but a moral impurity as well. The diseased are to be kept entirely separate from the other members of the community. There is a fine line between purity dealing with physical contagion and purity dealing with immorality. It appears not unlikely that in the eyes of the Dead Sea Scroll authors, disease crossed that line. This is further supported by the Damascus Document (Column 8, line 5, GM 43) which states, "if there is a judgment against anyone about the law of leprosy, the priest shall take his place in the camp." A person with leprosy is not only ostracized, but replaced. In addition, the use of the word "judgment" implies that one has committed a wrongdoing of sorts in being diseased. The Scrolls never mention a method to specifically purify oneself from leprosy. However, the Temple Scroll (Column 45, line 17, GM 167) does allude to the fact that purification is possible, when it prohibits "lepers and infected persons" from entering the Temple until they purify themselves. The column ends with the phrase, "when he purifies himself and offers the" (line 18). Though the fragment is incomplete, it is perhaps possible that purification involves some sort of offering of a sacrifice. Fragments 13-16 (GM 182) duplicate the material, but also do not complete the phrase. Further evidence for the ability to purify oneself from disease occurs in 4QMMT (line 67, GM 78) which states, "And also concerning lepers: we s[ay that] they should [not] enter the holy purity, but instead [remain outside the camp], alone...from the moment he shaves and washes he should reside outside [his tent for seven] days." Since it only instructs that the leper be excluded for a week, it follows that, after the week, the leper may re-enter the community, and hence, has become pure. This is further supported by line 74 of 4QMMT (GM 78) which prohibits lepers from eating "any of the holy things until the sun sets on the eighth day." On the eighth day, the leper may once again partake in the common meal of the community. Interestingly, it appears that blindness and deafness might have been looked at as having an impurity similar to disease. 4QMMT (line 52, GM 78) states somewhat ambiguously: "concerning the blind [who cannot see: they should keep themselves from all uncleanness,] and they do not see the uncleanness of the sin- offering." However, the Temple Scroll (45, line 12, GM 167) states that, "No blind person shall enter it throughout his whole life, he shall not defile the city in the centre of which I dwell..." While 4QMMT is rather vague, stating simply that the blind should avoid impurity, the Temple Scroll implies that the blind are inherently impure enough to be prohibited from even entering the Temple. The Temple Scroll does not mention deafness; however, 4QMMT (line 55, GM 78) states that "concerning the deaf who do not hear the law or the regulations concerning purity and do not hear the laws of Israel; for whoever neither sees nor hears, does not know hot to apply (them); but these are approaching the purity of the temple." Thus it appears that the author of 4QMMT did not believe that the blind and deaf were inherently impure; rather, they were simply too ignorant to be able to properly practice the rites of the temple. However, they did "approach" the purity of the temple. Conversely, the author of the Temple Scroll maintains that at least blind people were too impure to enter into the city of the temple. The latter view appears to be supported by the author of the Damascus Document (Column 15, line 16, GM 39) which prohibits both "those with sightless eyes" and "a deaf person" from entering the congregation, "since the holy angels are in its midst." If the Damascus Document was indeed a rule manual that the community used in practice, this is evidence that the blind and deaf were, in actuality, banned from the community just as were the diseased. However, unlike the diseased, there is no evidence that the blind or deaf had the opportunity to be "purified." In addition to disease, death itself is considered innately impure. Specifically, dead bodies are repeatedly described as unclean. Once someone comes in contact with a dead body, they too become impure, and are able to contaminate others. The Temple Scroll discusses the impurity of corpses extensively. Column 49 (lines 5-9, GM 169) states, "...every house in which someone dies shall be unclean over seven days; everything there is in the house and everything which goes into the house shall be unclean over seven days; every drink shall be unclean; the clay pots shall be unclean and everything there is in them shall be unclean for every pure man. The open vessels shall be unclean with all the drink there is them shall be impure for every Israelite." The corpse's potential for transmission of impurity is clearly evident. The above passage appears to link "pure man" and "Israelite," as both would be contaminated by the impurity of the corpse. However, as used in the DSS, the term "Israelite" tends to refer to all Jews, as opposed to merely the Scroll community. Based on this evidence, it may be conjectured that one need only be Jewish to be considered pure by birth by the author of the Temple Scroll; one need not be a member of the community. This hypothesis is further supported by Column 48, which warns, "Do not do as the Gentiles do: they bury their dead all over the place, they even bury them in the middle of their houses; instead you shall keep places apart within your land where you shall bury your dead" (lines 11-13, GM 169). Clearly, the entire Jewish population is addressed. The impurity of a corpse appears to be spread through direct contact, as in CD (Column 12, line 17, GM 43) which states, "...every utensil, nail or peg in the wall which is with a dead person in the house will be unclean..." The Temple Scroll (Column 45, line 17, GM 167) further discusses the impurity of a corpse when it prohibits anyone from entering the Temple after contact with a corpse "until he purifies himself." It later clarifies how one becomes impure: "Every man who is in an open field [[who]] should touch the bone of a dead person or a stabbed person or a corpse or the blood of a dead person or a burial shall purify himself in compliance with the ruling of this statute, and if he does not purify himself according to the statute of this law he will be impure..." (Column 50, line 5, GM 170). However, unlike someone who is impure because of disease, someone who has been contaminated by a corpse need not be quarantined from the rest of the camp, according to the Temple Scroll, which states that it is possible to purify oneself immediately after contact with the corpse. The method of purification described is actually quite simple. As can be seen in the continuation of Column 50, line 5, as well as in Column 51, line 4 (GM 170), a person who has come in contact with a corpse need only wash his clothes and bathe, and he will become pure by sunset. However, 4Q274 (Fragment 1, Column 1, line 9, GM 88) states that whoever comes in contact with "impure persons, during the seven days of [his pu]rification, shall not eat, like whoever is impure through (contact with a) corpse." This would seem to imply that the same exclusion applies to those contaminated by a corpse as to those contaminated by disease. In addition, even those indirectly contaminated by disease, through contact with an actual diseased person, would be isolated from the main group. The notion of seven days required for purification has been repeatedly mentioned throughout the above discussions of contamination through both disease and corpses. This fits with the general pattern of the calendar of the Scrolls, which contains exactly fifty-two weeks of seven days each. Further evidence of a seven-day requirement for purification is provided through discussion of the impurity of menstruation in various documents. The Temple Scroll (Column 48, line 16, GM 169) states that a separate place should be provided for "women when they are in their unclean menstruation...so that they do not defile in their midst with their unclean menstruation." Though not explicitly stated, it is apparent that such contamination, and therefore such segregation, could inherently last for only short time. Fragment 9, column 2 of the Damascus Document (GM 53) appears to allude to menstruation: "...she has an impurity; and if, however, is seen, and she does not [...] seven days. She should not eat anything holy or enter the temple until sunset on the eighth day." Menstruation could easily be the topic of discussion in this fragment; however, even if it is not, the seven-day period required before purity may be restored is still in practice. Fragment 2, Column 2 of 4Q265 (GM 72) states," [...] shall be impure for seven days, as in the days of menstrual impurity..." Here we actually see the notion of seven days of impurity linked to menstruation. Such discussion is carried further in 4Q274 (Fragment 1, Column 1, line 4, GM 88) which states, "she who has a discharge of blood...must not mingle in any way during her seven days, so that she does not contaminate the camps of the holy [ones of] Israel." Clearly a woman is considered impure during the seven days of menstruation. Again, the notion of contamination through contact is evident, as line 6 states, "Nor should she touch any woman [with a discharge] of blood of several days." In addition, menstruation, like disease and death, is considered one of the impurities, with which, if another person comes in contact, he or she must undergo seven days of purification, as well. Based on various passages throughout the Scrolls which describe the cleansing of any general physical impurity, it appears that water is the key to overcoming impurity. However, certain passages merely mention bathing, while others seem to describe a ceremony involving a symbolic "water of purification" as the key to cleansing. 4Q514 (Fragment 1, Column 1, line 8, GM 92) states "all the temporarily impure, on the day of their purification, bathe and wash (their clothes) in water and they will be pure and afterwards they shall eat their bread in con[formity with the law.]" The traditional notion that the impure are excluded from dining with the rest of the camp is incorporated in this fragment. However, the fragment indicates that one need only wash one's clothes to become pure and re-join the community; no mention of a special ceremony is made. In contrast, 4Q277 (Fragment 1, line 6, GM 90) states that "[...No-one should sprinkle] the water of purification upon the impure, [ex]cept a pu[re] priest...since he atones for the impure." Clearly a special purification ritual is suggested. This differs from 4Q514, which suggests that one must simply bathe oneself to recover his purity. 4Q512 (GM 441-442) repeatedly alludes to a special ceremony. However, it is unclear whether the ceremony involves only the impure person, or other "purifiers" as well. Fragments 10 and 11 state "[and when] the seven days of his pur[ification have been completed...] he will purify his clothes with water [and wash his body...] And he will cover himself with his clothes and bless on [...] God of Israel [...]" The above passage suggests that the impure one must undergo a purification process after the usual seven days; however it makes no mention of either a special water of purification or of someone else conducting the ceremony. However, Fragments 1-6 of the same document state, "in constant streams and the lustral water for temporary purification [...] his clothes and afterwards [they will sprinkle over him] the waters of sprinkling to purify him..." The description includes a symbolic purification water. In addition, the fact that the unnamed "they" will sprinkle the impure person implies that the purification ritual involves others in addition to the impure one. Further evidence that purification involves a special ceremony is present in 4QMMT (line 19, GM 77) which states that "whoever is pure sprinkles the impure," and the Temple Scroll (Column 50, line 2, GM 169) which, not surprisingly, states that "the water of purifica[tion...] on mingling with a dead person [...] shall become impure." Regardless of the specific details of purification, it is clear that such rules existed to "keep the unclean apart from the clean, and distinguish between holy and profane" (CD Column 12, line 19, GM 43). In a society as eschatological as the one described in the Dead Sea Scrolls, it is not surprising that physical irregularities were considered impure and unwelcome. The community strived for perfection in every sense. Any physical imperfection rendered a person impure, and therefore, unfit for the community. Significantly, the War Scroll, which is perhaps the best representative of eschatological literature in the Scrolls, states that "in your land...there will be no disease" (4Q285, line 7, GM 123). That is, at the end of days, there will be no physical imperfection. To prepare for such a time, it was necessary to exclude all who did not meet the community's standard of ultimate purity.