And when a man has an emission of seed, he shall bathe his whole body in water and be unclean until evening. Rabbi Benamozegh unpacks the phrase “emission of seed” (שכבת זרע) by drawing from Shadal’s work, Mishtadel. Shadal presents two interpretations to explain the meaning of this enigmatic phrase, which literally means ‘the laying down of seed’: firstly, that the semen must be spread on a garment, akin to a person lying down; and secondly, the act of lying down itself. However, Rabbi Benamozegh proposes a different understanding, suggesting a reversal of the two words of the phrase. He posits that the phrase שכבת זרע should be understood as “the semen of lying down” (i.e., זרע השכיבה), indicating semen emitted during marital relations, commonly referred to euphemistically as “lying down”. This interpretation is supported by a verse in Vayiqra 18:20: “And you shall not put your ‘lying down’ into your fellow man’s wife to emit seed to be defiled through her...”

Rabbi Benamozegh then addresses the ritual of washing with water that follows the emission. He argues that this immersion is not for physical cleanliness, nor is it due to climate conditions, as some have suggested. To substantiate this, he notes that many ancient nations, including the Greeks, practised ritual immersions, even though their climate did not require it. These immersions were integral to ancient religious ceremonies, such as the initiation rites of the Greek Eleusinian mysteries, and other secret rites imitating Bacchus, with references dating back to the era of Homer, from his Iliad. Finally, Rabbi Benamozegh cites a “free-thinking researcher” who, though not aligned with religious views, has independently acknowledged a partial truth in his assessment of these practices. The researcher, identified as 19th century French politician-turned-occultist Victor Hennequin, suggests that while the commandments of purity and immersion might serve bodily health, they also signify a deeper reality. He proposes that physical cleanliness symbolises the purity of the soul, thereby linking physical actions with spiritual meanings.