Isurei bi'ah The term ''isurei bi'ah
(Hebrew איסורי ביאה) refers to those one may not have intercourse with. The most serious of these form a subset known as arayot
(Hebrew: ), based on the word erva'' ("nakedness") in . Intercourse with arayot is one of the few acts in Judaism which one may not perform even to save one's life. The term
erva is also used to describe parts of a woman considered to be immodest and sexually provocative, including hair, thighs, and singing voice. Arayot include: •
Incestuous relations • Male-male anal intercourse • Bestiality • Sex with a Jewish woman during her
menstrual period (known as
niddah) Other isurei bi'ah include: • Sexual intercourse between Jews and Gentiles • Divorcees or female converts with
Kohanim (priests) •
Mamzerim (offspring of adulterous unions) with regular Jews When two people are forbidden from having sex together, the laws of
negiah prohibit them from engaging in lesser sexual touch (including hugging and kissing), while the laws of
yichud prohibit them from spending time together in private in a manner that would allow them to have sex undetected. These prohibitions do not apply in certain situations where sexual relationships are unlikely, for example among close family members.
Homosexuality The traditional view is that the
Torah forbids
anal intercourse between two males (i.e.
sodomy), and this is the view of
Orthodox Judaism, based on : "Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind; it is abomination." Rabbinic sources extend this prohibition to all other sexual acts between two men, which are prohibited similar to how they would be prohibited between an unmarried man and woman. There is no explicit ban on female-female intercourse in the
Hebrew Bible, but it is similarly condemned in later rabbinical halakhic texts. Classical rabbinic sources also condemn marriage between two men, which they see as an activity performed by non-Jews which invited Divine punishment. Some medieval Jewish authors wrote fiction and poetry which portrayed homosexual love positively, though often these seem to be adaptations of a style found in contemporary Arabic poetry, unlikely to be based on real-life love affairs. These narratives are not intended as literal accounts, instead conveying a more symbolic message. In
Liberal Judaism (United Kingdom), homosexual relationships are considered acceptable, and weddings are conducted for same-sex couples. This is also true for several other liberal Jewish denominations.
Extramarital sex Extramarital sex is frowned upon by all Jewish groups, even though its legal meaning is not always obvious; according to some authorities, it falls under a biblical prohibition. Traditionally and according to Torah adultery is only defined by sex involving a married woman; a married man do not commit adultery if he has sex with an unmarried woman. Some contemporary thinkers conjecture that the written Torah never explicitly forbids sex outside the context of marriage, with the exception of adultery however, most authorities understand it to be explicit in Deuteronomy 23:18, "No Israelite woman shall be a prostitute". According to , the man who entices a single woman to have sex must offer to marry her afterwards or the equivalent in compensation, unless her father refuses to allow him. This law is only for virginal women, as their value in the marriage market, as it were, decreases. Therefore, the man must either offer to marry her or pay for her lesser value, as it were, in a marriage market that highly values virginity.
Masturbation Despite not having been prohibited in the Torah in the form of an explicit commandment, the
Halakha and the
Oral Torah view male
masturbation as a Halakhic prohibition and a great sin, deriving it as a biblical prohibition from Genesis 38:7. The attitude towards a male sperm is one of a potential future living human being, and thus, masturbation is referred to as morally, though not legally, similar to murder, in that the masturbator is exterminating his potential offspring. Kabbalistic literature declared the act of masturbation to be a major sin. Female masturbation is less frowned upon, and indeed very rarely mentioned in any Jewish text. In modern days, the Halakhic question on whether taking male semen for the purpose of medical examinations or insemination is a sin remains in dispute among Jewish legal authorities. Many Ashkenazi authorities allowed for a married man to - under certain specific circumstances - ejaculate outside his wife's body as part of their sexual relations together, following a text by
Moses Isserles in his comments on the Shulkhan Arukh.
Sexual fantasy The halakhic literature discusses the prohibitions of
hirhur (lit. thought) and
histaklut (lit. gazing). Many of the practices of
tzniut (modesty) serve to prevent these prohibitions from occurring.
Pornography Pornography is not explicitly mentioned in any halakhic texts, but it is prohibited by many
halakhic laws. The first of these laws are the laws of
tzniut, or modesty. Acting in a pornographic film breaks the rules of modesty by exposing one's naked body. Additionally, those involved in the production of these films (even those who are not being filmed) are breaking the laws of tzniut by looking upon those in a sexually compromised position. The second set of halakhic laws prohibiting the production of pornography are those surrounding extramarital sex. Although extramarital relations were prevalent in the
Torah, rabbis of the
Talmudic period outlawed extramarital sex. Therefore, sexual intercourse between two unmarried porn actors would be prohibited by halakha. Finally, pornography is prohibited by halakhic laws surrounding masturbation, with which it over goes hand-in-hand. Not only is the viewing of pornographic content forbidden by these laws, but so is the production of pornographic content. The Kitzur Shulchan Arukh prohibits the spilling of seed, thus forbidding that a man engage in sexual intercourse without the intention to conceive. This not only prohibits men from creating pornographic content with a partner or partners, but also from creating solo content. Women, in slight contrast, have no such command to not spill seed, and thus the laws of masturbation do not prohibit them from creating pornographic content. Ultimately, however, people of all genders are prohibited from producing or consuming porn because of the laws of tzniut. While pornography is specifically prohibited by halakhic texts, modern rabbinic
responsum have mixed opinions on the subject. For example, it has been argued by some
Orthodox rabbis that consuming pornography is the equivalent of having extramarital relations. Contrastingly, some
Reform rabbis suggest that the consumption of erotic material could benefit marital relations. Contemporary rabbis within and between the denominations of Judaism have not come to a consensus as to whether or not pornography is acceptable in the modern age. == Sexual practices and culture ==