Sota 8: Humiliation and Protection

A sota is taken to the Nicanor Gate to be humiliated before drinking the bitter waters.  There will be others waiting for ritual purification there: women who have recently given birth, zavim, zavot, and those with leprosy.  The rabbis note that mitzvot cannot be bundled: this means that each holy act must be enacted on its own.  They argue whether or not a sota can be present while another sota is humiliated.  Even if the woman watching is trembling, she might be emboldened by the other sota's denial of transgression and thus say that she was innocent, too.  Thus the sota is questioned alone.  

The rabbis note the particular words that are interpreted to mean that a sota's head is uncovered and her hair is unbraided.  They are concerned about her state of undress.  No one should look at her and become aroused, particularly if she is found to be innocent of the sin of adultery.  The rabbis speak about other cases where men are uncovered except for their genitals.  It is noted that women must be covered front and back as their genitals can be seen from the back.

Women are made to be seen as unattractive throughout the sota ritual.  Other people, both men and women, are made to witness the sota's humiliation.  This is meant to serve as a deterrent.  

We learn that since the Temple was destroyed and the Sanhedrin ended, there are four types of capital punishment that continue to exist, though in different forms.  These are stoning, burning, decapitation, and strangulation (in order of severity).

• Stoning is meted out by being hit by a falling rock or being attacked by a wild animal
• Burning happens when a person falls into a fire or is bitten by venomous snake
• One is decapitated/killed by a sword when turned over to the authorities or killed by robbers
• Strangulation occurs when one drowns or when one dies of diphtheria where the throat closes

This kind of magical thinking is fascinating.  We understand that the synagogue stands in for the Temple, for example, but we recognize that we build that synagogue; we imbue it with holiness. In this scenario, the rabbis imagine that a continued Divine consequence is imposed upon someone who transgresses.

The rabbis go on to note that the sota is humiliated in ways that are complementary to her transgression.  She uncovers her hair for her lover; her hair is uncovered in public.  She exposes herself to her lover; her chest is exposed in public... and so on.

Again if feels as though the rabbis are struggling with this ritual.  They are aware of the damage that such humiliation might do if the sota is in fact innocent of the charges.  They are balancing the imperative to enact Torah law, to create disincentives in the  community toward adultery, to punish the adulteress, and to protect the innocent woman.  Quite a tall order.