ויקרא, פרק י״ז, פסוק י״א

Animal blood exists on the delicate boundary between life and death, serving as the very essence of physical existence. Because life belongs entirely to the Creator and is not human property, consuming blood is strictly forbidden. Instead, it is reserved exclusively for the divine realm and the process of atonement. The primary approach among commentators is that blood acts as the physical vessel for the animal's life force. Since the soul lacks physical substance, it relies entirely on the blood and ceases to exist without it [רש״י, מזרחי]. This connection is specific to animals and excludes creatures like fish and locusts [שפתי חכמים]. Furthermore, because the animal soul is concentrated exclusively in the blood rather than the flesh, the meat itself becomes permissible to eat once the blood is removed [אור החיים]. A distinction is also made between domesticated animals, where blood merely houses the soul, and wild animals or birds, where the blood and soul are entirely unified, requiring their blood to be covered with earth like a burial [אלשיך].

A profound conceptual debate surrounds the reason for prohibiting blood consumption. One perspective roots the ban in distancing the Israelites from idolatry and witchcraft. In the ancient world, nations such as the Egyptians and Chaldeans would collect blood in pits to summon demons, consume the blood, and divine the future. To eradicate these superstitions, blood was forbidden for consumption and redirected strictly toward the pure worship of God [רמב״ם מובא ברמב״ן וברבנו בחיי]. However, many commentators reject this historical rationale, arguing that the true reason is inherently moral: blood is the soul. While God permitted humans to consume the animal's physical body, the soul remained forbidden, just as it was for the earliest humans [רמב״ן]. Additionally, there is a deep psychological concern. Unlike ordinary foods that undergo digestion and transformation, blood is absorbed directly into the human body. Consuming it could infuse a person with an animalistic nature, breeding cruelty and coarseness, ultimately damaging their capacity to acquire spiritual wisdom [רמב״ן, רבנו בחיי, שפתי כהן]. Moreover, blood is considered an elevated portion, much like certain animal fats, reserved exclusively for God [רמב״ן, העמק דבר].

Rather than being consumed, blood is repurposed for the altar to achieve atonement. When a person sins, their life is technically forfeit. Yet, God, in His mercy, established the principle of substituting one life for another. The animal's soul, embodied in its blood, is offered as a replacement to atone for the human soul [רש״י, הופמן]. This unique privilege of atonement through the altar was granted specifically to the Israelites [מלבי״ם]. Legally, the mechanics of this atonement are absolute: once the blood touches the altar, even if applied to the incorrect location, the person achieves atonement. At that moment, the blood is no longer subject to the laws of misappropriation, as its sole purpose is atonement and nothing else [תורה תמימה].

The exact dynamic of how blood achieves this forgiveness is understood in two primary ways. Some explain that the blood simply atones on behalf of the human sinner's soul [שד״ל, חזקוני]. Others argue that the atonement is achieved actively through the life force of the animal that remains attached to the blood [אבן עזרא, מלבי״ם, אבי עזר]. This latter understanding leads to a crucial legal distinction: atonement is only valid when performed with the lifeblood—the initial, gushing blood released at the moment of slaughter, which carries the departing soul. The residual blood that merely drips afterward contains no life force and therefore cannot facilitate atonement [תורה תמימה, אדרת אליהו].