Kosher
Kashrut (Hebrew: כַּשְׁרוּת; Standard
Hebrew: kašrut) or "keeping kosher (Hebrew: כֶּשֶׁר/כָּשֶׁר; Standard
Hebrew: kéšer/kášer) is the name of the Jewish dietary laws. Food in
accord with halakha (Jewish law) is termed kosher in English, from the
Hebrew term kasher (כשר), meaning "fit" (in this context, fit for human
consumption). Food not in accord with Jewish law is termed treifah or
treif (טרפה) ("torn"); the term originally referred to animals (from a
kosher species such as cattle or sheep) which had been either
incorrectly slaughtered or mortally wounded by wild beasts and therefore
were not fit for human consumption. Among Sephardim, it typically only
refers to meat that is not kosher.
The basic laws of kashrut are in the Torah's Book of Leviticus, with
their details set down in the oral law (the Mishnah and the Talmud) and
codified by the Shulkhan Arukh and later rabbinical authorities.
There are actually varying degrees of kashrut, with the ultimate degree
shading into behavior more than just the food itself. For instance, meat
which is not kosher may be sold to the general public or used for pet
food; however, milk and meat may not be combined together, even if the
resulting mixture is to be discarded, sold, or fed to a pet.
The word kosher has been borrowed by many languages.
|
|
