Taamei Hamitzvos - Non-Kosher Animals
Mitzvos 73, 153-165, and 470-471; Vayikra Ch. 11.
Rambam observes that, as a general rule, whatever food the Torah forbids is not good for our health (Moreh Nevuchim vol. III §48). This is clear to see regarding the prohibitions against eating carcasses (neveilos) and terminally ill animals (tereifos), since these are commonly plagued with harmful microorganisms. With regard to pork, however, gentiles mock the Jewish people for abstaining from this seemingly healthy and tasty food (Yoma 67b). Hence, the Torah considers the prohibition against eating pork a chok, a decree with no readily apparent reason, which Hashem expects us to observe with unquestioning loyalty (ibid.). There are of course many reasons that are not readily apparent, such as the fact that the pig is a dirty and repulsive animal (Moreh Nevuchim ibid.). The pig is also symbolically repulsive, since it has the external kosher sign of split hooves but does not have the internal kosher sign of chewing its cud, and it thus represents the wicked nation of Edom, who mask inner depravity with a façade of righteousness (see Vayikra Rabbah 13:5).
Radvaz (§185) shares the view that consuming non-kosher food is unhealthy. He supports this view by pointing out that the Torah prohibits the consumption of creeping creatures such as worms and other insects. The fact that these creatures are naturally repulsive to people is a clear sign that they are not healthy, because the body naturally repels anything harmful. Radvaz observed many terrible illnesses among gentiles that he did not encounter among Jews, and he attributed this to the Jewish people’s kosher diet.
Other commentators explain that non-kosher animals are unhealthy for the soul. The Sages similarly explain that consuming impure foods creates a blockage in the heart that hinders it from perceiving spiritual matters (see Yoma 39a). Following this view, Ramban explains that predatory birds are not kosher because cruelty is in their blood, and eating them instills cruelty within a person. We may add that the very commandment to refrain from eating such animals brings to our attention that Hashem finds aggression and cruelty unacceptable. Along these lines, Rabbeinu Menachem HaBavli suggests that having scales is a sign of kosher fish because it shows that they are preyed upon and require armor, which means that they are not predators (cited in Otzar HaMidrashim, Taryag HaMitzvos). According to this approach, presumably, non-kosher foods are primarily harmful to those who possess more refined and therefore more delicate souls.
Of the various non-kosher creatures, the Torah places the most emphasis on creeping creatures such as insects, repeating some of the prohibitions several times. In one place, the Torah adds, “for I am Hashem, Who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God, and you shall be holy, for I am holy” (Vayikra 11:45). The Gemara (Bava Metzia 61b) interprets this verse to mean that this Mitzvah alone to abstain from eating creeping creatures would have been enough to justify the entire Exodus, since they are so repulsive.
The verse cited by the Gemara says, “for I am Hashem, Who brought you up from Egypt” instead of the usual terminology “took you out of Egypt” to allude to the spiritual elevation that results from abstaining from eating such creatures.
It emerges that one of the main reasons for the prohibition against eating creeping creatures is that they are repulsive. We may tentatively suggest that this is another reason for the prohibitions against eating other non-kosher creatures. Even gentiles eat mostly kosher animals, such as cows, sheep, and chickens, and are repulsed by the thought of eating horses, donkeys, and crows. Although gentiles eat many animals we do not eat, kosher animals are generally considered the most suited for consumption.
Abarbanel links the distinction between kosher and non-kosher animals to their diets. Non-kosher animals consume the meat, bones, and blood of other animals, which endows them with a savage, hot-blooded nature. Since their food is not always common, their flesh is often gaunt and not nutritious. Kosher animals, on the other hand, are herbivores and possess a nature as calm and humble as the grass that they eat. Their food is available on the ground wherever they turn, and they therefore tend to be fat and nutritious. Kosher animals chew their cud because they are incapable of breaking apart bones with their teeth, and cannot even digest grass without first softening it in their stomachs. Their split hooves are a sign of their passivity, because all predators have closed hooves with claws, which they use to attack and rip apart their prey. Abarbanel concludes that this is a general rule that has exceptions, such as the swine and the camel. These animals possess bad character traits and an impure nature, as indicated by the fact that they do not have both kosher signs.
