Nature

In kabbalistic and rabbinic literature, air is described as one of four elements from which God created the world. Works of Jewish thought discuss the significance of air's essentialness and ubiquity, and rabbinic and halakhic texts discuss air's role in different areas of Jewish law: as a space in which legal acquisitions can happen, for example, or as something that can render a person impure.

Nature is discussed throughout Jewish literature in a variety of contexts. Many Jewish sources point to nature as a manifestation of godliness on earth, while others describe the importance of caring for our surroundings.

Animals are present from the very beginning of the Torah, as they are among God's first creations in the book of Genesis. Animals feature in a variety of contexts, such as biblical and talmudic stories, legal discussions about how to treat them, and poetic liturgical works that marvel at their wonders.

Birds feature in the Jewish textual tradition from the opening chapter of the Torah, which recounts how birds were created on the fifth day of creation. Noah uses birds to help determine whether it is safe to leave the ark, and other parts of the Torah discuss laws surrounding birds, like which ones are prohibited for consumption and the obligation to send away a mother bird before taking her young. Later Jewish texts expand on these concepts and other aspects of the nature and qualities of birds.

Clouds feature in the Torah in various contexts: God tells Noah and his family that a rainbow in a cloud will serve as a sign of God's covenant with humanity and promise to never again to destroy the world with a flood. A heavy cloud descends on Mount Sinai as the people of Israel receive the Torah, and a pillar of cloud from God leads the people of Israel as they wander through the desert. Later Jewish texts analyze the meaning of clouds in biblical stories, the mystical significance of clouds, and halakhic (legal) considerations relating to clouds — like how movements of clouds may affect when one says a blessing on lightning or thunder.

A wilderness.

Adam, the first human, is created from the "dust of the ground," and Abraham is promised that his descendant will be as numerous as "the dust of the earth." Dust and dirt also play roles in many other stories, rituals, and laws throughout biblical and rabbinic literature, like the commandment to cover blood of a slaughtered animal with earth and the role of dirt in the sotah ritual.

Rabbinic texts describe how the first humans discovered fire, and fire plays a role in many biblical stories, like that of the burning bush. Fire features both physically and metaphorically in Jewish sources; fire serves, for example, as a metaphor for Torah in some rabbinic texts.

In the Jewish textual tradition, frogs feature most notably in the plague of frogs wrought upon the Egyptians in the book of Exodus. Later sources describe how these frogs developed and multiplied, analyze the frogs' traits, and even derive laws based on the actions of the frogs. Frogs are also featured in various stories and teachings throughout midrashic and rabbinic literature.

Grapes are one of the seven special agricultural products of the land of Israel. They appear in several instances in the Torah, like when Noah plants a vineyard and gets drunk after emerging from the ark, or when spies bring back huge grapes from their expedition in the land of Israel. Later sources discuss legal questions relating to grapes, vineyards, and wine and analyze the qualities and significance of this fruit.

Light, both physical and metaphorical, features prominently throughout the Jewish textual tradition. Among other instances, light is the first thing God creates in the book of Genesis, is a focus of the holiday of Chanukkah, and is a central concept in kabbalastic literature, representing divine emanations.

Rain features prominently throughout the Jewish textual tradition. In the Torah, it is repeatedly described as a marker of God's blessing in the land of Israel. Jewish liturgy incorporates special prayers for rain, and rabbinic and philosophical sources are replete with discussions of the significance of rain and the laws and customs associated with asking for rain.

The Heavens (Shamayim) appear in the first lines of Genesis and are mentioned frequently in the Jewish sources as representing everything above Earth. The Heavens are also understood as the place where God and the angels reside.

Jewish sources throughout the ages grapple with questions of science and the surrounding world, and how these questions intersect with Jewish texts, practices, and values. Some texts view Jewish tradition and science as incompatible, arguing that only one can be a source of truth and the other must be rejected. Others see science and Torah as harmonious and strive to read traditional Jewish sources in conversation with scientific knowledge.

Sheratzim are small creatures that creep or crawl, described and listed in Leviticus 11:29-30. Their corpses convey impurity to people and vessels when encountered in specific ways.

The snake appears from the opening narratives of the Torah, as a snake entices Eve to eat from the tree of knowledge. Various other biblical verses mention snakes as part of stories, prophecies, and metaphors. Rabbinic texts discuss the dangerous nature of the snake and different laws surrounding snakes, like the permissibility of killing them on Shabbat.

In the Torah, the Hebrew word aviv – translated as "spring" – refers to a specific stage in grain growth, often understood as the stage in which seeds reach their full size but have not yet dried. The word is also used as part of the phrase "chodesh ha'aviv" ("the month of spring"), which refers to the time period in which grain reaches this stage. The holiday of Passover occurs during this season, and Jewish sources often refer to this time of year as one of renewal and redemption.

The Torah first mentions that concept of summer in the book of Genesis after the story of the flood. The Bible also uses the Hebrew word for summer, kayitz, to refer to a type of fruit, likely dried dates. In rabbinic literature, the summer months are occasionally referred to as "tekufat Tammuz," which means the period beginning with the Hebrew month of Tammuz (and ending at the end of the Hebrew month of Elul). Various laws and customs are associated with seasons and seasonal changes.

A type of fruit.

In the opening chapter of the Torah, God creates the moon, alongside other celestial bodies, on the fourth day of creation. In Jewish tradition and practice, the moon plays a central role in determining the calendar: New Hebrew months start with the appearance of new moons, which also lead to the determination of holiday dates. Texts throughout the ages discuss the moon's symbolism and significance; halakhic practices related to the moon, like the concept of blessing the new moon; and ways in which the lunar calendar interacts with the solar calendar.

As part of creation, humans are charged with the protection of trees. Those trees that produce fruit in the land of Israel are subject to the various Torah regulations regarding Temple gifts and tithes. Trees are also likened to the Torah itself and serve as a popular metaphor in Jewish tradition.

Water features prominently from the opening chapter of the Torah, as God separates between the waters of the sky and the waters below. Water plays a role in many other biblical narratives, like the splitting of the Red Sea or the miraculous supply of water provided to the people of Israel in the desert. Later Jewish sources discuss water extensively, acknowledging its physical necessity as a life-sustaining element and spiritual significance, and delving into details about its usage in Temple rituals, as a metaphor for Torah, and more.

The plague of wild animals is the fourth of ten plagues that God wrought upon the Egyptians when Pharoah refused to let the enslaved Israelites go. It is described in Exodus 8:16-28

In the Jewish textual tradition, the rainbow features most prominently in Genesis chapter 9, when God tells Noah that the rainbow is a symbol of God's covenant between God and all living things, demonstrating that God will never again destroy the world with a flood. Jewish liturgy includes a blessing to be said upon the sight of a rainbow, invoking a reminder of God's covenant. Generations of Jewish scholars have expounded upon the rainbow's significance, origins, and messages.

Lavi or Leviah