Judaism and sneezing
There are various beliefs and customs surrounding sneezing in Judaism. Halakhic considerations concerning the practice of verbally responding to a sneeze, in particular, are discussed in Talmudic and later rabbinic literature.
Practices
The traditional Jewish response to a sneeze is the Aramaic phrase assuta, to which the sneezer replies with barukh tiheyeh. The sneezer then cites Genesis 49:18, "For your salvation I wait, O Lord".Other traditional responses to a sneeze include ḥayyim and ḥayyim ṭovim in Hebrew, marpe in Aramaic, and tsu gezunt in Yiddish. When responding to the sneeze of a child, the latter can be expanded to Tsu gezunt, tsum lebn, tsum vaksn, tsum kveln and other like expressions. In modern Hebrew, the most commonly used phrase is livri'ut.
A once-prevailing folk practice, especially among Galician and Lithuanian Jews, is for a mother to pull on her child's ear following a sneeze.
In Jewish law
Reacting to a sneeze
The earliest discussion on sneezing in rabbinic literature is in Tosefta Shabbat, where it is stated that wishing someone health during a sneeze is considered a forbidden pagan practice. Eleazar [bar Zadok], conversely, contends that the prohibition only applies in a beit midrash, where it may cause a disturbance during study. In tractate Berakhot of the Babylonian Talmud, it is mentioned that the followers of Rabban Gamaliel avoided using marpe in the beit midrash for this same reason. Maimonides and the Shulkhan Arukh follow this perspective.In tractate Berakhot of the Jerusalem Talmud, Rabbi Mana advises against reacting to a sneeze only while eating, given the potential danger of choking. The word used here is iyas, interpreted by Frankel,, Kohut, and Krauss as a loanword from the Greek ἴασις equivalent to marpe, or as יסי. Alternatively, the Vatican Hebrew [MS 133|Rome MS] reads zit, interpreted by Frankel and Kohut as ζήτω. Both readings are explained by Jastrow as abbreviations of ה׳ סעדי or זרירך טוב.
File:Wenceslas Hollar - Jacob's death.jpg|thumb|right|Depiction of Jacob's death by Wenceslaus Hollar
In Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer and Yelamdenu to Toledot, as quoted in the Arukh, it is said that replying to a sneeze is in fact a duty. A midrash is told that until Jacob's time, a person sneezed at the close of his life and instantly died. Jacob prayed for more time to prepare for death, which was granted to him, as indicated by the message to Joseph, "Behold, thy father is sick". Subsequently, it became the rule for illness to precede death. Therefore, the practice of wishing good health after a sneeze transforms the sneeze from a sign of death into a symbol of life.