Halakha
Rabbinic legal tradition
Halakha is Jewish religious law—the body of rules governing daily life, ritual observance, and ethical conduct derived from the Torah, Talmud, and rabbinic interpretation.
It covers everything from dietary restrictions to Sabbath observance to business ethics.
Orthodox Jews follow halakha strictly; other branches treat it with varying degrees of authority.
The adjective is halakhic: a halakhic ruling on the matter.
Rabbinic law compilation
- MishnahCodified Jewish oral law
- commentariesExplanatory notes on texts
- codificationOrganizing rules into system
- sagesProfoundly learned people
scholars · rabbis · authorities · tradition · interpretation · exegesis · ruling
Jewish religious commandments
- commandmentsAuthoritative rules demanding compliance
- prohibitionsFormal orders against something
- obligationsRequired responsibilities
- rulingsAuthoritative decisions on matters
decrees · ordinances · statutes · precepts · injunctions · bylaws · enactments · precedent
Jewish day of rest
- prayerAddress to deity
- blessingsFavors from the divine
- tefillinJewish prayer boxes worn daily
- mezuzahCased scripture on doorframe
mikveh · fasting · festivals · mourning · marriage · divorce · conversion · circumcision
Right-leaning party supporter
- ReformModernizing institutional movement
- Modern OrthodoxJudaism balancing tradition and contemporary life
- HasidicOf fervent Jewish pietism
- SephardicOf Iberian Jewish origin
Ashkenazi · pluralism · deviation · adaptation · innovation · tradition · authority · autonomy
Talmud
Rabbinic law compilation
- MishnahCodified Jewish oral law
- commentariesExplanatory notes on texts
- codificationOrganizing rules into system
sages · scholars · rabbis · authorities · tradition · interpretation · exegesis · ruling
mitzvot
Jewish religious commandments
- commandmentsAuthoritative rules demanding compliance
- prohibitionsFormal orders against something
- obligationsRequired responsibilities
rulings · decrees · ordinances · statutes · precepts · injunctions · bylaws · enactments · precedent · adjudication
Shabbat
Jewish day of rest
mezuzah · mikveh · fasting · festivals · mourning · marriage · divorce · conversion · circumcision · Passover
Conservative
Right-leaning party supporter
- ReformModernizing institutional movement
- Modern OrthodoxJudaism balancing tradition and contemporary life
- HasidicOf fervent Jewish pietism
Sephardic · Ashkenazi · pluralism · deviation · adaptation · innovation · tradition · authority · autonomy · egalitarian
charity
Voluntary aid for others
contracts · loans · interest · wages · theft · slander · oaths · vows · testimony · witnesses
- JudaismShabbat, kosher, Passover, Torah, Hanukkah
- Jewish heritageTorah scrolls, synagogues, Ashkenazi, rabbis, Sephardic
- Jewish ThoughtKabbalah, Jewish ethics, Jewish mysticism, Torah study, Jewish tradition
- Judaicamenorah, Torah scroll, Talmud, Torah study, mezuzah
- Jewish teachingsMishnah, Midrash, oral law, Talmud, Aggadah
- Jewish textsTorah, Tanakh, Talmud, Mishnah, siddur
Halakhasecular law
Legal code without religious basis
civil law · state law · lawlessness · statutory law · human law
HalakhaSharia
Muslim religious legal code
canon law · dharma · Fiqh · church law
HalakhaAggadah
Non-legal rabbinic narratives
Haggadah · Midrash · homiletics · Kabbalah