Question: In this week’s Torah portion there is a severe warning not to curse one’s father or mother, a judge or a leader (nasi). What is a curse?
Answer: There is a form of cursing in the sense of insults and belittling, such as calling someone “a donkey”, etc. This is the common meaning of the word “curse” today. However, the curse that the Torah forbids has a different meaning. A curse is the opposite of a blessing. A blessing means wishing good and abundance, whereas a curse means wishing or praying something bad should happen to a person. One who curses is someone who explicitly wishes that the Holy One, blessed be He, strike or harm a particular person.
The full prohibition, for which one incurs the punishment stated in the Torah, applies when a person curses using one of the names of the Holy One, blessed be He—such as the Tetragrammaton, A-d-nai, E-lo-kim, Sha-d-dai, etc.—or His epithets.
The reason for the commandment, as Maimonides writes, is “so the soul of the one who curses not be stirred toward vengeance, and so he not become accustomed to anger.” The Sefer HaChinuch explains, based on a statement of the Sages, that “a covenant is made with the lips,” meaning that a person has the power, through speech, to influence what happens in the world.
Expressions of insult are forbidden because they violate the honor of parents, a judge, or any person, but they do not fall under the category of “you shall not curse.” Adapted from Sichat HaShevua
