For the source text click/tap here: Ketubot 78
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If a woman came into the possession of property before she was betrothed, Bet Shammai and Bet Hillel agree that she may sell it or give it away and her act is legally valid.
Rabbi Yehuda said that the Sages said before Rabban Gamliel:
Since he acquired the woman herself through betrothal, will he not acquire the property from the moment of their betrothal?
Why, then, is her transaction valid?
Rabban Gamliel said to them: With regard to the new property that she inherited after marriage, we are ashamed, because it is unclear why she cannot sell it, as it is hers; and you also seek to impose upon us a prohibition with regard to the old property that she owned beforehand?
The Gemara wonders who has rights to this property. Exactly when is she given the property? Perhaps the timing of her acquisition will determine the status of his acquisition. If they are betrothed, should he be allowed to access her property?
We explore the notion of shame….both in historical terms and psychologically (freudian theory) and in terms of toxic shame for those with addiction
ending with a Kabalistic essay on its usefulness in spiritual practice.