Guf
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"The Guf" redirects here. For the pop rock band, see The Gufs.
In Jewish mysticism, the Chamber of Guf (or Guph or even Gup) (Hebrew "to be hollow") also called the Otzar (Hebrew for "treasury") is the Hall of Souls located in the Seventh Heaven. Every time an infant is born, this is where its soul comes from. Folklore says sparrows can see the soul's descent and this explains their song. But a day will come when the sparrow sings no more, because there are only a finite number of souls in The Guf. It's when the last soul is used, The Guf is empty and the world will end. The first infant born without a soul, born dead as a soulless child must be, heralds the death of the world, and so is called The Final Sign. The Chamber of Guf must be empty for the Messiah to come.
The "guff" is a term the Talmud uses to refer to the repository of all unborn souls. Literally, the word "guff" means "body."
The Talmud says, "The Son of David (Mashiach) will not arrive until there's no more 'soul' in the 'body.' " This means that there are a certain number of souls in heaven waiting to be born. Until they are born, they wait in a heavenly repository called "the body." The Mashiach won't arrive until every single one of these souls has been born into the physical world.
This teaches that each person is important and has a unique role which only he, with his unique soul, can fulfill. Even a newborn baby brings the Mashiach closer simply by being born.
The Guf is sometimes described as a columbarium, or birdhouse.
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| Concepts of Heaven | |
|---|---|
| Christian | Kingdom of God | Garden of Eden · Paradise | New Jerusalem | Pearly gates |
| Islamic | Jannah | Houri | Sidrat al-Muntaha |
| Mormon | Celestial Kingdom | Spirit world |
| Ancient Greek | Elysium | Empyrean | Hesperides |
| Celtic | Annwn | Tír na nÓg | Mag Mell |
| Norse | Valhalla | Asgard |
| Other Indo-European cultures | Paradise | Olam Haba | Svarga | Aaru | The Summerland | Myth of Er | Fortunate Isles |
| Related concepts | Nirvana | Millennialism | Utopianism | Golden Age | Arcadia |
