Technologies of Self
מעשה באדם אחד שהיה זהיר במצות ציצית
“There was an incident involving a certain man who was diligent about the mitzvah of ritual fringes. (Tzitzit)”
This is how a Talmudic story found in Masechet Menachot begins.
It proceeds to tell the story of a man who was an observer of Mitzvot who set an appointment with a top tier escort service.
He paid four hundred gold coins in advance. The man showed up on time and was ushered in. The prostitute had prepared six silver beds and one golden bed and he ascended to them on silver and gold ladders.
On the top golden bed, they both sat naked and then, at the moment of truth, the man felt the four fringes of his Tzizit hitting his face.
He climbed back down and sat on the ground.
The prostitute demanded to know what was wrong with her or what she did wrong and the man swore by the Temple that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.
He proceeded to explain to her the Mitzvah of the Tzizit which was meant to remind a person of all of the other mitzvot.
In that he refers to the end of our Torah portion Shelach which states:
וְהָיָ֣ה לָכֶם֮ לְצִיצִת֒ וּרְאִיתֶ֣ם אֹת֗וֹ וּזְכַרְתֶּם֙ אֶת־כׇּל־מִצְוֺ֣ת יְהֹוָ֔ה וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֖ם אֹתָ֑ם וְלֹֽא־תָת֜וּרוּ אַחֲרֵ֤י לְבַבְכֶם֙ וְאַחֲרֵ֣י עֵֽינֵיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁר־אַתֶּ֥ם זֹנִ֖ים אַחֲרֵיהֶֽם׃
“That shall be your fringe; look at it and recall all the commandments of יהוה and observe them, so that you do not follow your heart and eyes in your lustful urge.”
The woman said she would allow him to leave only if he gave her all of his information; his name, town, Beit Midrash etc and so he did leave her a note with what she asked.
Upon his departure, the woman divided all of her property, giving one third as a bribe to the government, one third to the poor, and kept the rest.
She went to the Beit Midrash the man wrote on his note and asked the Rabbi to marry one of the students and become a convert. The Rabbi told her that perhaps there was one particular student that she was after, and allowed her to reunite with the man, marry him and share their wealth together the “proper way.”
What I find so beautiful about this story, besides the typical Cinderella/”Pretty Woman” nature of it, is the idea that this is a story of two encounters, the first on the top bed, an encounter of physical nudity and of seduction, and the second encounter, which was on the ground, an encounter of emotional nudity, of two people who were completely exposed to one another and revealed to each other their true selves.
From a Talmudic perspective, what’s important about this story is that this profound transformation of one's self was possible due to the reminder of the Tzitzit.
This is mentioned in the previous page in the masechet:
ותניא אידך וראיתם אותו וזכרתם ועשיתם ראיה מביאה לידי זכירה זכירה מביאה לידי עשיה ורשב"י אומר כל הזריז במצוה זו זוכה ומקבל פני שכינה כתיב הכא וראיתם אותו וכתיב התם (דברים ו, יג) את ה' אלהיך תירא ואותו תעבוד
And it is taught in another baraita: The verse states: “That you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them.” This teaches that looking at the ritual fringes leads to remembering the mitzvot, and remembering them leads to doing them.
This connects to Michel Foucault’s idea of Technologies of the Self. Michel Foucault (1926-1984) the French philosopher, historian and political activist, began developing this idea in his three volume The History of Sexuality and later summarized it into a seminar which was then published in 1988 called “Technologies of the Self, A seminar with Michel Foucault.”
Foucault distincted between four types of technologies:
“Technologies of production, which permit us to produce, transform, or manipulate things; (2) technologies of sign systems which permit us to use signs, meanings, symbols, or signification (3) technologies of power, which determine the conduct of individuals and submit them to certain ends or domination, an objectivizing of the subject; (4) technologies of the self, which permit individuals to effect by their own means or with the help of others a certain number of operations on their own bodies and souls, thoughts, conduct, and way of being, so as to transform themselves in order to attain a certain state of happiness, purity, wisdom, perfection, or immortality.”
In other words, Foucault tells us that while our identities are designed by our manipulation of things and manipulation of language, and while we are also products of the manipulation of the institutions that govern us, we also take an active role in shaping our own identities, by re-inventing and creating ourselves using different methods that have changed throughout history.
For example: in ancient Greece and Rome the emphasis was on self-care (epimeleia heautou) through practices like writing, meditation, and ethical self-examination to achieve autonomy and virtue. In Early Christianity it shifted toward confession and self-renunciation, where individuals scrutinized their inner thoughts to align with divine truth, and in our Modern Era, technologies of the self become tied to science and psychology, with practices like therapy or self-help shaping identities.
Foucoult favored the ancient classical methods as ideal ways to reach one’s true self. To him, the idea of self care holds within it a form of resistance against normalizing forces by allowing individuals to redefine their relationship to themselves and society.
Such an act of resistance was taken in our Talmudic story by both characters. The Tzitzit was an external means designed to shape internal identity. The beauty of the story is that while this external reminder can seem oppressive, by being applied critically, it ended up being a liberating act.
In an interview with Rux Martin in 1982, Foucault said:
“I don't feel that it is necessary to know exactly what I am. The main interest in life and work is to become someone else that you were not in the beginning. If you knew when you began a book what you would say at the end, do you think that you would have the courage to write it? What is true for writing and for a love relationship is true also for life. The game is worthwhile insofar as we don't know what will be the end.”
