Dovid Taub, creator of The Itche Kadoozy Show and other creative, Jewish, family content has started a new weekly video series and podcast called “The Parshah Rabbit Hole.” Rather than puppets or animation, this series features Taub presenting “A deep dive into the weird and obscure corners of the weekly Torah Portion.” 

“I used to play a game with my kids at the Shabbos table called ‘Torah Treasure Hunt’, where my kids would randomly pick a sefer off the shelf, we’d read a piece from it, and follow the footnotes to the next sefer. This series is a way of sharing that type of playful exploration of Torah,” Taub says. “With this series I want to share an approach to learning that’s less structured and more about discovery and delightful surprises.”

Each episode focuses on an interesting idea from the parshah which, in Taub’s words, “contains enough potential for weird,” and follows the trail of midrashim, teshuvos, meforshim and chassidus to find obscure and fascinating ideas in Torah.

For example, last week’s episode for Parshas Veyeira (episode 4) starts with the topic of malachim, focusing specifically on the malachim mentioned in “Shalom Aleichem,” which is sung on Friday night. In the video, Taub asks “Who are these angels, and what are they doing in my house?” From there the episode follows a winding path through sources from Gemara to the Rebbe. Other topics explored in the series include teleportation, shin-daleds, an 18th century worm epidemic, and gilgulim.

Parshah Rabbit Hole – Episode 5, Chayei Sarah:

To make sure you never miss a video, subscribe to YouTube.com@CreativeJudaism and turn on notifications. The series is also available as an audio only podcast by clicking here. 

The series is part of a larger project called CreativeJudaism.com which launched in Elul with the release of the “Guide for the Bored” for Rosh Hashanah. According to Taub, the project aims to encourage creative engagement with Torah and Judaism.  You can sign up there to be notified of new projects and programs.

Dovid’s brother, Rabbi Shais Taub of SoulWords.org, has this to say about the Parshah Rabbit Hole: “This series truly captures the bizarre and delightful experience of what it’s like to learn Torah with my brother Dovid. It’s a perfect format for showcasing his scholarship, creativity, and humor. It’s not like anything else out there. People are going to love it or hate it. But those who love it are going to become fans for life.”