Does Judaism Believe in Aliens? A Torah and Kabbalah Perspective

A fascinating question, not only from a Jewish perspective but on a broader human level, concerns the existence of extraterrestrial life. Countless planets orbiting in the vast universe have long stirred human imagination, and history is full of reports about aliens allegedly visiting Earth, sometimes just briefly, sometimes for supposed abductions and experiments on unsuspecting passersby.

These claims have never been proven convincingly. Still, many feel that “there’s no smoke without fire.” Surprisingly, this is also close to Judaism’s general attitude on the matter. What is the bottom line? Are there aliens according to Judaism? The answer is both yes and no. There are no aliens in the sense commonly imagined, but there are other beings, no less intriguing. You have probably heard of them, just not under the label “aliens.”

Life Beyond Earth: A Torah Perspective

“According to the Torah, life exists only on this planet,” explains Rabbi Pinchas Badush. “The fact is that no life has ever been found elsewhere. However, Kabbalistic texts speak of beings that exist within the earth itself, strange creatures that live deep within it, and people have even encountered them on rare occasions. However extraterrestrials from other planets simply do not exist.”

Rabbi Yitzchak Fanger, who has explored the topic in depth, offers further clarification.

Other Beings, Not Other Planets

“In principle, Judaism certainly speaks about beings that are not human and that exist here,” he says. “Judaism does not maintain that there are creatures on other planets, because if that were the case, God would have revealed it to us and He did not. The Zohar states that there are creatures on earth, but not in the heavens. In other words, there are beings, but not ones that come from other stars.”

Who exactly are these beings?

Spirits, Demons, and the Spiritual Realm

“They are spiritual beings, demons, spirits, and other non physical entities. Even from a scientific standpoint, the conditions required for life to form elsewhere are so numerous that the probability is not just extremely low, but effectively impossible. It’s not enough to have oxygen, water, a sun, and a moon. Many additional conditions are required.

“If intelligent life did exist on other planets, they would not just appear for a few seconds, perform aerial maneuvers, and disappear. They would communicate, interact, and show real interest in getting to know us. From a cosmological perspective, it also makes little sense that they would travel countless light years just to say hello and return home.”

Rabbi Fanger cites Professor Akiva Bar Nun of Tel Aviv University’s Department of Geophysics and Earth Sciences, who once noted that hundreds of astronomers scan the skies every night looking for unusual phenomena. To date, not a single serious astronomer has testified to seeing intelligent extraterrestrial beings, despite many individual claims to the contrary.

“Judaism teaches that God created one world where all the conditions for life converge,” Rabbi Fanger explains. “Our Earth is, in a sense, the center of the spiritual worlds.”

Does that mean these beings come from deep underground?

“Not literally,” he clarifies. “If you dig deep into the earth, you will not find them. ‘The depths of the earth’ is a metaphor. These beings are considered more material, lower, and more base forms of existence. God created them for specific purposes, including misleading or frightening human beings. Some disturbing dreams may originate from such forces. This could explain why some people believe they have seen aliens.”

“The Talmud teaches that they possess six traits, three like humans and three like angels. Like humans, they eat and drink, reproduce, and die. Like angels, they can fly through the air, appear in different forms, and have limited knowledge of future events. This is a vast subject with many sources in Jewish tradition. But one thing is clear: these so-called ‘aliens’ do not come from other planets.”

According to Judaism, the mystery of “aliens” does not point to life on distant stars, but to a complex spiritual reality that exists alongside our own. The universe is not empty, but its hidden inhabitants are far closer, and far more ancient, than science fiction ever imagined.