Prohibition of Kohen defilement by the dead

Defilement of a Kohen to his wife, although implied in the Torah text as forbidden according to Maimonides and Ibn Ezra on Leviticus 21:3-4, is permitted by rabbinical order.

Practical examples of these prohibitions include: not entering a cemetery or attending a funeral; not being under the same roof (i.e. in a home or hospital) as a dismembered organ.

[4] In order to protect the Kohen from coming into prohibited contact with or proximity to the dead, Orthodox cemeteries traditionally designate a burial ground for Kohanim and their families which is at a distance from the general burial ground, so that the relatives of Kohanim can be visited by a Kohen without him entering the cemetery.

The Talmud relates that when Judah haNasi died, the priestly laws forbidding defilement through contact with the dead were temporarily suspended, for the specific purpose of making possible full participation of his burial ceremony.

These leaders include the popular nasi Yochanan ben Zakai (Talmud Yerushalmi to Avodah Zarah 18a) and also Isaac Luria.

Generally, the prohibition of the Kohen becoming impure (tammei) by contact with a corpse is considered in full effect in modern times and is maintained in Orthodox Judaism.

The modern Kohen is challenged by US airline regulations permitting corpses and body parts to be boarded up to 90 minutes prior to flight departure.