So the first Eve was taken away, never to be heard from again. Nothing is known of her fate. Then God put Adam to sleep, and when he awoke there was another woman, and this time he found her to be beautiful.
Others say that God took a bone from Adam’s bones and flesh from his heart, and fashioned the second Eve, and brought her to Adam adorned as a bride. Upon rising from deep sleep, Adam saw her standing before him, and embraced and kissed her, saying, “This one at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (Gen. 2:23). That day God erected thirteen canopies for Adam in the Garden of Eden, and a great wedding was held, attended by myriads of ministering angels, and Eve became his bride.
There are a number of related myths about a woman who was created before Eve. The best- known figure is Lilith, but there is also a tradition about a woman known as the first Eve. She was created from the inside out, and Adam ran away from her. The fate of the first Eve is essentially unknown. The second Eve is the Eve who was created out of Adam’s rib. What is not clear is whether this second Eve was an entirely new woman, or if God re-created the first Eve in the form of the second. Also, the recreation theory seems contrary to that of creation out of Adam’s rib. Instead, God put Adam to sleep, and only showed him the final product, of which Adam approved. Adam’s acceptance of Eve is reported in the verse “This one shall be called Woman” (Gen. 2:23). For a more detailed version of Adam’s union with Eve, see “The First Wedding,” p. 143.
One cannot help but be struck by the emphatic rejection of the first Eve, whom Adam sees created in front of his eyes, from the inside out. In reporting Adam’s disgust, the text emphasizes her “discharge and blood” (Genesis Rabbah 18:4). This deep-seated repugnance reveals an essentially negative view of women that clearly existed among some of the rabbis. Lilith is the figure who becomes the primary focus of the negative views the rabbis held about women, but it is clear that the first Eve also was created out of these negative projections. As for her fate, the myth seems to indicate that the first Eve was uncreated and consigned to oblivion. In this she resembles the inhabitants of the prior worlds that God created and destroyed. See “Prior Worlds,” p. 71.
Genesis Rabbah 18.2 offers a litany of misogynistic insults in its attempt to explain why God chose to create Eve from Adam’s rib. A few of these explanations include the following: “God said: ‘I will not create her from Adam’s head, lest she be swelled-headed; nor from his eye, lest she be a coquette; nor from his ear, lest she be an eavesdropper, nor from his mouth, lest she be a gossip.’”
One variant of this myth, in Genesis Rabbah 22:7, states that Cain and Abel fought over the first Eve. But the rabbi who proposed this was quickly contradicted by another, who insisted that the first Eve had already returned to dust.
Sources:
Avot de-Rabbi Natan 4:3; Genesis Rabbah 17:7, 18:4, 22:7; Alpha Beta de-Rabbi Akiva; Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer 12; Pesikta Rabbati 14:10.
Studies:
The Hebrew Goddess by Raphael Patai.
Lilith—the First Eve: Historical and Psychological Aspects of the Dark Feminine by Siegmund Hurwitz.
178. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE FIRST EVE?
Adam’s first wife was a clever woman who was stronger than he was. Therefore Adam said to God, “Please God. I don’t want this woman. Take her and give me another one instead.” God listened to Adam’s request and was about to cast the first Eve into the sea, when she said, “Before you take me, I ask you to give me one request.” God said, “What is it?” The first Eve said, “When a baby boy is born, let me come to him on the fifth day after his birth and reveal the future that is awaiting him.”
God agreed to this request, and every time that a son is born, the first Eve comes to him on the fifth day after he is born, and whispers the future in his ear.
One hundred years later God remembered Adam’s request for a new woman. So God put him to sleep, took his left rib, and created a new woman from it. This woman was modest and quiet. He called her Eve.
This is an interesting oral variant of the myth of the first Eve. See the preceding myth. On one level it’s a rather primitive tale in which Adam rejects Eve because she is superior to him, and God agrees to get rid of her. But the myth also establishes a custom whereby the first Eve is said to reveal a boy’s future on the fifth day after his birth, three days before the b’rit. Of course, the infant is not likely to remember this prophecy. This is not a widely known tradition, though perhaps it has more resonance among Indian Jews, where the story originated. Just as the amulet against Lilith will protect a newborn boy for eight days—until the b’rit— so this fifth day role for the first Eve creates a birth custom for her, perpetuating the need for her existence, and preserving her from the oblivion of being uncreated.
There are also indications that this myth is a variant of the Lilith myth. Like Lilith, the first Eve is described here as cleverer than he is. Also, the punishment that God plans for her—casting her into the sea—is the same punishment that the angels threaten Lilith with unless she returns to her spouse. Finally, God’s agreement that the first Eve may reveal a boy’s future to him on the fifth day after birth echoes Lilith’s vow that the amulet against her will protect newborn baby boys until the eighth day, when they will be protected by the circumcision. See “Adam and Lilith,” p. 216 and “A Spell to Banish Lilith,” p. 218.
Sources:
IFA 9584.
179. THE CREATION OF WOMAN
The Lord God said, “It is not good for man to be alone; I will make a fitting helper for him.” So the Lord God cast a deep sleep upon the man; and while he slept, He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that spot. And the Lord God fashioned the rib that He had taken from the man into a woman; and He brought her to the man. Then the man said, “This one at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. This one shall be called Woman, for from man was she taken.” Hence a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, so that they become one flesh.
This is the famous account from Genesis of how God created Eve out of Adam’s rib. It is one of the few creation stories in world mythology in which the first woman was created from the first man, instead of the other way around. Since humans are born from women, the myth stands out as an obvious example of a male myth. Nevertheless, the fact that Eve was said to have been created from Adam’s rib is a clear indication that she was bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh (Gen. 2:23)—thus that they were created from one flesh, a view that makes bonding between the man and woman much easier.
In subsequent translations of the Bible and in the rabbinic texts, the story of Eve’s creation from Adam’s rib was elaborated. In one text, for example, the rib was identified as the 13th rib on the right side. The rib, of course, is integral to the biblical account, but the midrashic process proposed that Eve might have been created from something else. Some say that Eve was created from a face—one of the two faces with which Adam was created, before God divided Adam and Eve into separate beings. (See “Adam the Hermaphrodite,” p. 138.) Still others say that Eve was created from a tail, and that Satan was created along with her. The suggestion that Eve was created from a tail, a superfluous part, serves as a vehicle for anti-feminine bias, as does the assertion that Satan was created at the same time. In fact, this is a clear attempt to link Eve with Satan as a way of condemning all women. Another example of how Eve, and thus all women, were blamed for the sin of eating the forbidden fruit and the consequent punishment of death that followed is found in The Wisdom of Ben Sira: “From a woman was sin’s beginning, and because of her we all die” (Sir. 25:23). A similar conclusion, stating that God took Adam’s rib and created a wife from it so that death might come to him from his wife, is found in 2 Enoch (J) 30:17. The negative consequences of Eve’s actions are stated directly in Vita Adae et Evae 44:2, where Adam tells Eve “You have brought upon us a great wound, transgression and sin in all our generations.” See also Targum Pseudo-Yonathan on Genesis 2:7, B. Berakhot 61a, B. Eruvin 18a,
and Genesis Rabbah 8:1, 17:6.
One strange explanation is that found in The Book of Jubilees 3:8: “In the first week Adam was created and also the rib, his wife. And in the second week God showed her to him,” implying that in the second week God reshaped the rib into a woman, and then showed her to Adam. Here the rib, tzela in Hebrew, seems to be described not as an integral part of Adam, but as something separate from him.
One interesting rabbinic interpretation suggests that Adam first made love to Eve in a dream. Working with the verse while he slept, He took one of his ribs (Gen. 2:21), one rabbi asked, “Why do dreams fatigue men so?” Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish answered, “Because woman’s creation was in a dream, Adam enjoyed her intimacy in a dream. Otherwise he would never have known how to make love” (Midrash Avkir).
Sources:
Genesis 2:18, 2:21-24.
Studies:
Eve and Adam: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Readings on Genesis and Gender, edited by Kristen E. Kvam, Linda S. Schearing, and Valarie H. Ziegler.
180. THE FIRST WEDDING
God had already created the earth, the sun, the moon, and the stars. All of the animals were in the Garden of Eden. The time had come for Adam, the first man, to be created.
God called upon the angel Gabriel to bring clay from each of the four corners of the earth, the north, the south, the east, and the west. This the angel did, and then God formed a clay man and breathed the breath of life into him and the man opened his eyes and began to breathe.
Adam gave names to all the animals and explored the Garden of Eden. But God saw that Adam was lonely, and He decided to create a mate for him.
So one day, when Adam was strolling about in the Garden of Eden, God put Adam to sleep, and while he was deeply dreaming, God took out one of his ribs, and with that rib God created Eve, the first woman.
When Adam awoke and saw Eve standing in front of him, their faces illuminating each other, he understood at once that he had found his true mate. God introduced Adam to Eve and explained how she had been created. Then Adam embraced her and kissed her and said, “This one at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. This one shall be called Woman, for from man was she taken” (Gen. 2:23).
Then God knew that the time had come for the world’s first wedding. God Himself prepared tables of precious pearls and filled them with delicacies.
God also created ten wedding canopies for them, all made of precious gems, pearls, and gold. So too did He attire Eve, the first bride, in a beautiful wedding dress, and braid her hair and adorn her with twenty-four different ornaments.
As the ceremony began, the ministering angels walked before Adam, leading him beneath the wedding canopies. Michael and Gabriel were Adam’s groomsmen. Then God Himself brought the bride to Adam and stood before them like a cantor, and took the cup of blessing and blessed them, as it is said, God blessed them (Gen. 1:28).
As soon as Adam and Eve were wed, still other angels descended to the Garden of Eden, playing music for the newlyweds, beating tambourines and dancing to pipes. So too did the sun, the moon and the stars dance for them, and all of creation joined in the celebration of the world’s first wedding.
Sefer ha-Zikhronot explains that while each bridegroom generally has only one huppah (a wedding canopy), and a king has three, God made ten canopies for Adam in order to show great honor to the first man. The jewels covering them are all different: chalcedony, topaz, diamond, beryl, onyx, jasper, sapphire, emerald, carbuncle, and gold. This list is drawn from Ezekiel 28:18. The twenty-four ornaments that Eve wore are listed in Isaiah 3:18-24.
There is a debate among the rabbis recounted in Genesis Rabbah as to how many canopies God created for Adam. While the number generally given is ten, some rabbis argued there were 11 or 13.
One of the wedding blessings for every Jewish couple is that they attain the holiness and joy granted to Adam and Eve on the day of their wedding.
This myth also provides the origin of the best man at weddings, for since God acted as the best man for Adam, henceforth one must have a best man.
Sources:
B. Eruvin 18a; B. Berakhot 61a; B. Niddah 45a; B. Shabbat 95a; Genesis Rabbah 8:13, 18:1; Pesikta de-Rav Kahana 4:4, 26:3; Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer 12; Avot de-Rabbi Natan 4; Sefer ha-Zikhronot 7:1-2; Pesikta Rabbati 14:10; Zohar 3:19a, 3:44b.
181. ADNE SADEH
Adam was not the first man that God attempted to create. Little record remains of these early attempts that were created and then destroyed, or permitted to become extinct. But it is known that before God created Adam, He created a creature called Adne Sadeh. This creature had a form that closely resembled that of man, but Adne Sadeh was attached to the earth by means of a navel cord, upon which its life depended. This cord, it is true, sometimes grew to great lengths of more than a mile, but in any case the creature was confined to this radius, for if the cord snapped its life would end. Thus the creature sustained itself with those fruits and vegetables that grew within the circle, and by occasionally capturing animals who approached it too closely.
The life span of Adne Sadeh was very long, and there was little that could take its life, short of a flood or other disaster, unless its cord was snapped. Thus this species continued to exist until the last members were drowned in the Flood.
There are some fantastic creatures recounted in Jewish lore. Adne Sadeh is a kind of primitive man who was said to be tied to the earth by his navel cord. Midrash Tanhuma tells of a traveler who was served this creature, who was regarded as a vegetable rather than a man. Afraid that he had fallen among cannibals, he ran away as quickly as he could. Ma’aseh Buch tells of a traveling rabbi who was served what appeared to be human hands, but that turned out to be a vegetable that looked like a human hand. This too may be linked to the myth of the “vegetable man.” Louis Ginzberg describes Adne Sadeh as a “man of the mountains,” and suggests that he was some kind of ape.
Sources:
Midrash Tanhuma, Introduction 125; Ma’aseh Buch 201; Magen Avot 35b.
Studies:
Legends of the Jews, Ginzberg, vol. 5, notes I:147-148.
182. THE SEA MONSTER LEVIATHAN
God created all creatures male and female, including the great sea monster Leviathan and its mate. But had those two enormous creatures mated, they would have destroyed the world. What did God do? He castrated the male and killed the female, serving it to the righteous in the World to Come, as it is said, He will slay the dragon in the sea (Isa. 27:1).
Leviathan enters the river, swallowing fish of many kinds, gathering strength. Its eyes are a great light in the sea, as it is said, And his eyes are like the glimmer of the dawn (Job 41:10). Its mouth is as wide and deep as the Dead Sea. And when Leviathan is hungry he exhales a fiery breath that makes all the waters of the deep boil, as it is said, He makes the depths seethe like a cauldron (Job 41:23).
Leviathan rules nine rivers and the sea. Some say there is a monster in each of those nine rivers, as it is said, You smashed the heads of monsters in the waters (Ps. 74:13). Like the great Leviathan, they all draw their breath from the realms above, not from the realms below.
When Leviathan is hungry, he emits a fiery breath from his mouth that causes all the waters of the deep to boil. And if he did not purify his breath by putting his head into the Garden of Eden, no creature could stand his foul odor.
The Jordan River passes through the Kinneret and rolls down to the great sea until it rushes into the mouth of Leviathan. Still it is not enough, and when Leviathan is thirsty, he swallows so much water that the deep does not regain its strength for seventy years.
Some say that in the future the angel Gabriel will arrange a chase of Leviathan, to see if it can be captured, as it is said, Can you draw out Leviathan by a fishhook? (Job. 40:25). But unless God assists him, the angel will never prevail. Others say that at the messianic banquet God Himself will prepare the tables and slaughter Leviathan, as well as Behemoth and the Ziz. God will leave His glorious throne and sit with the
righteous. They will eat and drink and be happy, until God commands them to raise the cup of blessing. Then King David will stand up and offer a great blessing to God, blessed be He, saying, “I raise the cup of deliverance” (Ps. 116:13). And at that time God will take His crown and put it on David’s head and on the head of the Messiah.
The Hebrew tradition about sea-monsters is probably drawn from that found in Canaanite literary sources, where Ba’al slays the seven-headed monster Lotan, who is the equivalent of Leviathan. A Christian vision of a similar seven-headed monster is also found in the Book of Revelation 12:3: And behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
All of these myths are variants on the theme of a primordial battle with the great dragon. References to ancient myths about this primordial battle are found in Psalm 74:13-14: It was You who drove back the sea with Your might, who smashed the heads of the monsters in the waters; it was You who crushed the heads of Leviathan.
The creation of the sea-monsters derives from Genesis 1:21: And God created the great sea-monsters. This is understood to refer to Leviathan and his mate. Leviathan is a whale-like creature of enormous size who rules the sea. It is described in Job 40:25-32. Leviathan is also identified with the dragon, making this a Jewish dragon myth. Although only one such creature is said to exist, this is because God slew the female of the species to prevent the male and female from mating. It is said that God will make a banquet for the righteous from it in the messianic era, and that the righteous will be given tabernacles made of the skin of Leviathan. The notion of Leviathan being served at such a banquet grows out of Job 40:30: Will bands of fishermen make a banquet of him? See “The Messianic Banquet,” p. 508, and “A Tabernacle for the Righteous,” p. 510. Here, it is the female Leviathan, which God slays, that is being saved for the banquet. In other versions, where no reference to the slain female is made, Leviathan himself will be served to the righteous and not his mate. For more on Leviathan, see “The Great Sea,” p. 103. For myths about other enormous creatures, see “Behemoth,” p. 146, and “The Ziz,” p. 147.
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