So, I
alluded to her, and now we’re going to take an in-depth look at her. I have
scoured the web, and looked at many, many, many people’s interpretations of
Lilith, but very few have any kind of original text. I will offer caution to
anyone looking for deeper information about Lilith that the false information
vastly outnumbers the truth.
However, I
have found an authentic
story of Lilith for your perusal. Don’t worry, it’s a couple of paragraphs,
so it’s a quick read (mild spoiler: it’s about sexual positions). The story is
problematic mostly because of its authenticity. It’s not an ancient rabbinic
story. It’s
medieval. Literally! It comes from the Middle Ages from the Alphabet of Ben
Sira. So if it originated less than a thousand years ago, how can it possibly
be accurate about events taking place at the same time as Genesis?
Well, here’s
where mythology starts borrowing from other cultures. There are Sumerian and
Babylonian myths which feature Lilith (or lilitu in the Babylonian) that
describe female demons with job descriptions remarkably similar to what the
Alphabet prescribes to Lilith.
But (and
there’s frequently a but) though Lilith doesn’t appear in any midrash or Talmudic
text, most of those were passed on orally until modern times. So while a clear
text featuring Lilith doesn’t exist until medieval times, the legend itself
could have been passed around well before this. For a more thorough scholarly
breakdown, read
this article.
However, I
don’t want to do that. I want to talk about what we’ve got going on in this
myth because I think it’s fascinating. I also think that it’s quite easily to
misunderstand and misapply what’s going on. So, take two minutes and go read
the story by clicking the first link. Go on, I’ll wait.
(Jeopardy
theme)
Okay, you’re
back. Awesome. So, first of all, I would like to take a moment to criticize
something very important about this story. What is Adam’s problem? He’s upset
because she wants to be on top? Live a little, guy! Try new things! Go borrow
the Kama Sutra from the Hindus. Of all the things to complain about, he has to
choose that!? I would have complained about lack of walls because animals can
be pretty voyeuristic.
So, now
that we’ve identified the central conflict (Man and woman arguing about sex.
This is very much an ancient argument, and it still hasn’t been resolved.) we
can understand a little more.
Many
feminists laud this story as an example of the first feminist—Lilith. They
would also like to relate that it’s a demonstration of how controlling men can
be, and what happens when a woman refuses to be controlled by a man. To take it
further, how the Bible is completely patriarchal and disdainful of women. This
last frequently gets paired up with the order of creation argument, which, if
you’ve been reading, I put a different spin on the idea by talking about
refinement and how women are the ultimate creation.
And, so, I
will put yet another spin on this myth.
See, there
was no divine mandate from God about positions. In fact, God stayed out of the
whole thing. They were arguing to their hearts’ content without any
interference from God. However, Lilith did cross the line. She did something
she knew she wasn’t supposed to do, say the name of God.
In Judaism,
the name of God is represented by the Tetragrammaton, which
consists of the Hebrew letters YHWH. These appear in the Bible, but are never
to be spoken out loud. It’s a major no-no that Lilith did this, which is why
she was cursed. Yes, she objected to Adam being an idiot about positions, which
was her right, but she went too far with speaking the name.
So while
the story’s initial conflict is about sex, the real crime is Lilith speaking
the divine name, which she knew she wasn’t supposed to do. While some would
analyze this to mean that she still is rebelling against patriarchal authority,
I tend to view this as something more adolescent: a teenager rebelling because
teenagers like to rebel against things.
Oh, and
Adam is still an idiot because of the position thing.
It should
be noted, however, again, that the Alphabet of Ben Sira is not thought of as
something canonical by any of the Abrahamic religions, and in fact the
characterization of Adam in this story seems different from how he is in Eden with
Eve (and we’ll get there, eventually. It’s more involved than you would think.).