Lilith
Has anyone heard of the myth of Lilith?
I have been reading about it and I find it fascinating and incredibly alluring: the idea of a Christian figure of feminine independence and power. Here is my favorite:
"After God created Adam, who was alone, He said, 'It is not good for man to be alone' (Gen. 2:18). He then created a woman for Adam, from the earth, as He had created Adam himself, and called her Lilith. Adam and Lilith began to fight. She said, 'I will not lie below,' and he said, 'I will not lie beneath you, but only on top. For you are fit only to be in the bottom position, while am to be in the superior one.' Lilith responded, 'We are equal to each other inasmuch as we were both created from the earth.' But they would not listen to one another. When Lilith saw this, she pronounced the Ineffable Name and flew away into the air. Adam stood in prayer before his Creator: 'Sovereign of the universe!' he said, 'the woman you gave me has run away.' At once, the Holy One, blessed be He, sent these three angles to bring her back."
It reminds me vaguely of Rizwank's post about weather or not female dominance and self assertion is unattractive to men. It does give a bit of weight behind the concept that men don't like women who are not submissive to think that we have it has been engrained into our society for thousands of years, but one would hope modern men would have gotten past that....
Anyways I just find the concept of Lilith intriguing, even if she only took the form of "first woman" in the middle ages and her routes are really in a Sumerian and Mesopotamian deamoness.
I have been reading about it and I find it fascinating and incredibly alluring: the idea of a Christian figure of feminine independence and power. Here is my favorite:
"After God created Adam, who was alone, He said, 'It is not good for man to be alone' (Gen. 2:18). He then created a woman for Adam, from the earth, as He had created Adam himself, and called her Lilith. Adam and Lilith began to fight. She said, 'I will not lie below,' and he said, 'I will not lie beneath you, but only on top. For you are fit only to be in the bottom position, while am to be in the superior one.' Lilith responded, 'We are equal to each other inasmuch as we were both created from the earth.' But they would not listen to one another. When Lilith saw this, she pronounced the Ineffable Name and flew away into the air. Adam stood in prayer before his Creator: 'Sovereign of the universe!' he said, 'the woman you gave me has run away.' At once, the Holy One, blessed be He, sent these three angles to bring her back."
It reminds me vaguely of Rizwank's post about weather or not female dominance and self assertion is unattractive to men. It does give a bit of weight behind the concept that men don't like women who are not submissive to think that we have it has been engrained into our society for thousands of years, but one would hope modern men would have gotten past that....
Anyways I just find the concept of Lilith intriguing, even if she only took the form of "first woman" in the middle ages and her routes are really in a Sumerian and Mesopotamian deamoness.