The Origins of Lilith | Adam's First Wife?

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According to medieval Jewish folklore, Lilith is a demon who was Adam's first wife before Eve. But where did this idea come from? Dive into the 4,000-year-long history of Lilith, the terrifying demoness.
00:00 Intro
1:00 Mesopotamian Origins: lilu-demons
4:15 Named Mesopotamian demonesses
6:04 Lilith in the Hebrew Bible
8:24 Lilith in 2nd Temple and Rabbinic Judaism
12:12 Adam's First Wife?
14:51 Lilith in Kabbalah
15:22 The Lilith 'rebrand'
Select images courtesy of Getty

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

Register for my class "Early Christian Exorcism" here!: religionforbreakfast.eventbrite.com/

[@abysscallstoabyss55]

I’ve read somewhere before that Lilith was married to Asmodeus. Is this just another variation and if so how did it originate. Thank you for all that you do. 👌🍻

[@raya.p.l5919]

Jesus power ❤ warning intense 😮 last 3 days 😅 enjoy

[@QueenBoadicea]

In the bible, isn't it the Abrahamic god who levels a curse of difficult childbirth on Eve and all her female descendants? Why blame demons when Lord Jealous already did such a great job?

[@raya.p.l5919]

@@dirkjensen969 ❤ Jesus power ❤ warning intense ❤last 3 days. ❤ enjoy

[@anthonyrepetto3474]

Notes from an alternate Timeline: Eve bit the apple, granting her omniscience, and saw the *fracture* in God's creation: Lili had fled, the Work was impure! And so, by offering Adam a bite, Eve proved the flaw to God: when God arrived to ask what Adam had done, Adam *blames his own free will upon temptation* ... how could God give Adam omniscience, from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, as well as omnipotence, from the Tree of Eternal Life, if Adam would allow himself to be controlled by others? Even the Serpent realized that risk of impure godhood, saying "We must stop him from becoming LIKE US." That was what Eve saw, and proved. Lili fled; she was not preferring the wilderness or her role in it. It was a failed parentage on the part of God; look to the old Phoenician story of Persephone. Samael is the same groom as Dis. The wheel of time returns to Yom Kippur, when vows are renewed; the Age of Pisces was the renewal of vows, when Lili could break her wedding to Samael, Persephone could break her wedding to Dis. Persephone, until that Age, was ONLY allowed to reach the surface due to a *bargain* : that she sacrifice her son, the Three-Faced God Bacchus, in his child-form, iacus. When the angel Gabriel came to pour the lily of the Holy Spirit into Mary, the angel *told* Mary that her child would be named 'iesu' - which was the name for that Three-Faced child of Persephone, iacu. Persephone's son was sacrificed for the last time, on the Yom Kippur of the Wheel of TIme, to liberate the world from the bloody child-sacrifice of the Eleusinian Mystery.

[@17thsubject]

Imagine a kid making these bowls for a class project in Mesopotamia and we’re just overthinking it.

[@boredtolife323]

🙃

[@Kepler_Mission]

Future societies are going to think we praised Pizza and Super Mario. "We believe humans traveled for miles to gather around for a special ritual called 'Pizza Party' and praised a plumber named Mario who fancied a princess of peaches."

[@majorramsey3k]

"We're whalers on the Moon!"

[@rashawncarson]

⁠@@morgangates9345 gave her a snapping turtle🤣

[@Gerson.Reyes.C]

I think a lot about this. I wonder if the Ugandan Knuckles mural in Uganda will survive thousands of years and future anthropologist will believe it was a deity

[@Rodrigo_Vega]

I find the idea that Lilith became a demon because my boy Adam wouldn't allow her to be on top for a while so she just flat-out left him, particularly hilarious.

[@AW-uv3cb]

Yeah, the irony of those guys not realising that they're making Adam look really weak and insecure!

[@chemical2401]

Based Lilith

[@SuperGlue4321]

It’s not about being on top for a while. It’s about the disrespect. Rage Quit is the way to go.

[@Ninja1Ninja2]

​​@@AW-uv3cbto give adam some credit, god did basically make him and lilith as two different species so most likely their 'marriage' was them trying to attack eachother for food

[@bellenesatan]

​@@SuperGlue4321He doesn't deserve respect for being made of the same mud as her. If you can't understand that, maybe you're still mud, after all.

[@mikeismasri]

"She is fierce, fearsome, divine..." ok slayyyy hunty 💅

[@anthroimperzia3927]

I hope this is satire

[@kingchorus]

@@anthroimperzia3927it’s not, stan lilith

[@MFLimited]

@@anthroimperzia3927not the baby killing version (that’s only a few, probably ancient Incels ). The independent, strong, refuses to be a victim goddess ✨Lilith✨

[@Slapnuts9627]

​@@MFLimited the west has fallen

[@untitled6391]

​@@Slapnuts9627lay off the benzos Mr. Petersen

[@christopherkahn6522]

Thank God I found a scholarly treatment of the subject rather than hype and misinformation. I appreciate your seriousness.

[@polariz5780]

Last time I was this early, Adam still had all of his ribs

[@ahobimo732]

I'm honored to be the first person to congratulate you on this legendary comment.

[@h.huffen-puff4105]

Good one!

[@swanben11]

Yes, absolutely legendary.

[@Ancipital_]

How I long back to those days

[@orangejjay]

​@@Ancipital_The days when the majority of people were slaves? When education kinda sorta wasn't allowed? Or we just talking yesterday? 😂😂

[@cramerfloro5936]

I love that the ancient mesopotamian way to solve the ardat-lili hauntings is to play otherworldly matchmaker.

[@andrewsuryali8540]

More like a divorce lawyer.

[@kellydalstok8900]

You should watch the video with British Museum curator Irving Finkel talking about mesopotamian ghosts: Mesopotamian ghostbusting with Irving Finkel.

[@cramerfloro5936]

@@kellydalstok8900 I already saw that😁 it's great!

[@LimeyLassen]

It's like the demonology version of "why don't the incels just date each other"

[@colinstewart3531]

That was only one way, another way is to call on Pazuzu, the demon from the exorcist, to drive them away.

[@NobleWolf]

The funny thing about ancient characters everyone knows and loves is they are often adopted over time to fit a narrative people at the time are trying to push regardless of how they act in the story

[@keenoled]

This script was flawless. The return to the bowls halfway through there, flawless. Good voice too. Well done!

[@vonPeterhof]

Even before the 1970s the name Lilith, or rather Lilit, experienced a surge in popularity among Armenians that seems to have continued to this day. Apparently it was kickstarted by the writer Avetik Isahakyan, who wrote a short story based on the legend of Lilith as Adam's first wife back in the 1920s.

[@arnbrandy]

That sounds fascinating! Is this short story translated somewhere on the internet? I couldn't find it.

[@morgenstern7865]

Some people believe that even those who are named after Lilith, that have evil intentions.

[@YoelFievelBenAvram]

I'm willing to bet a lot of it is Frasier fans going, oh that's a pretty name, google says it means night!

[@youtubestudiosucks978]

​@@morgenstern7865wouldnt their faith protect them? Then why worry?

[@morgenstern7865]

@@youtubestudiosucks978 there was an old aramaic phrase about it. I don't remember the actual phrase but it basically meant first *special* sin. Apparently if you start a sin trend you would be cursed by the throne. Started with Lucifer(casting from heaven), followed by Lilith(all her children killed by 3 angels mentioned in the video and unable to have children), Cain(walk the earth till the end of earth and not belong anywhere, not loved properly) etc. I couldnt find any sources to the claims of being named after but I was told their names are also cursed, allegedly if you are named after them you will be like them. I mean this belief exists in many cultures even outside bible or torah influence. Being named after somebody makes you become like them overtime. Some sort of fate or destiny.

[@Rocklahaulle]

My first encounter with the name "Lilith" or the concept that Adam had a wife before Eve came from Neon Genesis Evangelion 😂

[@giulianodeconti4233]

Same Here! Interesting re-interpretation of biblical themes in this anime.

[@rimiadoss9792]

Me too

[@FirstNameBunchANumbers]

Supernatural for me 🤙🏻

[@mrtony1985]

gotta hand it to the shows creators for translating their knowledge of this

[@SCBlahBLah]

Me too!

[@PMickeyDee]

Once I learned of Lilith in jewish mythology, i truly appreciated the fact that Frasier Crane's ex-wife was named Lilith but it always felt a little odd that Maris was canonically the she-witch in Frasier.

[@KarlWitsman]

I wondered if the use of Lilith as the strong, smart female psychologist in that show helped to push the name back to popularity.

[@PMickeyDee]

@@KarlWitsman I wonder the same thing. I really wish SSA published more birth names for a given year than just the top 1000. I'm sure there were bumps in the mid 80's & 90's from the character. I would imagine more so in the 90s because she became a more dimensional character then even though she appeared more frequently in cheer's

[@BeauxLo]

Just curious are your religious at all or atheist?

[@PMickeyDee]

@@BeauxLo I'm of the heathen variety

[@catsberry4858]

@@KarlWitsmanLilith Faire.

[@bobbyz9052]

I love the idea that some children are named after a baby killing demon

[@crazyasalways9272]

The idea of doing such things isn't really new many peo0le believed/believe that naming you child after a entity or demon will grant protection from the namesake

[@poetsrear]

You can be sure every "Lilith" is named so by their mothers, not by their fathers.... And that conjecture in itself is telling of what these people and sexes are like.

[@justbreathe_]

Lilith isn’t a baby killer in other mythology

[@journeytoself8067]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@danteortega6510]

@@justbreathe_isnt Lilith purely Jewish?

[@wompa70]

A thought just hit me... I wonder how many of the bowls originated because someone was caught cheating on their spouse and blamed a "demon" for putting the idea in their head. Tracing the origins of ideas and practices is invaluable for helping modern audiences.

[@pattheplanter]

There is some confusion with succubi/incubi here. I don't see any sexual congress mentioned, just attacks on both grown-ups and especially children. Demons were personifications of disease in most of history and in most religions - not tempters to unchristian behaviour. Most children died before reaching adulthood.

[@hyperfixatedd]

Which I believe is the same story behind Jesus lol "Yeah.... I got impregnated by uhhhh.. GOD!"

[@lauragallaher4529]

I wondered if it was an early explanation of STI's/STD's, particularly as it causes harm to infants and mothers during childbirth

[@bestieswithtesties]

@@hyperfixatedd Except you're forgetting that Jesus was a very real person who performed very real miracles in front of countless witnesses. Christianity didn't spread like wildfire across the planet cause of made up story time. It happened because Jesus proved himself in front of many and word spread. So you know. Maybe try to avoid saying blasphemous things if you care about your soul at all.

[@sapphirefire291]

@@bestieswithtesties sure buddy

[@felixfeliciano7011]

It is always fascinating to get a glimpse into the beliefs and superstitions of earlier periods, beyond what the ancient texts say they SHOULD believe, rather than what they actually did believe.

[@cipmaster1]

Still most of these beliefs and superstitions predates the hebrew bible as he himself said, and the ideas came from mesopotamia. Still we have to understand that not all terms mean proper names but are just terms or even metaphors, which people would have understood because they were familiar with the terms because of language similarity. The part of lilith being used as a term for a night creature is a good example of this.

[@differous01]

Either you're too young to know, or so old you've forgotten the partner of your first wet dream. If dreams are "superstition" then dogs (dreaming creatures) are true believers.

[@andruloni]

@@differous01 dogs ARE the true believers.

[@billybobthekidiswack]

@@cipmaster1 The Israelite tradition also far pre-dates the Hebrew bible.

[@rduff1999]

​@@differous01I think she visited me a couple of nights ago. Oh what a party. 😂😂😂 Pax

[@WeirdDarknessOfficial]

Absolutely fascinating and it's so great to hear the balanced presentation! You just earned a new subscriber and I might even join your class on October 26th.

[@herseeingeyedog]

I think one could make the argument that the name "Lilith" became more popular due to pop culture. With more shows concerning witches, angels, demons, etc., Lilith was a name used quite a bit in these shows - Supernatural, Sabrina, and/or Lucifer (I'm sure others as well, too).

[@Saffron-sugar]

Yes, as well as the idea of women retaining their femininity whilst taking no s*

[@inwyrdn3691]

"Demonic personifications of sexual envy" That's definitely the name of my death metal band's first album, when we finally make one...after I start a band...after I learn to play an instrument.

[@Jahzilla.]

Step one is always a cool first album name

[@nothereyetlost]

Lol

[@nothereyetlost]

@@Jahzilla.right?!!

[@Saffron-sugar]

Too late 😊

[@pixel9548]

Frasier's first wife may have also boosted the popularity of Lilith as a name.

[@patrickf.4440]

Yes, I kept thinking of the Frasier "Lilith" all through the video. I am guessing it is no accident that the writers picked that name for that character. She is a strong forceful modern competent woman on the one hand and yet has (for Frasier at least) a succubus-like component.

[@pixel9548]

Oh, shoot! I'm embarrassed! Nanny G was Frasier's first wife. Lilith was number two.

[@bluesdealer]

Not a very flattering metaphor, lol. Frasier’s Lilith was pure toxicity, which means she earned her namesake.

[@lisasommerlad1337]

​@@bluesdealeri beg to differ.

[@pbxn-3rdx-85percent]

"I'm Doctor Frasier Crane, and I'm listening." 😄

[@fenix0seraph]

Ah, the thing about Lilith becoming a figure in Kabbalah is interesting. Because the other way that I've seen Kabbalists resolve the plot hole of the two creation myths in Genesis is to declare that Adam was created androgyne/intersex (hence "man and woman"), and creating Eve was a metaphor for the androgyne Adam splitting into two separate male and female beings.

[@timgega5930]

This information was very important for the community to learn. Thanks for sharing.

[@ggdynfytugfy6892]

Imagine being so maidenless you have to become a demon about it when you die

[@EnkiduShamesh]

supernatural incels . . .

[@RoseNZieg]

this reminds me of the chinese who believe that a man cannot rest in peace if he died unmarried so they perform ghost marriages. some even resorted to stealing dead female bodies to do the ritual.

[@jamiecurran3544]

@@EnkiduShamesh Lol!🤣😂👍

[@rebeccaqallaboutthefeminin1794]

You sound like eve

[@winterbear8633]

'to become a demon about it' sounds so funny for some reason

[@earlmehraban]

I love how I watch your videos for the religious history, and sometimes get videos like this which also explain where so many creatures in D&D came from. 😂

[@videogollumer]

Some also come from fantasy fiction, and don't forget D&D original creatures like Beholders and Owlbears.

[@jonstfrancis]

I remember the sexy Succubus in the original Monster Manual

[@mousii3222]

I’m getting so interested in the mythos of the abrahamic religions. Your video is perfect, and you have a voice that I can pay attention to and really absorb it!

[@waltersstreet]

This channel is always exceptional. This subject is one of my favorites. 👍

[@Lord-Stanhope]

It is truly fascinating to learn how much about religions that are accepted as fact, are really nothing more than fan fiction that gained a following. (Excellent vid as always)

[@pixel9548]

Remarkably insightful!

[@mohmj6815]

Middle schooler comment

[@Lord-Stanhope]

@@mohmj6815 sorry, some of made it past the 4th grade nitwit

[@user-sl6gn1ss8p]

I'd say it kind of is fan fiction all the way down : p

[@skarbuskreska]

​@@mohmj6815well then, the middle schooler is more clever than so many adults

[@willowbarrelmaker8269]

Really glad you’re covering this one. I tried to research it myself a while ago, but my trail went cold at “Maybe it was just a screech owl” lol

[@ADEpoch]

This was good thanks. I watched Esoterica’s video on it and was intrigued, but confused. You filled in the blanks of his good work. Thanks.

[@joelpinto6094]

Awesome work man. Great narration skills here.

[@lbjcb5]

This character has always fascinated me. I'm glad you're covering it. I feel like I can trust your scholarship on this more so than other sources!

[@Divine_Dreamer_vaporwave]

Trey The Explainer also has a good video on this, and a few other biblical characters

[@hive_indicator318]

Esoterica has a few videos on her. It's a wild ride. If you want to go deeper

[@ShayJaggerMitchell]

The Esoterica videos are very very good.

[@jesusisking3814]

Jesus Christ wants a personal relationship with you through the Holy Spirit, not religion and blind faith. You see, we all have sinned, and have broken God’s law (The Ten Commandments). Wrong doing deserves justice and must be punished (just like how a criminal has to pay for the crime they have committed) but God saved us from the eternal punishment of our sins by sending His Son Jesus Christ, fullness of God in flesh, a perfect, sinless sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross and resurrecting, so that we may have everlasting life. It is all finished and now for you to accept the free gift of grace, you must repent of your sins and put your faith in Jesus Christ and Bible says that His Blood will cover all of your sins, you will be forgiven, saved from eternal punishment, and be given everlasting life. By faith you will receive the Holy Spirit, become born again, know Jesus personally and He will transform your heart and clean you from the inside out. Turn away from sin, read the Bible, pray for the Holy Spirit to fill you and change you, obey the Word. Much love and God bless you!

[@lbjcb5]

@jesusisking3814 ...okay...

[@rurone]

This is one of the things I'm most interested in when it comes to ancient Sumerian texts; because cuneiform was an unknown script for about a thousand years, their views of women and female spiritual power have been preserved without passing through the hands of the church, like most other ancient texts. The idea that positive Babylonian figures like Baphomet and Puzuzu were recast as demons in Judaism and Christianity makes me very curious about the goddess Ishtar, for instance.

[@AC-dk4fp]

This just isn't true. Baphomet isn't Babylonian and is probably a mispelling of Mohammad while Pazuzu is more an enemy of my enemy deal. Even then Pazuzu only became a Christian villain in a modern Hollywood film and had no presence in post-Christian context before then. Pazuzu is outright evil in some Babylonian exorcism texts unlike his Egyptian equivilant Bes who is more benevolent. Mathew 12:22-28 seems to reference a similar practice to using Pazuzu against Lamashtu but it talks about Baalzebub who isn't Babylonian so is probably a local equivilant to Pazuzu but not the same character anymore than Bes is the same. Evil female spirits from Christian cultures like Hags and Succubi are generally based on pagan spirits that were malevolent in the original pagan context like Lamia. Christians even reversed some of the demonisation done in the Bible by re-using the Queen of Heaven title desparaged by the prophets for the Virgin Mary. Even Ishtar is a villain on ocaison, pretty much all pagan deities mix positive and negative traits. Even the evil version of Venus in the Tannhauser legend is just emphasising elements of the character that are negative and destructive in pagan sources and never became the sole portrayal of Venus in Christian Europe. The Christian demon Asteroth is less a demonised Ishtar and more a original male demonic character re-using a name that wasn't understood any more.

[@John.Flower.Productions]

@@AC-dk4fp You seem to be conflating Christian with Catholic. Catholics have not _reversed some of the demonization_ of the "Queen of Heaven" title used by Jeremiah; they worship the Virgin Mary in the same manner as _pagans_ worshipped *S T R* (Ishtar, Astarte, Ashtoreth, Ashtaroth, Easter, Et cetera) because they are all one and the same. *S T R* is the name of the female deity/demon, the vowels are nonexistent/interchangeable.

[@jessicawurm23]

​@@John.Flower.Productionsno, we do not worship the Virgin Mary. We honor her as the Queen of All Saints and ask for her prayers and intercession with God.

[@manmoy4104]

Baphomet is not a Biblical demon. I don't think Ishtar appears in the Bible but her Phoenician variant, Astarte/Ashtoreth, does, I forgot which book though

[@John.Flower.Productions]

@@manmoy4104 *S T R* is the name of the female deity/demon, the vowels are nonexistent/interchangeable.

[@thestrangelounge18]

Im so happy i found your informative channel

[@erikagrohoskiperalta5239]

Hello, I looked at your amazon list, but I was wondering if you had any specific reading recommendations on Lilith/the lilu? Great video, thank you!

[@grapeshot]

I also think it's quite interesting that in the late 60s and 70s Lilith became this women liberation icon.

[@ReligionForBreakfast]

I cover that in the final act. An interesting 'rebrand' of the figure!

[@lakrids-pibe]

server of chicken soup lol

[@JCPRuckus]

What's really interesting is that feminism can be directly linked to birthrates falling below replacement in every advanced economy, and heading that direction everywhere else in the world too. So it's barely even a rebranding. Still a "threat" to motherhood, just preemptively now.

[@HannHio-kv1ky]

Just because woman are no longer forced to be breeding machines that is not why the population is falling so severely. It's simply because with climate change, war, recession egg it is no longer feasible to have kids

[@newjerseyyouth4853]

@@JCPRuckusno, feminism is stronger because of the falling birth rates. Economic progress leads to less Kids which gives women more time to fight for their rights! Feminism isn’t a threat to motherhood, only forced motherhood

[@l.a.gothro3999]

I would love to see a kids' book entitled, "Gilgamesh and the Huluppu-Tree" but not illustrated according to the original story; it sounds like something Maurice Sendak would've illustrated.

[@lizzymoores]

"..there's not much daylight between exorcism and magickal practice" is an amazing quote. You said that perfectly, and I appreciate the depth you went into! This is the most informative video about Lilith I've come across. I love it.

[@adamthefirsthuman]

She’s not my wife, guys.

[@lXBlackWolfXl]

I've heard of the Lilith trope before, but I wasn't aware of most of this. What I heard was that she was originally created to give an ID to Cain's unnamed wife. The story was she was created just like Adam, but they didn't mesh and so she left him. God then created Eve from a piece of Adam to ensure this didn't happen with her. Lilith then later mated with Cain, giving an identity to the unnamed woman Cain is said to have 'laid down with'. Mostly to me, she's just an overused trope in vampire fiction. Its common for her name to be attributed to the first vampire. Sometimes they try to tie this into a version of the biblical narrative, sometimes not. The original Vampire the Masquerade actually did a similar thing where they named Cain as the first vampire in the world's own fictional history. No idea if they ever used the name Lilith though. I think I also heard the name get used in this anime called Evangelion, where she was depicted as some sort of supernatural being, with a backstory loosely based on the bible.

[@missanne2908]

There's an even more obscure tale of the first Eve. God made a first version of Eve (post Lilith) from Adam's rib while Adam was fully awake and witnessed the creation. Adam was so disgusted with seeing this Eve's innards being formed that he wouldn't have anything to do with her. God made a second version of Eve, only this time Adam was put to sleep during her creation. Apparently third time is a charm because this was Adam's final wife. What happened to Eve 1.0 is a mystery. If you look at this through the lens of orthodox Christian theology, Lilith and Eve 1.0 (and the Virgin Mary if you are Catholic) were the only humans that did not bear the stain of original sin (Lilith being a human until she uttered the ineffable name of God). I've got to see _Evangelion._

[@Nitenshi]

They did used Lilith in Vampire the Masquerade. She is the one who teached Cain how to use his vampiric powers. Also some vampires think she is their progenitor instead of Cain.

[@Thessalin]

About WoD, another story is she's the mother of witches and teaches the Magi how to alter reality. 😊

[@apokyrfter413]

Evangelion has a twist on this, the progenitor of the beings called Angels is named Adam, while the progenitor of humanity (or lilim) is called Lilith. Meanwhile mecha robot Evangelions (Eva) were created from Adam.

[@rebeccaqallaboutthefeminin1794]

Eve is a stepford wife while Lilith is the original first borne.

[@gregorys2380]

This was very well done. Ty for the video.

[@PaUradise]

The best channel! Thank you for all your efforts!

[@kyrtuck]

There was a Blumhouse movie called Pure which had Lilith possessing a girl and empowering other girls to rise up against creepy possessive fathers in a Purity Ball.

[@shelbyspeaks3287]

L plot

[@ethanhunt5243]

@@shelbyspeaks3287sounds brutally cringe

[@thekalenichannel1812]

​@@ethanhunt5243there's nothing more cringe than a purity ball with creepy fathers invested in their daughters virginity 🤢🤮

[@dominiquejones6758]

Seen it. Liked it

[@Saffron-sugar]

Yes, it was an episode of the “Into the Dark” series on Hulu.

[@artheaded1]

I took my teenaged niece and her friends to a Lilith Fair concert in the late 90s. All female artists, great show, wish I still had the concert T-shirt. I always wondered about the "Adam's first wife" title, now I know!

[@Saffron-sugar]

You went in the 90s and whenever curious about the title until now? I think I envy you. I was in the library, in the 90s, trying to figure it out.

[@artheaded1]

@@Saffron-sugar I envy you having the time to drop go to the library and research every single thing that you're curious about, and also the time to make left handed compliments to total strangers. In the 90's I was doing more pressing things such as running a business, raising my son, taking care of the home. With that behind me and the internet at my fingertips I have the time and ability explore subjects that intrigue me more easily.

[@SophiaMessiahPocahontasJew]

Thanks for this, very informative. ❤

[@t.b.9786]

I watched a TV show with Lilith character, Adam's first wife. I asked some missionaries who she was. They said,we will get back to you on that. They didn't. Thanks for this video. 😊

[@iCloud867]

To Whom am I Talking To? This Is Lisa and I'm in an Emergency!

[@douglasboyle6544]

When you spoke of the Great Scroll of Isaiah at Kumran referring to Liliths in the plural therefore being a certain class of demons for some reason my brain just instantly thought of "Karens" as a specific class of demons and I just started laughing way too loudly out loud to myself.

[@mxaviervega]

Haven’t even watched it yet cuz I wanna watch without distractions, but I’m so pumped you’ve hit this topic

[@salvestrom]

Thanks for this: it helped fill in several blanks I've had.

[@tooborderline]

Hi! I’m a new subscriber from the Philippines :) Do you have any suggested books for people interested to learn more about ancient religion but have no formal training in it?

[@lupusdaemon6015]

Very cool. I've seen lots of different depictions of Lilith/liliths and wondered why there was so much variation. This clears it up!

[@kinilas]

I feel like every time I watch one of these videos I'm both amazed at how much there is to learn and left wanting to learn more. The evolution of myth is such a fascinating thing to me!

[@feelin_fine]

Loved this! Would like to see you do the Buddhist bodhisattva Guanyin/Kannon (觀音), as she has fascinating evolution and lore and arguably more central to East Asian Buddhist devotion than, well, the Buddha.

[@Cipher71]

Are we really just going to ignore the irony of a Jewish feminist magazine cover featuring a "superwoman" alongside an 'L' stylized like a lightning bolt?

[@SobekLOTFC]

Keep up the great work, Dr Henry 👏

[@Pandaemoni]

If you ever need an idea for merch, I'd buy an incantation cereal bowl. What a great way to start the day!

[@leguile1]

This is amazing. I love hearing about religion history without bias.

[@ShayneReigns]

I’m typing my comments as I watch your video. The Mesopotamian demoness you mentioned that attacks during pregnancy reminds me of the aswang in Filipino culture.

[@NovaSaber]

At least some variants of the "Adam's first wife" story have her not only leaving him out of refusal to accept inequality, but also as never turning evil until after God kills the children she had with Samael (or maybe it was a different demon?). So yeah, she had a backstory that any reasonable person would consider sympathetic well before there were enough reasonable people for that to become the dominant interpretation.

[@SpinachLeaf]

Goes against God's word because her husband doesn't let her be on top and sleeps with and has the children of a literal demon. Lol sympathetic come on now...

[@ghoulbuster1]

Quite literally hoe is mad

[@thekalenichannel1812]

​@@SpinachLeafshe demanded equality, because they were both made of mud. They were equal, yet she was expected to be lesser. Yes, I feel sympathetic. It was unfair

[@SpinachLeaf]

@@thekalenichannel1812 didn't she prove she was lesser by acting in such a way and committing such acts? Now she'll always be less than Adam, Eve and their descendants, so smart...

[@mugwump7049]

@@SpinachLeaf Someone who doesn't submit to oppression will never be lesser than the sheep and the oppressor.

[@Nick-Lab]

Adam should have let her take her turn. Sometimes you have to split the effort.

[@cocteaut]

And as my favourite professor in Theology 'The early church and beliefs' class in university explains, this was early explanations of medical conditions, such as epilepsy, cardiac arrest, infarction etc. Think about it, in the 1970s and 1980s we did not even know the words for autism, ADHD etc. We constantly evolve, learn, understand and develop. Humans are a fascinating species.

[@sagsriv]

This makes me see Frasier in new lights! This is awesome!

[@judyshoaf448]

George MacDonald, an important Victorian writer, wrote a fantasy called "Lilith." The protagonist was a man and I think the woman was elusive, dangerous, but also a source of self-knowledge. Different thought: Japanese parents of sons who died unmarried in the wars of the first half of the twentieth century were sometimes haunted by those sons. There were a couple of shrines (or possibly temples) to which they could go for relief; they would buy a doll to serve as a bride for the son, and place in the doll's case a photograph and some other personal items to seal the "marriage." The doll stayed in the shrine but when the parents visited they sometimes saw that the doll and the photo had come to resemble each other a little, and the nightmares stopped. (Ellen Schattschneider is the anthropologist who wrote this up.) Obviously this is different from the marriage of the male and female Lilith figurines, since there is an element of mourning involved, and love for the son, as well as exorcism.

[@inwyrdn3691]

I highly recommend you read Lilith, if you haven't already. George MacDonald was a fascinating thinker and a very influential writer. Some of his stuff can be a little dense (and it definitely has a hard monarchist bent), but worth reading.

[@verityxenia7840]

ok but why are the demon drawings so cute though 😳

[@rachelthompson7487]

This was very interesting and educational. Thank you

[@gregpappas]

I love your channel. Consider doing a segment on the cultural origins of the Eucharist. It seems hard to imagine that early Jewish Christians offered Communion. The practice must have been taken from another religion. We known the symbolism related to the last supper, but I am guessing that was added latter.

[@juhor.7594]

I'm glad I watched this. Though I already had a general idea of Lilith's history, I would have never known how her legacy has changed in modernity.

[@Maximiliano896]

It sounds like “Lilith” is an effort to explain maternal and infant mortality by ppl who didn’t understand the facts of what happened

[@lucfierslight]

Exactly why people see her as an incorrectly villain-ized figure thus becoming a feminist icon for some now.

[@jazmendunham7666]

That's a good bit of the issue, surely. I also wouldn't be surprised if there weren't also a supernatural side to it. A number of people who seek exorcisms suffer merely from psychological issues and perhaps epilepsy. Then there are people who are truly possessed. You discount this truth at your own peril. There's more to this universe than can be explained by the theory of some cosmic explosion.

[@jazmendunham7666]

​@@lucfierslightHow can you be sure it's incorrect? You, in exercising that luciferian intellect, never left room for the possibility that there's a purely negative origin point for this "myth?" Something in no way related to the misunderstood illumination of man's once darkened understanding but something that is inconceivably sly and has nothing but a venomous contempt for human kind? Something real enough and evil enough to place a clawed hand over the mouth and nose of the infant in it's crib?

[@LimeyLassen]

I love how they decided to give the little demons in the bowls smiley faces. I assume the bowls with grumpy demons weren't as popular?

[@gunnerkobra]

Imagine naming your kid the name of a demon who kills infants.

[@orangeeii]

Who's not real...

[@gunnerkobra]

@@orangeeii "wHo'S nOt ReAl..." Yeah go ahead, name your kid Lucifer, see how much he succeeds.

[@orangeeii]

@@gunnerkobra um ok.... It's a name I don't think it's gonna change the path of how he lives

[@billyscenic5610]

Imagine waving a flag that murdered millions of natives and promoted slavery. Oh wait what were we talking about?

[@gunnerkobra]

@@billyscenic5610 I don't know what YOU are talking about. Stop using drugs.

[@nehemiah2223]

The Word "Lilith" means nighttime in Amharic (Ethiopian Language) written as "ለሊት"

[@goodiesohhi]

Amharic is a Semitic language too. I wouldn't be surprised if there's an etymological link.

[@strangelaw6384]

@@goodiesohhi that would be a very interesting etymological link

[@goodiesohhi]

@@strangelaw6384 Remember how some translations of lilith were "night creature" or something like that and also its almost universally an entity associated with the night given thats when the dirty deeds happen.

[@jonstfrancis]

I'm guessing these are all words related to Arabic ليلة meaning night.

[@jonstfrancis]

@@goodiesohhi also cot deaths on a darker note

[@sarahwatts7152]

I couldn't stop thinking about Frasier during the video - but I also learned a lot!

[@PlateArmorUnderwear]

Amazing video! Thank you.

[@nibulux]

I love the idea that ancient people were waking up with morning wood like "damn virgin ghosts!"

[@DeclanMBrennan]

I wonder were the writers of Cheers aware of some of this when they chose Lilith for the name of Frazer's wife? Her character seems to match a number of the expected attributes - both positive and negative.

[@rochelle2758]

Oh, I would be shocked if it wasn’t deliberate on their part. It was one of the wittiest character name choices of all time.

[@danielponder690]

I remember first watching Frasier with my mother as a kid and she busted out laughing at the name of Lilith and told me the story of Lilith - as understood by Jewish tradition; pretty sure it was deliberate.

[@sylviam6535]

That was my first thought.

[@jesusisking3814]

Jesus Christ wants a personal relationship with you through the Holy Spirit, not religion and blind faith. You see, we all have sinned, and have broken God’s law (The Ten Commandments). Wrong doing deserves justice and must be punished (just like how a criminal has to pay for the crime they have committed) but God saved us from the eternal punishment of our sins by sending His Son Jesus Christ, fullness of God in flesh, a perfect, sinless sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross and resurrecting, so that we may have everlasting life. It is all finished and now for you to accept the free gift of grace, you must repent of your sins and put your faith in Jesus Christ and Bible says that His Blood will cover all of your sins, you will be forgiven, saved from eternal punishment, and be given everlasting life. By faith you will receive the Holy Spirit, become born again, know Jesus personally and He will transform your heart and clean you from the inside out. Turn away from sin, read the Bible, pray for the Holy Spirit to fill you and change you, obey the Word. Much love and God bless you!

[@VictorianTimeTraveler]

In The Chronicles of Narnia it's mentioned that the evil queen of Narnia is a daughter of Lilith not Eve

[@susancorbett8155]

I was looking to make a similar comment. Also that she was Adam's first wife. This was where I first heard of her but as a child I had no idea of her back story.

[@swish3432]

I’d love to eat cereal out of an ancient incantation bowl

[@thewormemperor]

There's a concept of "albastı" (red come) or "alkarısı" (red woman) in Turkic and Altaic myths for female demons haunting postpartum woman. My Turkish grandmother used to believe in that. It's a common practice in some Anatolian villages.

[@arzucufoglu8932]

Kırmızı kumaştan örtüler konur bebeğin ve annenin yatak başına.

[@stilltoomanyhats]

Getting rid of ghosts by trying to get them laid is a practice we need to bring back.

[@johnritter6864]

lol, wasnt this idea floated in Ghostbusters when the stay puft guy attacks?

[@shrimpbisque]

Thanks for posting such a fascinating and informative video! I'm writing a fantasy story that takes place in a universe wherein Adam and Lilith are the biblical first elves, and the mythology I'm writing for it combines the equality aspects of the "Adam's first wife" story with the "independent woman" aspect from modern interpretations. (The protagonist of the story is also named Lilith, after the first elf woman.) This was some great background info for me to consider for my worldbuilding!

[@glamourweaver]

I would argue that while straight up protagonist Lilith is a product of the 20th century, she starts to be seen as a sympathetic character - a tragic antivillain if you will - in the 19th.

[@elvenkind6072]

6:38 That verse seem very difficult in many languages. In the 1930 Norwegian edition, the translators used "troll" in this verse, and also owls.

[@mrreaper8826]

I saw this video was about Lilith, and I wondered if you were going to talk about the bowl. First few seconds brought a smile to my face.

[@justmy-profilename]

Thank you for your interesting and well founded videos! 😊 It's really interesting how man gods and demons people have worshipped and feared throughout history. I particularly like your references to modern day story telling, e.g. the fanfiction analogy for The Books of Enoch. It makes your content very accessible for (modern day) viewers 👍 There's so much re-use of older myths, and apparently Lilith is one such theme which got multiple reboots, e.g. to fill a plot hole 14:00 😊

[@Jotari]

But surely, of all the gods the one I was born into by happenstance must be the one true god, right?

[@MWA35]

I love incantation bowls, they're just such resonant objects

[@kuribojim3916]

I also love that you use the word “mythology” (as opposed to assuming Biblical texts are literal descriptions of reality).

[@jirojhasuo2ndgrandcompany745]

So basically. She was bad because she wanted to get on top?

[@chuck2703]

Wanted to be equal instead of submissive. This defied God's intent and that's a no bueno

[@Brainles5]

​@@chuck2703you know, the more i learn about this god fella the less i care for him.

[@I_report_scammers_spammers]

"I was created to only cause sickness to infants". And what kind of God would create a demon specifically to prey upon infants?

[@casraf]

I'm reading a lot of the Hebrew texts on the bowls, and some pages you've shown, and it's really interesting to compare it to today's Hebrew and prayers. I immediately recognize many scattered sentences which exist and are said in daily prayers today.

[@MCPT59]

Hey RFB. Would you ever do a video on the deity El and the pantheon surrounding him?

[@andrewlamoureux3808]

I can't believe nobody has mentioned how "Lilith" is the sympathetic antagonist of Diablo IV, which came out this year. This version of her is a demon, but one who wants humanity (whom are literally her children!) to triumph over both the High Heavens and the Burning Hells. Great story here, even if the gameplay is lacking compared to earlier games in the series.

[@lisasommerlad1337]

Who are, not whom are.

[@eldritchabomination]

Well I’m sure there are plenty of modern interpretations, they can’t all be mentioned. But that sounds very cool!

[@boggless2771]

​@@eldritchabominationI think he means in the comments. I scrolled for quite some time to find this.

[@amberlaughlin3518]

I despise humans. They're evil, vile demons. I care for the pure in heart and soul only. Humanity as a whole made their choices. And as a result, those who did evil will be repaid for the evil they did. Eye for an eye.

[@matthewmagda4971]

What I got out of this was that incantation bowls make a great gift for all of your newly-divorced guy friends 😂

[@peterherron4222]

That was EXCELLENT

[@johandewet335]

Excellent presentation.

[@nonodlamini]

I’m so glad I’ve found this channel

[@kimyoonmisurnamefirst7061]

Anthropology BA here, but there is also another interesting thread where early pagan religions used to worship snakes... which were considered fertility symbols. Might also make for an interesting episode and how that might tie into the story of Genesis.

[@vikitheviki]

So, Lilith left Adam so his only choice was to demonize her.. not much has changed in this world.

[@shadowsofasiren]

She married the god that saved her.. I think that's beautiful 😍 ❤

[@journeytoself8067]

🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@alyssachey8417]

I have never been that interested in religion, but this video was very interesting and full of interesting content.

[@fuferito]

I often see _incantation bowls_ at garage sales, but they often depict the British Royal Family or the crew of the USS _Enterprise_ (D).

[@jamiecurran3544]

🤣😂👍

[@matthewbateman6487]

I've also heard the word Lullaby comes from the Hebrew, "Lilith-abi" (Goodbye Lilith, or be gone, Lilith).... makes sense with the 'stillborn, infant mortality' connection. A kind of 'incantation/chant' for mothers..

[@SewardWriter]

But abi means dad or daddy.

[@mattchen6137]

Thats a cool view

[@jared_bowden]

I think it's more likely that the phrase comes from Middle English "lulley by" which means "a song to lull away" due to the fact that that Middle English writings literally use "Lulley by" to mean lullaby. Also, I feel like 'abi' would mean something like 'father' not goodbye: compare to modern Hebrew 'avi' or Aramaic 'abba' (where we get the word abbot).

[@SewardWriter]

@@jared_bowden Yup, "abi" means dad or daddy. Hebrew doesn't even have a "goodbye". We use shalom as a greeting and a farewell. Lullaby absolutely comes from Middle English.

[@matthewbateman6487]

@@SewardWriter or is that Abba

[@casraf]

11:22 did you mean Beelzebub? It's בעל זבוב in Hebrew, which is "Ba'al Zvuv", the last letter isn't ל Is that a typo, or another name? I couldn't find info on that specific one

[@kindredspirit617]

I find it interesting that both the women in the Adam and Eve mythology have connections with "evil", whereas Adam is just the "poor unfortunate soul" who just so happened to hear them. It says a lot about the historical view of women from these cultures, since Lilith's sorry could literally have been anything, and they choose to make her a demon. It makes me sad that both women were portrayed in this negative light, but it also makes me glad because Lilith just wanted to be treated with respect, and Eve just wanted to embrace knowledge! Being raised as a Christian I was taught to think negatively upon these mythological women, but as an adult whose in the process of deprogramming from the religious brainwashing and abuse I suffered, I look at the women with admiration and respect!

[@TheGhostLegend001]

As a Christian, that’s not the way I look at the Adam and Eve story at all. They both fail in that story, but for different reasons. It highlights that while men and women are different and can sometimes lay blame on one another when they come up short, at the end of the day we succeed or fail together. That’s the beauty of it. The story of Lilith isn’t really more than fan fiction to me. All I’ll say is that “equality” in the modern sense is by no means the end all be all to judge the relationship between men and women. We’re equal in dignity but we’re not the same, and I think we all recognize that on some level.

[@shelbyspeaks3287]

Dude, you have to keep in mind these developments are a few hundred years old, this isn't thousands of years we're taking about and already christian tradition is more feminist than 80% of human history.

[@Tikibird79]

Nah the Lilith story sounds incredibly misogynistic. In the Biblical story, both man and woman fail. Adam was complicit and even bit into the fruit himself. Where else the existence of Lilith is to paint this idea that women have a "greater tendancy" towards sin than men. Some people really like to romanticize this idea that womankind teaming up with demons--which literally hate all of humankind--is some kind of COMPLIMENT.

[@g-rexsaurus794]

@@Tikibird79 2 women out of 2 sinned as did 1 man out of 1, seems equality to me

[@mireya_libre]

​@@Tikibird79thats because it was fanfiction