Notes of Interest from the sources about Shadim (7 March 2017, 9 Adar, 5777)
Contents:
1. Introduction
2. The meaning of Shade in Hebrew
3. Parallels to the English Words "Shade" and "Shadow"?
4. King Solomon and the Shadim
5. The Shamir or Stone-Cutting Worm?
6. Solomon and Ashmodei
7. What are Shadim?
8. The Sequence of Events in the Life of Solomon
9. Applying the Symbolic Significance to Solomon
10. Solomon and Modern Scientific Principles
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1. Introduction
Following our previous articles on the Devil and demons we were led to add further information.
See:
The Devil or Not? Satan, Lucifer, and the Demons
http://hebrewnations.com/articles/bible/satan.html
Other-Wordly Beings? Did Shadim (translated as "demons") Exist?
http://hebrewnations.com/articles/bible/demons.html
We pointed out that many great Rabbis (e.g. Maimonides) denied that "shadim" exist.
Here are a few notes concerning the concept of "shadim." This word is translated as demons but the translation is not exact.
Shadim are usually harmful but not always so as explained below.
The English-European concept of demons and devils is paralleled by other terms in Hebrew such as "Angels of Destruction," or "Agents of Harm: ("Mazikim").
In principle attempts to make contact with shadim are forbidden.
The Rashba (Shlomo ben Aderet 1235-1310 CE) distinguished between contacting devils (Angels of Destruction) and contacting shadim.
Contacting devils is what witches do. This is forbidden on pain of death.
Exodus 22:
17 You should not let a sorceress live.
Contacting shadim however is NOT forbidden by the Torah (says the Rashba) but rather prohibited by the Sages.
This explains how Solomon was able to make contact with Ashmodei the King of the Shadim. It was prior to the enactment of the Sages.
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2. The meaning of Shade in Hebrew
Possibly related words in Hebrew include "shod" destroy or "shadad" rob on the negative sense.
We also have the word "shad" meaning breast and "shadayim" meaning two breasts and connoting sustenance.
There is also the term "El Shaddai" which is one of the names of God.
Genesis 17:
1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am El Shaddai; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
Genesis 35:
11 I am El Shaddai: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins.
In the English Trnaslation the term "El Shaddai" is translated as "God Almighty." El means God so Shaddai is understood to mean "Almighty."
Yehudah Kile (in the Commentary "Daat Mikra") relates this name to a root "SHeDaD" which he says connotes "power" and "powerful."
The word "shadim" may therefore also suggest "Powers". This corresponds with other indications as shown below.
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3. Parallels to the English Words "Shade" and "Shadow"?
The Hebrew word we are concerned with is "shad" in the singular, and "shadim" in the plural.
The Hebrew word "shade" can mean a "ghost". There was once an English word "shade" which also meant "ghost".
cf.
ONLINE ETYMOLOGICAL DICTIONARY
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=shade
Excerpts:
shade (v.)
c. 1400, "to screen from light or heat," from shade (n.). From 1520s as "to cast a shadow over;" figurative use in this sense from 1580s. ...
Middle English schade, Kentish ssed, from late Old English scead "partial darkness; shelter, protection,"....
.... Meaning "a ghost" is from 1610s; dramatic (or mock-dramatic) expression "shades of _____" to invoke or acknowledge a memory is from 1818, from the "ghost" sense.
cf.
shadowland (n.)... 1821, "abode of ghosts and spirits," from shadow (n.) + land (n.). From 1923 as "indeterminate place."
A shadow is darker reflection of a real object. One appreciation of the Hebrew word "shad" indicates something similar as we shall see below.
In a previous articles we noticed similarities in both sound and meaning to the Irish "sidhe" or "fairy people."
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4. King Solomon and the Shadim
Different stories associate Solomon with shedim.
Most of these tales appear to be of pagan origin or at least influenced by pagans.
See:
Testament of Solomon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testament_of_Solomon
"Many of the demons in Solomon's encounters are of Greek, Egyptian, Jewish, Christian, Arabic, and other traditions. "
The Jews of Babylon were also influenced by stories about Shadim.
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5. The Shamir or Stone-Cutting Worm?
One tale concerns us not so much due to the narration itself but because commentaries on it may teach us concerning other matters.
This account involves King Solomon, the shamir, and Ashmodei king of the Shadim.
What was the shamir?
Solomon's shamir
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon's_shamir
In the Gemara [Talmud], the shamir (Hebrew: ) is a worm or a substance that had the power to cut through or disintegrate stone, iron and diamond. King Solomon is said to have used it in the building of the First Temple in Jerusalem in the place of cutting tools. For the building of the Temple, which promoted peace, it was inappropriate to use tools that could also cause war and bloodshed.... The material to be worked, whether stone, wood or metal, was affected by being "shown to the Shamir." Following this line of logic (anything that can be 'shown' something must have eyes to see), early Rabbinical scholars described the Shamir almost as a living being. Other early sources, however, describe it as a green stone. For storage, the Shamir was meant to have been always wrapped in wool and stored in a container made of lead; any other vessel would burst and disintegrate under the Shamir's gaze. The Shamir was said to have been either lost or had lost its potency (along with the "dripping of the honeycomb") by the time of the destruction of the First Temple at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C.
Rabbi Dr. Natan Slifkin tries to find a rationalist explanation in the light of modern science as to what the shamir really was.
He discusses different possibilities.
Is This The Fabulous Shamir?
http://www.rationalistjudaism.com/2015/02/is-this-fabulous-shamir.html
Extracts:
Actually, the Gemara does not state that the shamir was an animal - it just describes it as something the size of a barley kernel, which had to be kept in a lead tube. In my book Sacred Monsters, I discussed Immanuel Velikovsky's original idea that this refers to a radioactive substance. Rambam and Rashi, however, describe it as a worm-like creature. Rabbi Dr. Moshe Tendler suggests that it is a snail from the genus Euchondrus, which carve gouges in rocks in the Negev desert. However, as I noted in my book, these limestone rocks are much softer than the gems of the breastplate. But, I noted, there are marine mollusks with much stronger dental equipment, and therefore it is therefore not beyond the realms of biological possibility to posit that there is (or was) a species of invertebrate that could indeed engrave the gemstones of the priestly breastplate. ...
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6. Solomon and Ashmodei
See:
Babylonian Talmud: Tractate Gittin
http://www.come-and-hear.com/gittin/gittin_68.html
http://www.come-and-hear.com/gittin/gittin_68.html#PARTb
King Solomon needed to build the Temple.
It was forbidden to use iron and the like in constructing the altar (Exodus 20:25). Solomon extended this prohibition to the whole Temple construction (Midrash Mekhilta).
No tool was to be used at the Temple site.
1-Kings 6:
7 The house, while it was being built, was built of stone prepared at the quarry, and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any iron tool heard in the house while it was being built.
Everything had to be prepared exactly to fit together beforehand.
Moses previously had solved a similar problem by using a Shamir to engrave the names of the Tribes into the Precious Stones on the Breastplate.
Solomon had to find the shamir to prepare the building materials for the Temple. He heard that Ashmodei King of the Shadim had it. Ashmodei was captured and the shamir was used to build the Temple.
Eventually Ashmodei tricked Solomon into releasing his cords of bondage. Ashmodei then gained control over Solomon. After that Ashmodei cast Solomon away and set himself up as if he himself was really Solomon. Meanwhile Solomon became a beggar wandering around claiming he was the king and being ridiculed. Eventually Solomon regained the kingdom but never managed to fully return to his former self.
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7. What are Shadim?
The Maharal (Judah Loew ben Bezalel, alt. Loew d. 1609) considers shadim to be spiritual beings. Descriptions of shadim as doing human things such as eating etc are figurative.
In our time Rabbi Nachum Eliezer Rabinovitz ("Megadim" 25) describes Ashmodei the King of the Shadim as representing in a legend the "Darker" side of King Solomon!
This notion appears to have been broached much earlier by other authorities, e.g. S. J. Rapoport quoted in p. 221 of
"The Origin of the Ashmedai Legend in the Babylonian Talmud" by Armand Kaminka, The Jewish Quarterly Review, New Series, Vol. 13, No. 2 (Oct., 1922), pp. 221-224
The Maharal could also conceivably be understood along these lines.
In Psychology there exists the concept of an "Id" [Freud] or another aspect of the one person.
Shadim are therefore a materialized version of the darker side of ourselves.
This explanation does indeed explain to some degree what shadim are in accordance with the sources.
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8. The Sequence of Events in the Life of Solomon
The Maharal explains how in the above story the tale of Solomon and Ashmodei parallels the Biblical account:
Solomon at a young age succeeded his father, King David. Solomon was exceedingly wise.
The Almighty appeared to Solomon twice.
Solomon asked God for wisdom and it was granted him (1-Kings 3:7-13).
2-Chronicles 9:
22 So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. 23 And all the kings of the earth were seeking the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart.
Solomon authored the Biblical works of the Song of Solomon, the Preacher (Ecclesiastes), and Proverbs.
1-Kings 5:11-14
His fame spread through all the surrounding nations. He composed 3,000 parables, and 1,005 poems. He discoursed about trees, from the cedars of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows from the wall. He also discoursed about animals, birds, creeping things and fish. Men of all nations came to hear Solomon's wisdom, as did all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
1-Kings 10:
23 So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 24 All the earth was seeking the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart.
Solomon built the First Temple and dedicated it to the Almighty (1-Kings 8:27-29).
At first his reign was a glorious one. The Israelites dwelt from the Nile to the Euphrates River (1-Kings 4:24, 2-Chronicles 9:26). They were exceedingly numerous (1-Chronicles 1:9) and prosperous.
He built the city of Tadmor (2-Chronicles 8:4) in the Syrian wilderness to control the international spice trade (Midrash and Commentaries).
2-Chronicles 1:
14 And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, which he placed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.
15 And the king made silver and gold at Jerusalem as plenteous as stones, and cedar trees made he as the sycomore trees that are in the vale for abundance.
16 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a price.
17 And they fetched up, and brought forth out of Egypt a chariot for six hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred and fifty: and so brought they out horses for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Syria, by their means.
Produce from all nations was brought to Israel (1-Kings 9:26-28; 10:11,12; 2-Chr. 8:17, 18; 9:21).
Solomon also married 300 wives and 700 concubines (1-Kings 11:1 ).
Solomon allowed his wives to build altars in Jerusalem to their foreign gods (1-Kings 11:7-8 ).
1-Kings 11:
4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not follow the LORD fully, as David his father had done. 7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable idol of Moab, on the mountain which is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestable idol of the sons of Ammon. 8 Thus also he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
9 Now the LORD was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, 10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not observe what the LORD had commanded.
For these and other sins it was decreed that the rule over most of Israel would be taken away from his successor (1-Kings 11:11-13 , 30-34). This resulted in the northern Ten Tribes forming their own Kingdom of Israel. Eventually this kingdom was conquered by the Assyrians. All its inhabitants were exiled. The Israelite Exiles lost consciousness of their ancestry. They became the Lost Ten Tribes of Israel.
In the lifetime of Solomon himself towards the end his rule was weakened. External enemies (Hadad the Edomite 1-Kings 11:14, Rezon of Aram 1-Kings 11;24) disturbed his borders. Internal rebellions undermined the Kingdom (1-Kings 11:40).
The King of Egypt helped the enemies of Solomon including Jeroboam the Ephraimite leader (1-Kings 11:40).
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9. Applying the Symbolic Significance to Solomon
The Maharal explains how in the above story the tale of Solomon and Ashmodei parallels the Biblical account:
The tale of Solomon and Ashmodei symbolizes permutations in the spiritual life of Solomon.
The Legend of Solomon being replaced by Ashmoedai king of the Demons (who was really merely a negative aspect of himself) parallels the above account of his rule.
Stage 1:
We find Solomon in his early phase being true to himself. This was the rule of Solomon as Solomon.
Stage 2.
Solomon then allows his Inner Alter Ego (Ashmodei) to take control. The idolatry of his wives and other forms of corruption develop. Solomon is condemned and warned and Division of the Kingdom is prophesied.
Stage 3:
It would seem that consequent to
the warning Solomon attempted to redress the damage but was not entirely successful. This parallels the reinstatement of Solomon and the partial restoration of his kingdom.
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10. Solomon and Modern Scientific Principles
The Commentator Rabbi Yosef Chaim (1835 - 1909, Iraq) also known as the Ben Ish Chai in his work "Benayahu" opined that Solomon used advanced modern scientific principles in his building projects and other matters.
Since the world was not ready for this knowledge at that time he kept it secret and/or cloaked it in other forms.
It may be suggested that the concept of “shadim” was also employed at times along the same lines.
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