Alphabet of ben sira and authorial personae shows how the persona of the sage and author we see in the early jewish book of ben sira. The work was known to the rabbinic tradition, and indeed ben sira is cited in the talmud and related literature on about a dozen occasions. It is a compilation of two lists of proverbs, 22 in aramaic and 22 in hebrew, both arranged as alphabetic acrostic s. According to jewish lore the pseudepigraphic 8th10th centuries alphabet of ben sira is considered to be the oldest form of the story of lilith as adams first wife.
Lilith is mentioned four times in the babylonian talmud, but it is not until the alphabet of ben sira c. It offers various nuggets of advice, mostly in proverb form. In this video i read a chapter from my book lilith magick. The alphabet of ben sirach lilith bokeh south africa fashion film festival. It is followed with nebuchandnezzar asking ben sira further questions, which ben sira answers to the kings unwavering satisfaction. Lilith as portrayed in the alphabet of ben sirach youtube. In hebrew the book is known as the wisdom of joshua jesus ben sira. In this medieval text, ben sira names lilith as adams first wife and presents a full account of her story.
This particular paper has been cited because it has a section on the alphabet of ben sira, a set of. The alphabet of ben sira the alphabet of ben sira alphabet of jesus ben sirach, alphabetum siracidis, othijoth ben sira is an anonymous medieval text attributed to jesus ben sirach, the author of the wisdom of sirach. Unfortunately, a discussion on lilith could not be complete with addressing the alphabet of ben sira. Its date of authorship is estimated to have been anywhere between 700 and ce. Original hebrew of a portion of ecclesiasticusnook book. The alphabet of bensira alphabetum siracidis, othijoth ben sira is an anonymous medieval text, attributed to ben sira sirach, the author of ecclesiasticus. This farcical book has done much to corrupt the common modern perceptions of lilith. The legend of lilith evolves from diverse religious and metaphysical sources, appearing in the alphabet of ben sira, the zohar, and in the epic of gilgamesh. The alphabet of ben sira appears to combine legends of female demons with the idea of the first eve. He wrote his work in hebrew, possibly in alexandria, egypt ca. The chapter i will be reading is about the alphabet of ben sirach a book from the jewish apocrypha. The alphabet of ben sira is one of the earliest, most complicated, and most sophisticated hebrew stories written in the middle ages. The alphabet of ben sira download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl. The rite of lilith is a tantrik and magickal ceremony of chthonic working, as the true archetype of lilith is sex and death.
The aramaic proverbs are the far older part of the book. According to jewish lore adams first wife was not eve. In time, the book of ben sira, via its greek and then later translations, became part of the christian bible, where it is known as either sirach in greek or ecclesiasticus in latin. Each of these proverbs is followed by a haggadic comm. Each proverb is followed by an haggadic commentary. The text is a compilation of two lists of proverbs, 22 in aramaic and 22 in hebrew, both arranged as alphabetic acrostics. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. Ben sira, alphabet of the 1901 jewish encyclopedia. The alphabet of ben sira is the earliest form we know of the lilith legend familiar to most people that is, to most people who are familiar with lilith at all. The author of the lifes sequel grasped in full the workings of humour in the life of ben sira, in that its beginning is a splendidly humorous passage. The alphabet of ben sira the oldest known text that explicitly refers to lilith as adams first wife is the alphabet of ben sira, an anonymous collection of midrashim from the medieval period. The text is dated between the 8th and 10th centuries of the common era and tells several stories in the form of aggadah with some elements of midrash in the text.
The book of sirach actually has three different titles, depending on the language of its transmission or the religious tradition that reads it. The book of sirach or ecclesiasticus selfdefinition. This is a scholarly monograph from the late 19th century on one of the jewish noncanonical biblical books, sirach, also known as ecclesiasticus, not to be confused with the canonical book ecclesiastes. History of adams first wife lilith learn religions. The compilation so designated consists of two lists of proverbs, 22 in aramaic and 22 in hebrew, arranged in each case as alphabet acrostics. Dan, the hebrew narrative literature in the middle ages jerusalem, 1974. Use highlighting, underlining, and take notes while you study the bible. Hebrew fragments of the book were found in masada and some more complete hebrew manuscripts were recovered from the cairo geniza, thus confirming the book s original language. Facsimile edition of an anonymous medieval text the alphabet of ben sirach alphabetum siracidis dated to anywhere between 700 and ce. Another proof of his popularity is found in the two alphabets ascribed to him see ben sira, alphabet of, especially the second, in which he is the hero of a series of marvelous events. Ben sira was a second century bce jewish scribe, sage, and allegorist from jerusalem, and the author of the wisdom of sirach, also known as the book of ecclesiasticus. Alphabet of ben sira having now examined the bible and talmud, we arrive at the alphabet of ben sira which holds perhaps the quinessential story of lilith. The alphabet of ben sirach is an anonymous text of the middle ages inspired by the hellenistic work.
More than 100 hebrew manuscripts of the alphabet of ben sira. The alphabet of ben sirach is an anonymous text of the middle ages inspired by the hellenistic. A text edition of all extant hebrew manuscripts and a synopsis of all parallel hebrew ben sira texts supplements to vetus testamentum only 3 left in stock more on the way. Original hebrew of a portion of ecclesiasticus index. The book of sirach, also known as ecclesiasticus, is part of the wisdom literature of the greek septuagint and the latin vulgate bible. Ben sira, alphabet of, a narrative, satirical work, written probably in the geonic period in the east.
The alphabet of ben sirach alphabetum siracidis, otijot ben sira, alpha beta laben sira is an anonymous text of the middle ages inspired by the hellenistic work known as the sirach. The chapter i will be reading is about the alphabet of ben sirach a book from the. The book of sirach or ecclesiasticus chapter 1 1 all wisdom is from the lord god, and hath been always with him, and is before all time. Whether the story itself is older, or, if so, how much older is not possible to say. He is the author of sirach, also known as the book of ecclesiasticus. It is in that book that we get the first glimpse of lilith as she known today within the western. It is here that we find lilith as adams first wife. The story of lilith jewish and christian literature. The book of the allvirtuous wisdom of yeshua ben sira, commonly called the wisdom of sirach or simply sirach, and also known as the book of ecclesiasticus abbreviated ecclus.
In the vulgate, the book is called ecclesiasticus the churchs book. Here the author recounts a dispute that arose between adam and lilith. The alphabet is an irreverent rabbinic book, anonymously written sometime around the ninth century ce. Some of the proverbs in the alphabets are probably genuine. The alphabet of ben sira is a midrashic work from 9th10th century babylonia, which is written partially in hebrew and partially in aramaic. Scholars tend to date the alphabet between the 8th and 10th centuries ce. Click download or read online button to get the alphabet of ben sira book now. Whether this particular tradition is older is not known. Who hath measured the height of heaven, and the breadth of the earth, and the depth of the abyss. The baraita kallah even restricts its citations from ben sira to aramaic verses which are not found in ecclesiasticus. Original hebrew of a portion of ecclesiasticus by a. Scholars tend to date the alphabet between the 8th and 10th centuries, ce.