Creation Myth
Day Five
Topics covered in this document:
Introduction
This parchment presents the events of the fifth day of creation.
On this day, God created all the creatures in the sea and in the air.
And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving
creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the
open firmament of heaven. And God created great whales, and every living
creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after
their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it
was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and
fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. And the
evening and the morning were the fifth day.
-Gen. 1:20-23.
God's Monsters
On the fifth day, God created two of the three classes of monsters:
- Leviathan, a monster of the sea.
- Ziz, a monster of the air.
Behemoth, the monster of the land, will be created on the next, the
sixth, day along with other land animals.
We encounter these three monsters throughout Hebrew literature. And
we'll see them often in the parchments found in this Burrow.
Leviathan -- Monster of the Sea
Leviathan is the undisputed ruler of the sea. A tremendous volume of
Jewish literature (and the literature of other contemporary cultures)
deals with the Leviathan.
Dragon, Whale, or Crocodile?
He is sometimes a dragon, sometimes a whale, and sometimes a
crocodile.
His tusks spread terror. Fire issues from his mouth and smoke from
his nostrils. A fierce, laser-like beam of light flares from his eyes
(just like many of the monsters in the Hollywood movies of our era).
Male and Female Leviathan
Like all the other creatures that God created, Leviathan originally
consisted of a pair, both a male and a female. However, God feared that
if He allowed both to live, they'd soon annihilate every other creature
in the sea with their united strength.
So God killed the female. And just to be doubly sure no more could
be born, He castrated the male.
The sources don't seem to think it strange that God would have made
a mistake in creating the female in the first place ... only to later
discover that He had to kill her.
Garments Made From Leviathan
By the way, after the Fall, Adam and Eve's garments were made from the
skin of the female Leviathan.
Leviathan's Feeding Time
When Leviathan is hungry, a hot blast blows from his nostrils, causing
the sea to boil ... and fish willingly swim into his jaws.
Every day it takes all the water in the Jordan River to quench
Leviathan's thirst after feeding.
Animals and fish sacrificing their lives for the good of others is a
common mythological theme.
Leviathan and Stickleback
However, the stickleback fish was created specifically to keep
Leviathan in check. Leviathan doesn't eat the stickleback because
Leviathan stands in awe of this small fish.
Leviathan is God's Pet
God keeps Leviathan around as a pet because a brilliant light radiates
from the monster's fins and the light shining from his eyes frequently
illuminate the sea.
The moral of this story, I suppose, is that if you're going to be
a beast, at least be a beautiful beast.
As a side note, in many animal and fish species, it's the male who
is more beautiful and colorful ... and must flaunt his beauty if he
hopes to capture the attention of a female. Humans seem to have reversed
this natural scheme of things.
Leviathan Smells Bad
Not all is beautiful with Leviathan, however. You see, he really,
really stinks!
That's why he has to stay in the ocean, lest his foul smell render
Paradise uninhabitable.
However, he does use a deodorant of sorts, reducing his foul smell
by daily sniffing the flowers in Eden. I'm not quite sure how just
smelling the flowers will help, but who knows? Maybe Leviathan
rolls around in the flower bed too.
The idea that he stinks comes from an Arabic word for the strong smell
given off by a decomposing, beached whale.
Leviathan for Dinner
But one day in the future, Leviathan's body will apparently smell much
better because he will become food for the pious at the Messianic
banquet.
Flesh feasts are very popular among the poor of the Middle East
because it gives them a chance to supplement their predominantly cereal
diet.
Leviathan's Death
We should note, however, that Leviathan is not stupid. He won't easily
surrender his body to be food for the pious. He'll put up quite a fight
first.
When that day comes, God will send angels to kill Leviathan. At first
Michael will go alone, but later he'll return with reinforcements. The
angel's swords won't be able to penetrate Leviathan's scales, so they'll
try to kill him by throwing spears and stones at the monster. But to no
avail.
One look from the sea monster and the angels will be sent scurrying
back to Paradise in fear.
Finally, God will send the land monster, Behemoth, to do battle with
the sea monster, Leviathan. Of course, they'll succeed where the angels
had failed. They'll end up killing each other during that final battle.
One blow from Leviathan's fins will kill Behemoth. And at the same moment,
with a swish of his tail, Behemoth will kill Leviathan.
Allowing the Behemoth and Leviathan to engage in the final battle to
the death is a symbolic reward of sorts to the pious for not participating
in the Roman gladiatorial contests.
Leviathan in Other Cultures
Babylonian Leviathan
The story of the Hebrew Leviathan couple is very similar to the
Babylonian myth of Tiamat and her only mate, Kingu.
The Babylonian god, Marduk, like the Hebrew God, slew Tiamat (the
female) and rendered Kingu (the male) harmless.
The zodiac is affixed to Leviathan. This is also borrowed from
Babylonian myth, where the heavens and stars are formed from the
upper body of Tiamat.
Archaeologists have uncovered the Leviathan's image on a Babylonian
seal from the third millennium B.C.
Much more is written about the correspondence between the mythological
monsters of other cultures and Leviathan of the Hebrews ... but I think
you get the general idea.
Also, I should point out that the stories of Leviathan do not agree
on all points with the stories of Tiamat and Kingu. Thus, there's more
to these Hebrew myths than simple name changes in the copies of the
stories of contemporary cultures.
Hittite Leviathan
On Hittite cylinder seals, Leviathan is a seven-headed monster.
Sumerian Leviathan
Archaeologists have uncovered his image on a Sumerian mace
Ziz -- Monster of the Air
Just as Leviathan rules over the fish, Ziz rules over the birds.
The name, Ziz, appears in Psalms 50:11 (though you'd have to read
the text in Hebrew to see it). The passage owes its origins to the way
the flesh of the Ziz is supposed to taste.
I wonder if Ziz tastes like chicken. Hmm.
Male and Female Ziz
Unlike Leviathan, the Ziz is allowed to reproduce. Normally, the Ziz
lets its eggs slide gently into the nest. But one time the egg was rotten,
prompting the frustrated Ziz to toss it aside.
When the rotten egg hit the ground, it burst open. Instantly its fluid
flooded 60 cities ... and felled 300 cedars.
Perhaps an errant meteor or comet was the source of this tale?
Ziz for Dinner
Like Leviathan and Behemoth, Ziz will become part of the Messianic
banquet, slaughtered by none other than Moses himself.
Several Jewish sources embellish this idea, stating that at the time
of the Messiah, a new Torah will be given to the people, which will do
away with the old, Mosaic dietary laws.
At that time, Leviathan, Behemoth, and Ziz (representing the three
classes of animals) will from that time forward cause the Jews to regard
all animals as clean.
Ziz Controls Winds
God created the monstrous Ziz so that when the storm winds blew from
the south, the Ziz could spread its wings and deflect the bulk of the
storm winds elsewhere. Without the Ziz, these winds would overwhelm all
the coastal cities.
As someone who lives on the California coast, I'm glad there's a Ziz
out there somewhere near Baja California, deflecting these strong winds.
:)
Ziz is a Tall Bird
When Ziz stands on the Earth, his head reaches the sky. There must be
a joke in there somewhere. Dare I say he has both feet solidly on the
ground? And his head in the clouds!
Typical male creature. Okay, so it's not that funny of a joke.
Sheesh!
But when Ziz stands on Leviathan's back, his head reaches God's
throne of glory. That's really, really tall!
Ziz Fools Sailors
There is an old Jewish tale of some sailors who saw a bird standing
ankle-deep in the water (even though its head touched the sky).
They thought they were near shallow water, and prepared to take a
bath there. But a heavenly voice warned them not to trust their eyes.
An old-timer on board the ship then told a story of how once, a long
time ago, a carpenter's axe had slipped from his hand at that very spot,
and it took seven years to sink to the bottom.
Of course, Ziz was the bird that these sailors saw. And I suppose it
was probably also a very light-weight, slow-sinking axe.
Ziz and Darwinism
By the way, the Jews predated Darwin in noticing the similarity of
some species. They made note of the fact that chickens have scales on
their feet, like the fish do on their whole body.
And they also commented on how birds swim through the air.
And they invented a natural progression of the species in their myths --
fish are made of water, birds are made of water mixed with dirt (swamps),
and animals are made of dirt alone (as we'll see on the sixth day).
Does that mean there might be scientific thought hidden deep within
myth? Hey, I asked you first.
Ziz and Angels
Many of the features of Ziz myths carried over to the angel myths.
Angels were given powerful and miraculous wings like the Ziz.
In contrast, ordinary angels only have six wings ... but Sammael
(Satan, who was one of God's chief angels) had 12 before his fall.
Ziz in Other Cultures
Avesta Rooster of Iran
Many of the bird myths of the Jews are loosely borrowed from the
mythology of ancient Iran. For example, the sacred rooster of Avesta,
which reportedly was so large, it could carry off elephants and rhinos.
Phoenix Bird
Perhaps the best-known mythological bird today is the phoenix
bird, also called "the guardian of the terrestrial sphere." He runs
with the sun as it crosses the sky, catching the fiery rays of the
sun in his outstretched wings. If he ever stopped spreading his wings,
we'd all die.
Perhaps we could use his services as the ozone layer thins out.
His food consists of the manna of heaven and the dew of the earth.
Job 29:18 refers to the phoenix.
Enoch, who saw several sun birds (phoenix birds) when he was
translated, describes the Phoenix as a purple, flying creature with
the feet and tail of a lion, the head of a crocodile, and having 12
wings.
What Next?
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