Lilith

Lilith (Hebrew: לִילִית, meaning "nocturnal/nighty") is a figure in Jewish mythology that is believed to be derived from a class of female demons known as the Lilitu found in the religions of Mesopotamia (Sumer Akkad Babylonia and Assyria).

The Lilitu were malicious, winged spirits which had the tendency to prey on pregnant women and infants. Amulets and incantations were used as protection against such evil spirits.The earliest depiction of Lilith as the first wife of Adam is in the Medieval text "The Alphabet of Ben Sira" written between 700 – 100 A.D, which is believed to be satirical in nature.

Most likely Lilith and Inanna are her titles and her true name is Bilqis/Mekada because she is a demoness in Kabbalah and Sumerian mythology only; Otherwise she is a good woman.

Origin
In Jewish mysticism there arose a legend that Adam was originally married to another woman, named Lilith. This legend came out of a discrepancy in the text. In the creation story in Genesis 1 it states that on the final day that God created both man and woman:
 * "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them."


 * -Genesis, Ch. 1, Vs. 27 (NIV Translation)

In the creation story in Genesis 2 there is the story of Adam being created first, and then Eve being created out of Adam's rib. The cannon teaching in Christianity and most forms of Judaism is that Genesis 2 is simply a more detailed account of Genesis 1, which in it's original Hebrew is written in a poem-like literary form. Nonetheless, some people over the centuries have interpreted the apparent discrepancy between Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 to indicate a woman other than Eve was created first, and so the legend of Lilith formed.

The earliest recordings of the Lilith story are from the Medieval period. The story states that God created Adam and Lilith at the same time on the seventh day. Trouble soon started when Lilith wanted to be the dominant partner sexually, which Adam refused. In anger Lilith uttered a forbidden name of God and left the Garden, becoming a type of demon. Adam begged God to bring her back, but when his angels tracked her down, she refused.

Lilith became known as a demon of lust and death. She was known to cause miscarriages and sudden infant death, but it was said that talismans with the names of the three angels responsible for tracking Lilith can protect people from her harm.

Below is an excerpt from The Project Gutenberg "The Legends of the Jews" (Volume 1) by Louis Ginzberg (1998) concerning Lilith:
 * "The Divine resolution to bestow a companion on Adam met the wishes of man, who had been overcome by a feeling of isolation when the animals came to him in pairs to be named. To banish his loneliness, Lilith was first given to Adam as wife. Like him she had been created out of the dust of the ground. But she remained with him only a short time, because she insisted upon enjoying full equality with her husband.


 * She derived her rights from their identical origin. With the help of the Ineffable Name, which she pronounced, Lilith flew away from Adam, and vanished in the air. Adam complained before God that the wife He had given him had deserted him, and God sent forth three angels to capture her. They found her in the Red Sea, and they sought to make her go back with the threat that, unless she went, she would lose a hundred of her demon children daily by death. But Lilith preferred this punishment to living with Adam.


 * She takes her revenge by injuring babes--baby boys during the first night of their life, while baby girls are exposed to her wicked designs until they are twenty days old. The only way to ward off the evil is to attach an amulet bearing the names of her three angel captors to the children, for such had been the agreement between them.[30]"

Lilith is considered non-canon by all forms of modern Christianity.

Lilith in the Hebrew Bible
Mention of Lilith is made only once is the Tankakh (part of what is known as the Old Testament to Christians) in Isaiah 34:14-15:

"And shall-meet desert creatures with jackals'the goat he-calls his- fellow'lilit (lilith) she-rests and she-finds rest"

"there she-shall-nest the great-owl, and she-lays-(eggs), and she-hatches, and she-gathers under her-shadow: hawks [kites, gledes ] also they-gather, every one with its mate."

In the most commonly used King James version of the Bible, the word "Lilith" is translated into "screech owl," which may very likely be the proper translation of the word's usage. It is interesting to note that in Latin Bibles the term Lamia is used in place of Lilith.

Lilith in the Alphabet of Ben Sira
The earliest depiction of Lilith as the first wife of Adam is in the Medieval text "The Alphabet of Ben Sira" written between 700 – 100 A.D, which is believed to be satirical in nature, makes references to incest, masturbation, and flatulence, but is best known for its twist on the creation story found in Genesis:

"While God created Adam, who was alone, He said, 'It is not good for man to be alone' (Genesis 2:18). He also created a woman, from the earth, as He had created Adam himself, and called her Lilith. Adam and Lilith immediately 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 I am to be 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 angels to bring her back."

Marriage with Asmodeus
In other jewish folklore, she is usually associated with Asmodeus or Samael (Satan) as his queen.

The second myth of Lilith grew to include legends about another world and by some accounts this other world existed side by side with this one, Yenne Velt is Yiddish for this described "Other World". In this case Asmodeus and Lilith were believed to procreate demonic offspring endlessly and spread chaos at every turn. Many disasters were blamed on both of them, causing wine to turn into vinegar, men to be impotent, women unable to give birth, and it was Lilith who was blamed for the loss of infant life. The presence of Lilith and her cohorts were considered very real at this time. Two primary characteristics are seen in these legends about Lilith: Lilith as the incarnation of lust, causing men to be led astray, and Lilith as a child-killing witch, who strangles helpless neonates.

Queen of Hell and consort of Samael
The more popular version of Lilith's story is that she became one of Samael (Satan)'s consorts and was one of the queens of Hell (along with Agrat bat Mahlat, Naamah and sometimes Eisheth Zenunim).

In Television

 * Lilith is depicted as the goddess of vampires in the HBO series ​True Blood. She appears as a naked woman drenched in blood, who only manifests when vampires hallucinate. She is worshipped by vampires.
 * Lilith, known as Dark Lilith in the episode, appears in Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, as the disguise of Marcie Fleach in the episode Night on Haunted Mountain. It appears as a winged woman with red eyes and horns. Marcie dressed as it so she could lure Mystery, Inc. to an abandoned ship and use them to get past the traps and retrieve a significant disk piece for her boss.
 * In the TV series Femme Fatales, Lilith is the host who introduces each episode Rod Serling-style and occasionally appears within the narrative.

In Literature

 * Lilith appears as an antagonist in the Shadowhunter Chronicles by Cassandra Clare. She is the mother of Sebastian Morgenstern, and resurrects him when he is killed by Jace Herondale.

Other
-Lilith is called the "dark maid" in summerian mythology, and is mentioned in the Tale of Innana (Ishtar).

-Lilith is a triple (sometimes quadruple or even quintuple) deity in astrology

-Lilith is a feminist symbol today, since she wouldn't submit to Adam and wanted equality.