#mandaean mythology

[eugene114]

18This [f]charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, 19having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, 20of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

14Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to [d]strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. 15Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 16But shun profane and[e]idle babblings, for they will [f]increase to more ungodliness. 17And their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort, 18who have strayed concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some. 19Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of [g]Christ depart from iniquity.”

Gnosticism, any of various related philosophical and religious movements prominent in the Greco-Roman world in the early Christian era, particularly the 2nd century.

The designation gnosticism is a term of modern scholarship. It was first used by the English poet and philosopher of religion Henry More (1614–87), who applied it to the religious groups referred to in ancient sources as gnostikoi (Greek: “those who have gnosis, or ‘knowledge’ ”). The Greek adjective gnostikos (“leading to knowledge” or “pertaining to knowledge”) was first used by Plato to describe the cognitive or intellectual dimension of learning, as opposed to the practical. By the 2nd century CE, however, the name gnostikoi had been adopted by various Christian groups, some of which used it positively as a self-designation, though others criticized the practice as a presumptuous claim of exclusive access to truth.

Definition

Consensus on a definition of gnosticism has proved difficult. The groups conventionally classified as gnostic did not constitute a single movement with relatively homogeneous organization, teachings, and rituals. Even the self-designation gnostic is problematic, since it is attested for only some of the traditions conventionally treated as gnostic, and its connotations are ambiguous. Whereas some researchers argue that the term gnostic should be restricted to the sects or schools that called themselves by that name, others extend the category to include additional religious movements that allegedly shared various distinctive features. Still others treat gnosticism as a world religion that existed from antiquity to early modern times—surviving, for example, in the mythology and ritual of the Mandaeans of Iraq and Iran (see below Influence).

Many of the so-called gnostic groups are characterized by a mythology that distinguishes between an inferior creator of the world (a demiurge) and a more transcendent god or order of being. Another frequently encountered theme is that there is a special class or race of humans that is descended from the transcendent realm and is destined to achieve salvation and to return to its spiritual origins. Salvation is understood as a revelation that reawakens knowledge (gnosis) of the race’s divine identity; in contrast, the traditional Christian emphasis is on redemption through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Although the myth of a demiurge and the theme of reawakened awareness of divine origins have parallels in Platonic and Neo-Pythagorean philosophy—and in fact were partly derived from those traditions—it is often asserted that in the gnostic myths there is a far sharper dualism, involving a much more negative attitude toward the inferior creator god, the material cosmos, and the human body.

[18-roses]

Lilith (/ˈlɪlɪθ/ LIH-lith; Hebrew: לִילִית, romanized: Līlīṯ) is a female figure in Mesopotamian and Judaic mythology, alternatively the first wife of Adam and supposedly the primordial she-demon. Lilith is cited as having been "banished" from the Garden of Eden for not complying with and obeying Adam. She is thought to be mentioned in Biblical Hebrew in the Book of Isaiah, and in Late Antiquity in Mandaean mythology and Jewish mythology sources from 500 CE onward. Lilith appears in historiolas (incantations incorporating a short mythic story) in various concepts and localities that give partial descriptions of her. She is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah 24b, Shabbat 151b, Baba Bathra 73a), in the Book of Adam and Eve as Adam's first wife, and in the Zohar Leviticus 19a as "a hot fiery female who first cohabited with man"

CHIGGA

[thesoundofanicefall]

Lilith

Hey everybody today I want to talk about Mika's probable mother (yes there's chance that Shikama doji was really with someone in the past lol)

thankful of a dear friend who shared his thoughts with me!

Before starting just some little points:

1- This is just a theory and there's nothing against any kind of religious please do understand it

2- The theory basically is not mine but actually belongs to one of my dear friends who collected the information fruitfully

3- I am not Christian so if there is anyone who has better information in this case and better knowledges please share it!!

So then let me start now:

Lilith

Lilith is a demonic figure in Judaic mythology, supposedly the primordial she-demon and alternately first wife of Adam. She is first mentioned in Biblical Hebrew in Isaiah, and later in Late Antiquity in Mandaean Gnosticism mythology and Jewish mythology sources from 500 CE onwards

In some Jewish folklore, such as the satiric Alphabet of Sirach (c. AD 700–1000), Lilith appears as Adam's first wife, who was created at the same time (Rosh Hashanah) and from the same clay as Adam – compare Genesis (this contrasts with Eve, who was created from one of Adam's ribs)

In the books it was said that Lilith left Adam after she refused to become subservient to him and then would not return to the Garden of Eden.

Lucifer (satan) who was the angel of light, fell in love with her and so didn't bent the kneel against Adam and so he fell from heaven.

The story continues as how Lilith and Lucifer then married and borned devilish children who suck blood then but later as Lilith was sworn to subvert Adam's children (humans and the humanity, these are far more stories too but I just decided those ones which are closest to the ONS story) had been killed.

After that Lucifer as Lilith's lover continued her way and trys hard to destroy the humanity (like how in ONS story the plan of Catastrophe 8 years ago was all his)

Lilith's name is not being mentioned on Bible that much or talking about her there is too little but she still exist there.

And so now the theory:

I think Kagami probably wants to show the humanity's fate against satan at the very end of this story.

Like who win and who lose.

As I mentioned before the children of Lilith and Lucifer (who is Shikama doji here) are vampires (that's why vampires calls him father too as they all kinda turned directly or undirectly to a vampire by HIS blood)

and so probably their first child was that Mika we saw on chapter 85 and later Shikama doji stated that he is his son.

In some other explaintions it was being said that Lucifer and Lilith have thousends of children and with what we saw in ONS story their children must be actually those who have Mikaela's gene and Shikama needs to give them his own blood directly or undirectly so can finally turn them to those vampires and later those demons he wants.

Some of these vampires could successfully turn to his chosen ones as demons but some others like Saito and Ferid couldn't.

Lucifer or here Shikama doji swore to subvert humans and if we take a good look we find out that also in ONS story humans are relying on their demons more and more

although we saw in pervious chapters that all demons are on Shikama doji's side not human ones and they really don't care about their contract with their humans.

So maybe kinda this is the answer of the mystery of Mika as Lucifer's son all this time and still everything is completely base on religious

So that was this!

Again thankful of a very dear friend who shared this.

What do you think about this guys?!

Please share your ideas I'll be glad to hear them!

[eirikrjs]

A Misinforming Species of Shin Megami Tensei Myths and Secrets

What more can we say about these books? Barbara Walker’s intention to reclaim mythology for women is thwarted by the need to twist known facts into spurious generalizations and rely on the work of fabricators like Robert Graves. Godwin’s Angels similarly provides “unique” interpretations. Unfortunately,  it very much seems like the Woman’s Encyclopedia was one of the primary sources used for Shin Megami Tensei, while Angels shaped Atlus’ perception of angels themselves! These books aren’t great, or even good, but they are important for SMT fans to know.

We already talked about Woman’s Encyclopedia a bunch the past couple weeks but this post compiles everything we know, including some new findings I’ll dive right into. There’s nothing new for Angels but I thought I might as well throw it in there for completeness. This is also my 5,000th Tumblr post! Not bad for someone who mostly answers asks. C-E-L-E-B-R-A-T-E arbitrary numbers!

And thanks to: @gabriulio, @greed92-smt​, @nulla-senzanome, and @b-reis​ for actually finding the majority of these! Here’s just a few of the new, I’ll put the rest behind a link.

A FULL SCAN of Woman’s Encyclopedia is here: https://archive.org/details/womansencycloped00walkrich/mode/1up

If more SMT-related tidbits are found, I may update this post!

Baldr described as a Bel!

Pig-headed demon! Note that SMT1 Orcus uses the dragon body of Belial, who is a plot character and probably designed first.

Tiamat as mother goddess. Could this book be Strange Journier?

Much more behind the link, including previous discoveries:

Buddha

[…] Buddha had many other names because he had already lived through many incarnations on earth. Even the Buddha supposed to have appeared in the 5th century B.C. had several names: Gautama, Sakyamuni, Siddhartha the last, again, not a name but a title, “Rich in Yogic Power.” Buddha was miraculously begotten by the Lord of Hosts and born of the Virgin Maya, the same Great Goddess workshipped throughout Asia and having the alternative Near-Eastern names of Maia, Marah, Mari, or Maria.

Hermes

[…] Hermes was a universal Indo-European god. An Enlightened One born of the virgin Maia, he was the same as the Enlightened One (Buddha) born of the same virgin Maya in India. The Mahanirvanatantra said Buddha was the same as Mercury (Hermes), the son of the Moon (Maya).

Maia “Grandmother of Magic,” mother of the Greeks’ Enlightened One,  Hermes; the western version of Maya, “Magic,” mother of the Hindus'  Enlightened One, Buddha. She personified the powers of transformation and material “appearances,” the same powers attributed to Maya-Kali, who made the universe by her magic. Greek writers called Maia one of the Pleiades, but also understood that she was the Great Goddess of Maytime festivals, of the renewal and rebirth of the dead. She made her son Hermes the Conductor of Souls in the underworld, just as the Hindu Maya made her masculine counterpart Ya-Ma into a Conductor of Souls and Lord of Death.

Maya “Magic,” title of the Virgin Kali as the creatress of earthly appearances, i.e., all things made of matter and perceptible to the senses. She also gave birth to the Enlightened One, Buddha. The same Goddess, called Maia by the Greeks, was the virgin mother of Hermes the Enlightened One, who had as many reincarnations as the Buddha. […] She was more than the Maia who mothered Hermes; she was also Maga the Grandmother-goddess who bore Cu Chulainn’s mother; and the Mandaean Christians’ Almaya, called “Eternity,” or ‘the World,“ or "Beings”; and Maga or Maj the May-maiden in Scandinavia.

https://eirikrjs.tumblr.com/post/630988818849349632/satan-seth-queen-maya-and-maia

Original findings from Gabriulio about connections between Maya and Maia in Persona World profiles.

https://eirikrjs.tumblr.com/post/630998471810351104/walkers-book-has-entries-for-ma-and

This was a huge find. But even if Walker’s book doesn’t really apply to mythological studies, Strange Journey’s original narrative contains it in an intriguing way.

Various profiles mention the “May the Black God exterminate you!” bit. This is also sourced to a Larousse book, which tend to be reliable!

Bits about Anahita from the Mithra section. Possible explanation for her SJR appearance.

Remember when Kali was called Kali Ma in Japanese SJR? It didn’t make the jump to English localization.

Possible explanation for her design and profile.

Mentions Vanadis, while not an unknown name may have influenced that choice for P5R since it’s right up front in her entry.

https://eirikrjs.tumblr.com/post/145233380737/i-might-or-might-not-be-the-only-one-whos-a

Whatever our speculations were at the time, this is definitely where SMT’s Queen Mab comes from.

Here’s where the thing in her profile about the gods returning to her at Ragnarok comes from, plus why Scathach evolves into her! Also possibly her role in Nocturne (boss with Earthquake) and design. Interestingly there is no separate entry for Scathach in the book.

https://eirikrjs.tumblr.com/post/172468730762/dx2-the-heretic

Remember this post, when I said Sleipnir being called the “wood of the gallows” was something lost in translation? Of course I was wrong because it’s from this book.

Mara may not be female, but he still jokes about it even in the Japanese version of Strange Journey. Why wouldn’t he?

https://eirikrjs.tumblr.com/post/631792412884402176/do-you-happen-to-know-from-where-the-claims-of

More profile shenanigans.

https://eirikrjs.tumblr.com/post/144522239172/alciels-true-name-and-sources-have-been-found

The original Woman’s Encyclopedia find!

Godwin’s Angels

The scans of this are big so I’ll just link the original posts. 

Killer Metatron?

Female Gabriel?

The Satanael Solution

Thanks for reading and please let me know if you find more!

[x-x-just-a-little-witchyy-x-x]

LILLITH

Lilith is a demonic figure in Judaic mythology, supposedly the primordial she-demon and alternately first wife of Adam. She is first mentioned in Biblical Hebrew in Isaiah 34:14, and later in Late Antiquity in Mandaean Gnosticism mythology and Jewish mythology sources from 500 CE onwards. Lilith appears in historiolas (incantations incorporating a short mythic story) in various concepts and localities that give partial descriptions of her. She is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah 24b, Shabbat 151b, Baba Bathra 73a), in the Book of Adam and Eve as Adam's first wife, and in the Zohar Leviticus 19a as "a hot fiery female who first cohabited with man".

Lilith perhaps originated from an earlier class of female demons in the ancient Mesopotamian religion, found in cuneiform texts of Sumer, Assyria, and Babylonia.

[bibleask]

Who is Lilith?

Lilith – Mythology Lilith is a demonic character in Judaic mythology, supposedly the earliest she-demon and the wife of Adam. She is mentioned in Late Antiquity in Mandaean Gnosticism mythology sources from 500 CE onwards. And she is referred to in the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah 24b, Shabbat 151b, Baba Bathra 73a), in the Book of Adam and Eve, and in the Zohar Leviticus 19a as “a hot…

[x-starlight-mystic-x]

Lillith

Lilith is a female figure in Mesopotamian and Judaic mythology alternatively the first wife of Adam and supposedly the primordial she-demon. Lilith is cited as having been "banished" from the Garden of Eden for not complying and obeying Adam. She is mentioned in Biblical Hebrew in the book of Isaiah and in late antiquity in mandaean mythology and Jewish mythology sources from 500 CE onward. Lilith appears in historiolas(incantations incorporating a short mythic story) in various concepts and localities that give partial descriptions of her. She is mentioned in the babylonian talmud (Eruvin 100b, Niddah 24b, Shabbat 151b, Baba Bathra 73a), in the book of Adam and Eve as adam's first wife, and in the Zohar Leviticus 19a as "a hot fiery female who first cohabited with man".

The name Lilith stems from lilu lilîtu, and (w)ardat lilî). The Akkadian word lilu is related to the Hebrew word lilith in Isaiah 34:14, which is thought to be a night bird by some modern scholars such as Judit M. Blair. In the Ancient Mesopotamian religion, found in cuneiform texts of Sumer, Assyria and Babylonia Lilith signifies a spirit or demon.

The biblical Lilith inspired the author and first Jewish feminist theologian Judith Plaskow to write, 'The Coming of Lilith' examining patriarchal dominance in Judaism and Christianity, and the writing of 'Which Lilith' exploring the diverse identities of this historical figure by feminists including Enid Dame.