Tree of Souls (Schwartz)

645 texts · Page 63 of 72

Texts from Howard Schwartz's Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism, a landmark anthology gathering myths and legends spanning the full arc of Jewish tradition, from the creation of the world to the coming of the Messiah.

The Star Maiden

Tree of Souls

It all starts with a bit of divine disappointment. According to tradition, when the generation of the Flood went astray, God, in a moment of regret, wondered about creating humans ...

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The Watchers

Tree of Souls

It involves fallen angels, forbidden knowledge, and a whole lot of trouble. This isn't just a story of two rogue angels, Shemhazai and Azazel. According to some accounts, like the ...

CreationAngelsDemonsHeaven

The Giants Of Old

Tree of Souls

Genesis 6:4 mentions the Nefilim. That word, Nefilim, generally understood to mean “giants.” But who were they, really? And where did they come from? The Torah just kind of drops t...

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A Lecherous Spirit

Tree of Souls

"The Nefilim were in the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of r...

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The Lair Of Azazel

Tree of Souls

Jewish tradition has some pretty fascinating, and sometimes terrifying, answers. to the story of Azazel, a fallen angel whose lair is the source of some seriously dark magic. The s...

CreationAngelsDemonsHeaven

The Giant Og

Tree of Souls

According to Tree of Souls, when Noah was loading up the ark, Og made a deal. He swore to Noah and his sons that if they’d let him come along, he’d be their servant forever. Now, s...

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Noah And The Raven

Tree of Souls

Turns out, the rabbinic tradition has quite a bit to say about its motivations and character. The Torah tells us, "Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made and sent out t...

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The Fiery Deluge

Tree of Souls

We all know the tale of Noah, the ark, and the animals. But what if the water wasn't just… water? A fascinating idea emerges from the depths of Jewish tradition: the generation of ...

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The Tower Of Babel

Tree of Souls

And the answer, according to Jewish tradition, lies in a story of ambition, unity, and divine intervention: The Tower of Babel. Genesis (11:1-9) tells us that in the beginning, "ev...

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