According to Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating early medieval text, it all happened with incredible precision.
Imagine the scene: the fourth day of creation, night is falling. Suddenly, the stars and constellations burst into existence! And here's the kicker: they weren't staggered. One didn't blaze into being significantly before another, no, they were almost simultaneous, separated by a mere two-thirds of an hour. Talk about cutting it close!
This close timing, according to the text, explains why the sun and moon behave so differently. The sun, majestic and deliberate, moves with careful consideration. The moon, on the other hand, zips and zooms across the sky. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer tells us that the moon covers in a single day what takes the sun over thirteen days – plus a fifth! And what the sun journeys through in an entire year? The moon manages that same distance in just forty-one days. Pretty speedy. But it's not just about speed; it’s about time itself. The text delves into the complexities of the Molad (מוֹלָד), the "birth" or beginning of the new moon. All the days, it says, serve as a starting point for calculating the Molad. These days are reckoned backward.
And here's where it gets really interesting. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer provides a sort of cosmic clock, linking the beginning of the Molad to specific hours and days. It all started, on the night of the fourth day, in the hour of Saturn. And as a mnemonic device—a little memory trick—we have the phrase ShNZ KMLChSh (שנז' כמלח"ש).
The text outlines a cyclical pattern. After three years of a small cycle, the day of the next cycle shifts back to the beginning of the night of the third day, with the Molad beginning in the hour of Venus. This pattern continues: three years later, it's the night of the second day and the hour of Jupiter. Then the night of the first day and the hour of Mercury. Then Sabbath night and the hour of Mars. Then the night of the sixth day and the hour of the Moon. Finally, the night of the fifth day and the hour of the Sun.
And after all that? After another three years, the cycle returns to where it began: the night of the fourth day, the hour of Saturn. A complete cosmic loop!
What does it all mean? Perhaps it's a reminder that even the seemingly chaotic universe operates with an underlying order. Or maybe it's a testament to the ancient fascination with celestial mechanics and the human desire to understand our place in the cosmos. Whatever your takeaway, Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer offers a glimpse into a world where time, stars, and divine creation are intricately intertwined.