The tradition of twins as the progenitors of tribal units or city builders is very well documented in Semitic and Indo-European cultures. When birth order is specified, the younger twin always receives the blessing over the first born brother. In the account of the sons of Adam, the first born twin is envious of the second and commits fratricide. There are many variations on this theme in other twin genesis accounts. Jacob is fearful that Esau will kill him, Romulus killed Remus and Gwyn and Gwythurin in Celtic tradition duel every May.
The Gemini twins, Castor and Pollux, shared a mortal and an immortal existence. Castor was killed on a cattle raid but Pollux persuaded Zeus to allow the brothers to switch places periodically. The word Gemini comes from the PIE root *ym which means 'to pair'. This word is very similar to the Hebrew im mimation suffix but, of course, linguists say they are unrelated(sigh).
Building and cutting of ashlars is a common theme in Gemini symbolism. Castor could be related to English ceaster which means city or town (as in Winchester, Dorchester, Manchester, etc. etc.) Ceasters were originally towns built around fortified Roman army camps and the root of this word comes from the PIE * to cut. Some derivatives are; castrate, castle and caste. (From Constellation of Words)
All of these immortal twins had temples dedicated to them called Docana. Docanas were a pair of pillars that were intersected by two beams; one on top and one on the bottom. This is the astrological symbol of Gemini. It seems very similar to the temple porch Solomon built and named Boaz and Jachin.
In my opinion, the most ancient concept of pairs is related to the dual activity of agriculture and building a protected enclosure to house the harvest. Planting and harvesting was accomplished during half the year and the other half was occupied with fortress construction. The full year cycle was teomim; completion/perfection.
I've always believed that they were twin brothers
ReplyDeleteBoaz and Jachin pillars would suggest the possibility that they were also twins. Jachin is not found elsewhere in the Bible, as far as I know. Could it be a form of Jok-tan?
The cycle of which you write probably have antecedents going back to 80,000 years ago. The Lebombo bone found in southern Africa is likely a binary calendar with 6 notches on one side and 6 on the other. I have a theory that these groups represented the male and female principles; cutting/hunting/building being done in the time of the ascendency of the Masculine and planting/harvesting being done in the time of the ascendency of the Feminine principle. Together, these represent the 12 lunar cycles.
I'm going to post this at Just Genesis with a link to your blog!
At the start of my investigation on this subject, I assumed the female was the opposite side of the male and together they would form teomim. However, I could not find any evidence of this. It is the male that is the only human created by God in His image. I don't see the woman achieving human status until much later. Also, even though she is the vessel by which other humans are formed, God is still responsible for procreation ("I have gotten a man with the help of YHWH")
ReplyDeleteFrom what I can determine, women were considered the property of men much like cattle. Cattle and marriage contracts are still very intertwined in some African tribes. When reading about the contracts, sometimes it is hard to determine if the woman or the cow is more highly prized:)
Also, not only were the men the builders but the farmers as well. The Ploughman(Santa?)is male. Females were only the "in-gatherers" and had some responsibility for water judgement.
I don't know about Jachin relation to Joktan. Jachin is a mystery.
"I don't see the woman achieving human status until much later."
ReplyDeleteThis is why the Genesis creation story is so remarkable! It asserts that Male and Female are equally in the divine image (Gen 1:27). It is clear from the context that both are intended because of the parallelism and the blessing that follows in verse 28 of human reproduction.
The Yahwist voice is much more ancient (1500 b.c.) and was probably passed down through retelling even before the invention of writing. The Elohist (Genesis 1:27) reflects a later tradition with more understanding of the human condition. The theory of two editors of Genesis makes sense to me.
ReplyDeleteThe Yahwist voice could be a snapshot of the most ancient understandings of Kingdom Principles. God is a male force and is still called Our Father. A godforce that seeks to fill all voids, that is prolific and tenacious seems very male to me. Life is abundant on this earth. It exists in the most remote, inhospitable environments. Even many feet below frozen ice life exists. God is a husbander.
"Abba, which means "father" in Hebrew. This Abba is related to the male principle of creation. He is paired with Imma, meaning "mother" in Hebrew, the female principle.
ReplyDeleteWhile Judaism disdained anthropomorphic icons, Abba and Imma were described in the texts as mated in divine union resulting in the generation of progeny or creation. Abba can be equated with Adam Kadmon, the primordial man. The divine union of Abba and Imma is similar in many respects to that of the Tibetan concept of Yabyum. Yab also means "father" in Tibetan, while Yum means "mother."
(my note: emak is mother in Malay. The Adam myth may originate with the Oromo of Ethiopia?)
http://sambali.blogspot.com/
pair, parents, parallel = requires 2
part, partner = requires 2+
"Abel was shepard and Cain was a farmer and city builder"
ReplyDeleteSpeculations:
Sephardic = shepherd = wool trimmer tool, tents
Ashkenazi = cane cutter (scythe)& rhyzome digger (pickaxe salt/lapislazuli/ochre/metal/quarry/ mines/irrigation (Persian-Tocharian)
The two economies of shepard and wood cutter are two sides of same coin. The Ashkenaz collects sap for alchemy, tannins for hide-curing and boards for ships. After the forests are gone the goats and sheep move in. Their common bond could be the merchant priests that traded commodities like laban, myrh and many other "tinctures" created from the alchemy of plants and trees.
ReplyDeleteceaster, cut: similar origins
ReplyDeleteski, keel, wheel (kwelo)
of sleigh cutter & coast guard cutter having sharp cutting action, while slide lacks it