The Fall of Gondolin and the Fall of Troy

I think the development of the Lay of the Fall of Gondolin was partly influenced by the tradition of tales about the Fall of Troy.  But the only major article I've found already exploring that is one by Alexander M Bruce written in 2012 focusing mainly on the account of Troy's Fall in Book II of the Aenied with Tuor as Aeneas.

Tolkien certainly may have read that, but given what his overall goals and interests were in developing his Arda mythology, I think the reference to Troy in Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda is far more likely to be the main account of Troy that Tolkien would have drawn on.

Like in Bruce's Aeneid theory it has Turgon as Priam and Idril Celebrindel as a daughter of Priam.  But Tuor would instead be Múnón or Mennón.  There is some disagreement on who in the earlier accounts of Troy Múnón is based on, he could be the Menon mentioned in Book 12 of the Illiad.  But the more popular fan theory is that he's Memnon.

Memnon lead an army of "Aethiopians" to Troy from the East.  Aethiopia in Greek Mythology didn't quite always mean the kingdom(s) in Africa south of Egypt, Homer said there were Aethiopians at both the far Western and Eastern ends of the Earth.  Being called a "Son of the Dawn" implies Memnon came from the East.  Remember during the time of Tuor from the Elves POV Men had only just recently entered Beleriand from the East.

However the key detail that I think Sturluson's version of Troy has in common with Gondolin that I don't think any other version does is having Twelve Houses.

Near the earth's centre was made that goodliest of homes and haunts that ever have been, which is called Troy, even that which we call Turkland. This abode was much more gloriously made than others, and fashioned with more skill of craftsmanship in manifold wise, both in luxury and in the wealth which was there in abundance. There were twelve kingdoms and one High King, and many sovereignties belonged to each kingdom; in the stronghold were twelve chieftains.

This same description is why I sometimes think Sturluson was just using Troy as a stand in for Jerusalem, but but that may just be me.

Of Gondolin's 12 Houses Tuor became Captain of the White Wing.

Sauron and Azazel

We all know that Melkor The Morgoth is basically Satan in J.R.R. Tolkien’s mythology.  But have you ever wondered if the other great Dark Lord of Middle Earth can also be equated with a specific Fallen Angel from the Judeo-Christian tradition?  Well I happen to have a theory on that.

Now up front I want to remind people that I’m aware Tolkien hated direct Allegory, like George Lucas he drew on many mythological concepts and motifs, but nothing was meant to be a one to one allegory, even Morgoth’s connection to Satan comes with qualifications (first of which is that it's more of a Paradise Lost perception of Satan then anything The Bible clearly teaches).

Also the development of Sauron as a figure in Tolkien’s Mythology was uniquely complicated.  I personally suspect that before Tolkien actually began writing a sequel to The Hobbit, Sauron’s roles in the tale of Beren and Luthien, in the Fall of Numenor and as the Necromancer mentioned in The Hobbit were three completely separate characters.  For example in the case of Beren and Luthien the role eventually taken by Sauron was originally just a Werecat type monster.  But it’s none of those proto-Saurons I’m comparing to Azazel here, this is specifically about Sauron as The Lord of The Rings.

There are conflicting traditions about Azazel, sometimes that name is just used as another name for Satan, which could very well be the original intent behind it’s use in Leviticus 16.  This analysis is mainly about the figure of Azazel as he appears in The Book of Enoch aka First Enoch.  The Richard Laurence Translation was published in 1883 and the R.H. Charles translation was published in 1917, so both are books Tolkien could have read at some point.

When I first read the Book of Enoch, I couldn’t help but notice how much Azazel’s role stood out narratively.  In the initial list of the leaders of the Grigori/Watchers that fell (chapter 7 verse 9 in the Laurence version and chapter 6 verse 7 in the Charles version) Azazel’s name isn’t included, in either the Ethiopic or Aramaic texts.  Yet when Azazel is first mentioned in chapter 8 verse 1 he is suddenly being treated as one of the single most important of them. 

Then in chapter 10 verses 4-12 he’s given a uniquely different fate, being buried under rocks in Dudael rather then being chained in the Abyss/Tartarus like the others.  I eventually learned some of that uniqueness is a product of how the name is used in Leviticus 16 and traditions derived from that, but it still stands out.  If you think you can explain this by just saying Azazel and Samyaza/Shemjaza are different names for the same Angel, the Aramaic text of chapter 8 lists Shemjaza separately as the one who taught Sorcery.  And Chapter 9 lists them separately in both versions.

In The Enemy section of The Valaquenta in the published Silmarillion, the only Maia who joined Morgoth singled out for special mention are the Balrogs as a group and Sauron as an individual.  One Youtube video I watched on the Balrogs theorized their special status among Morgoth’s followers might be that they were the very first Maia to follow him.  Sauron meanwhile came much later, never openly betraying the Valar till after Angband was firmly established.  So even the difference between Sauron and the Balrogs echos the difference between Azazel and the Grigori. 

But the crux of why I feel this comparison works is what’s said in Chapter 8 Verse 1 of the Book of Enoch.

"And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals 〈of the earth〉 and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures."

That certainly sounds like he’d be a Maia of Aule (as both Sauron and Saruman were) if placed in Tolkien’s Cosmology.  In fact it’s tempting to see even the Rings of Power themselves in that verse.

I also can’t help but wonder if Dudael where Azazel met his final doom being traditionally placed East of Jerusalem is echoed in Mordor being East of Gondor.

Another possible mythological influence on Sauron were various pagan gods associated with Blacksmithing and/or Volcanoes.  If you were to compare the Valar to the Olympians then Aule would be Hephaestus/Vulcan, yet Sauron ultimately resembles Hephaestus more since Hephaestus was cast down from Olympus. Typhon is a figure in Greek mythology some scholars suspect was originally the same as or an aspect of Hephaestus, one of his birth stories is the same, being borne by Hera in response to the birth of Athena.  Also in some versions Typhon is buried beneath Mt Etna a Volcano on Sicily which is also said to be the location of Hephaestus's workshop.

Is it possible to connect Hephaestus/Typhon to Azazel independent of comparing them to a modern literary figure?  I think so, like for example winding up buried, and of course Azazel’s status as a craftsman already mentioned above.  That the Greeks identified Typhon with Set gives precedence for seeing him as a Desert Storm god.  I feel the Book of Enoch definitely developed post Hellenization, it’s mentioning Tartaros is evidence of that.  There was a blacksmith god in the Canaanite pantheon, Kothar-wa-Khasis, but he wasn’t cast out like Hephaestus was.  So I think the figure of Azazel in the book of Enoch was possibly modeled a bit after Hephaestus and/or Typhon.

So maybe Tolkien likewise consciously or unconsciously made the same connection between them?

Lilith, Serpents and Izanami

This post is somewhat a follow up to my post on The Two Seed Line Theory on another Blog.

I talked about Lilith once on my Prophecy Blog in Edom and Lilith.  I still think that theory might have some truth to it, but I want to talk about some other factors here.

The 8th-10th Century Alphabet of Ben Sira is the first known example of Lilith being identified as a previous wife of Adam.  Though the suggestion that Adam had a previous wife is made in the 3rd-5th Century Genesis Rabbah.  But the Rabbah is weird, implying it's earlier woman was also made from a piece of Adam but he wasn't put to sleep that time.

Later on some Kabbalah writings like Treatise on the Left Emanation would identify Lilith with the Serpent of Genesis 3.  And to be honest there is no solid proof in the Genesis text that the Nahash is male rather then female.  Even Lilith being traditionally depicted as red haired could come from Nahash being similar to the Hebrew word for Bronze.  Lilith has also been associated with the Serpents in Isaiah 27:1, Humm, Alan. Lilith, Samael, & Blind Dragon.  And for some context in the Egyptian Ogdoad the female deities are depicted as Serpents while the males are Frogs.

Nahash is given in 2 Samuel 17:25 as the name of a parent of at least one of David's sisters.  And attempts to explain that usually debate between Nahash as another name for Jesse or a theory that David's mother had a husband before Jesse.  But it's occurred to me that maybe this name can be used by men and women and that this Nahash could have been a wife of Jesse.

Some scholars think the Lilith (Screech Owl in the KJV) of Isaiah 34 is most likely just some normal animal, other words used around there are clearly animals elsewhere in Scripture.  For example the Satyr in the KJV is actually Sayir a Hebrew word for Goat.  Lilith coming from a word for Night could mean it's some kind of Nocturnal animal.  Babylonian Talmud on Tractate Nidda 24b implies Lilith is a winged creature.  Those clues could support the Owl translation.  But if it refers to an animal called by some other term elsewhere in scripture, the flying Serpents of Numbers and other parts of Isaiah are arguably placed near the region of Edom.

The Latin Vulgate of Isaiah 34 translated Lilith as Lamia, the Lamia was a creature in Greek Mythology often depicted as part woman and part serpent. But Lamia's etymology has also been interpreted to mean "Nocturnal Spirit", being related to Lemures.

It is commonly theorized that the idea of a Jewish tradition of Adam having a wife before Eve must come from a desire to reconcile a supposed contradiction between Genesis 1 and 2.  But the truth is if you view them as accounts of separate events, then more then one Adam was created too.  Also if you separate them neither the male or female Adam is made from the dust of the earth in Genesis 1.

It is often overlooked that without even leaving Genesis 2:4-25 there is a basis for Adam having possible wives or at least wife-candidates before Eve, who were also formed from the Dust of the Earth like he was.  That is when Adam names the "Beasts of the Field".

Some of my fellow Creationists may feel the need to mock the suggestion that God was seriously considering mating Adam with any of them.  Indeed if you read verses 19 and 20 in isolation there is no clear indicator they were possible spouses.  But the fact is verse 18 comes before this narrative rather then being saved till after it, that presents it as somehow linked.  Now I certainly believe God knew what the outcome of this would be, but this still happens in the text.  And indeed the actual text of The Alphabet of Ben Sira supports this being where it placed Lilith's creation.

After God created Adam, who was alone, He said, "It is not good for man to be alone." He then created a woman for Adam, from the earth, as He had created Adam himself, and called her Lilith.

Plenty of Creationists have already seen the creation of these animals as separate from their initial creation in Genesis 1, whether we place these events on day six or a later point.  In Genesis 1 they're made before Adam, even those that were the same day, but in Genesis 2 they're made after Adam is placed in The Garden.  In which case I suspect Genesis 1 records the ancestors of the animals we generally see today, while Genesis 2 could be beings peculiar to the Garden, who perhaps were more "sentient".  Maybe the Living Creatures of Revelation aka the Cherubim and the Seraphim were among these?

Genesis 3:1 also says that whatever the Nahash is, it could qualify as a Beast of the Field.  Some use the terminology of that verse to say it's distinguished from being a Beast of the Field, but what's even the point of mentioning Beasts of the Field in that case?  Or maybe the Serpent is distinguished from them because he was the offspring of one? possibly by Adam?  I don't know, I'm not planning on building any doctrines on the theories in this post.

I've read that the most direct translation of the Hebrew would be something like "crafty from all of animals of the field", and that Genesis 3:14 clearly defined the Serpent as a a fellow beast of the field.

Maybe the extra-Biblical traditions of Lilith came to involve confusing or conflating all the creatures of chapter 2 verses 19 and 20 together?  After all Lilith is technically a feminine Plural.  Fowls of the air are also explicitly mentioned in those verses.

I've also noticed lately that comparing Amos 9:11-12 as it is in the Masoretic text/KJV to how it's quoted in Acts 15:15-17 shows that what reads Edom in the Masoretic was probably originally Adam, which is spelled the same in Hebrew.  So maybe Isaiah 34 is the same, it was never about Edom but about the domain of Adam?

In my post about why we should not call Satan Lucifer.   I pointed out that Shachar/Shahar the Hebrew word for Dawn/Morning in Isaiah 14:12 is spelled the same as Shachor a Hebrew word that means Black or Dark, and that relating that meaning to the Dawn kind of makes sense because "The Night is Darkest just before The Dawn".  In that context it could make a good synonym for Lilith given the Night association of the name Lilith.  Giving me a basis to argue that Isaiah 14:12 says Satan is the Son of Lilith.

In the past I have noted possible parallels between the figure of Lilith and Izanami of Japanese Mythology.  In the Edom post I already linked to, in a post talking about the Anime called Evangelion, and when speculating on The Lost Tribes possibly going to Japan.  However as I've been reading up more on Lilith, I've noticed even more parallels.

Before it was mostly just her being the Wife of an Adam figure, plus Izanami speaking first in their mating ritual being an issue having a possible parallel to Lilith wanting to be on top in The Alphabet of Ben Sira.

But now I'm learning things like Lilith also being sent to an Underworld type location, from the Myths linking her to Asmodeus, to the Kaballah tradition of her going down to the Great Abyss.   Meaning the debate about if the Queen of The Night Relief is Lilith or Ereshkigal could be redundant, it could be they were always the same woman.

Izanami also possibly reflects Lilith's status as a mother of Demons via her sending Rajin and Shikome after Izanagi from the Underworld, and being the mother of many Kami.  Ryujin could also be compared to Isaiah 27:1, as he's literally a Dragon in the Sea, and as Watasumi is an offspring of Izanagi and Izanami.

In the context of all of that, there are two figures from Greek Mythology it might be plausible to compare to Lilith.

One is Echidna, a Half-Woman and Half-Snake monster who was the wife of Typhon.  And Aristophanes says she was a denizen of the Underworld.  And she was known as the Mother of Monsters.  The word Echidna also appears in the New Testament, the KJV always translated it Viper.  Is it possible that means Echidna was used in the Septuagint where the KJV has Viper in the Old Testament?  I don't know, checking the Septuagint isn't easy given how sometimes the Chapters aren't even in the same order.  Eph'eh is the Hebrew word Translated Viper in the KJV, it's used in Isaiah 30:6 in a way that's possibly synonymous with the fiery flying Serpent.  The Apocryphal Acts of Philip tells a story of Philip dealing with a Temple ruled by Echidna.

Another would be Eurynome who was the wife of Ophion, or in some theories his mother, who was also cast into Tartarus according to Lycophron (1191).  It's possible Eurynome and Echidna could have originally been the same, considering how Typhon and Ophion are almost certainly different versions of the same original myth.  Other Greek mythical figures who could be based on this same original idea are Nyx (means night) and Ceto, and maybe Lamia who was mentioned above.

There has naturally been a tendency to compare some takes on Lilith to Sophia in Gnosticism.  And Robert Graves basically made Eurynome a Sophia figure in his reconstruction.

This Mother of Monsters aspect could also make one think of Grendel's Mother in Beowulf.  Or in Norse Mythology Angrboða who by Loki was the mother of Hella (the Underworld Goddess), Jormungander, a Sea Serpent monster comparable to Serpents discussed above, and Fenrir a wolf creature you might recognize from Thor Ragnorock.  Sometimes another possible offspring named Larnvidia (she of the Iron-Wood) is mentioned, who is sometimes refereed to as a She-Wolf and the mother of Fenrir's children.  Fenrir and his offspring no doubt played a role in inspiring Tolkien's Wargs and Werewolves (who are not what the term Werewolf generally means), and Fenris Ulf in Narnia, as well as the Direwolves on Game of Thrones.  But the usual "Mother of Monsters" figure in Tolkien's lore is Ungoliant, the ancestress of both Shelob and the Spiders of Mirkwood.  Sulkaris is a villainess from a Zelda fan game who might be partly inspired by Ungoliant.

When I finally read George MacDonald's Lilith, I wonder how relevant all this speculation will be?

Update December 25th 22019: It seems like Fate/Grand Order: Babylonia is identifying the Mesopotamian Tiamat with Echidna since they're clearly implying a relationship with Medusa (Fate/Stay Night's Rider) via a similar look and having the same Voice Actress in both Japanese and the Aniplex Dub, and a similar "mystic eyes" ablity.  And there does seem to be prior precedent for such an identification.  Graves makes Tiamat the same kind of goddess he makes Eurynome.

Turns out the initial Tiamat isn't quite Tiamat but "Gorgon", they're still implying Tiamat is a Mother of Monsters.