Ashmodai and Shlomo
TALMUDIC AGGADA
By Rav Yitzchak Blau
Shiur #12: Ashmodai and Shlomo
[In the preceding gemara, Shlomo instructs
Benayahu to capture the demon named Ashmodai in order to enlist his help in
constructing the Temple. They
contain Ashmodai via a chain and ring both bearing the name of God]
One day they [Shlomo and Ashmodai] were alone. He said to him: It is written He
has toafot reem (Bemidbar 24:8). We say toafot refers to the
ministering angels, and reem refers to the demons. What is your advantage over us? He said to him: Take the chain off
me and give me your ring and I will show you our advantage. He took the chain off him and gave
him the ring. He [Ashmodai] then
swallowed him. Placing one wing in
the heavens and one wing n the earth, he threw him four hundred parsa
lengths. Regarding that moment,
Shlomo said: What advantage does man have with all his toil under the sun (Kohelet
1:3).
And this was my portion from all my toil (Kohelet
2:10). What does this refer to? Rav and Shmuel debated. One said his staff, and one said his
garments. He would beg for money at
peoples doors and say: I am Kohelet; I was king of the Jews in Jerusalem (Kohelet
1:12). When he arrived at the
Sanhedrin, the rabbis said: Since a madman does not remain stuck on one idea,
what is this? They said to
Benayahu: Has the king asked you to come to him? He said to them: No. They sent to the queens: Has the
king come to you? They sent to
them: Yes, he comes. They sent to
them: Check his legs. They sent to
them: He comes in stockings and wants to have relations while they are in their
menstrual period and wants to have relations with Bat Sheva his mother. They brought in Shlomo and gave him
the ring and the chain with the name of God engraved upon it. When he went in, Ashmodai saw
him and flew away. Even so, he
[Shlomo] was still afraid of him, and that is what is written: Here is the bed
of Shlomo with sixty strong men from the strong men of Israel surrounding it. They all hold swords and have
experience at war. Each has a sword at
his side due to fear in the night (Shir Ha-shirim 3:7-8).
Rav and Shmuel debated. One said he was a king and then a
commoner, and one said he was a king, then a commoner, then a king (Gittin
68b).
Shlomo reads a verse praising God for His
dominion over the demonic forces and wonders what makes those demons great. After releasing Ashmodai from
bondage, Davids son discovers the awesome power Ashmodai wields and loses his
kingdom, retaining only his staff or garments.
Rashi cites an alternative interpretation that translates gundo
as a pot rather than as garments. While
Ashmodai impersonates Shlomo, the king wanders his kingdom impoverished, unable
to convince the average homeowner of his royal position. The Sanhedrin does take note of this
wandering beggar and gives some credence to his story since a madman does not
remain stuck on one idea. We might
counter is not remaining stuck on one conception precisely the mark of a crazy
fellow? Rashi explains: He
does not say any other crazy things.
Someone insane may remain fixated on one point, but his insanity will
find some other expression as well.
Since the beggar acted completely normally with one exception, the Sages
investigated and discovered that the beggar correctly identified the current
king as an imposter.
Rav and Shmuel debate whether or not Shlomo
was restored to prominence. Maharsha
questions the position that he did not become king again. Tanakh reports
that he reigned for forty years and then passed away (Melakhim I
12:42-43), implying that he kept control of his kingdom. Maharsha considers the possibility
that the Ashmodai episode happened at the end of the forty years. In contrast, R. Shlomo Luria
understands that Shlomo did become king again but no longer ruled over the
heavenly beings. In that sense, he
remained a commoner.
As is often the case, midrashim and
aggadot work off a close reading of biblical verses. In the third verse of Kohelet,
the king describes his reign as in the past, possibly indicating that it came to
an end. Furthermore, the reference
to this was my portion implies that he kept a small memento while losing all
else. Perhaps this entire aggada
attempts to create a setting befitting the cynicism and despair of Kohelet. Interestingly, R. Yaakov Reisher (Iyyun
Yaakov) connects the argument between Rav and Shmuel with another midrashic
debate regarding the order of Shlomos compositions (see Shir
Ha-shirim Rabba 1:10). Those who think Shir Ha-shirim is his last
work say that Shlomo became a king again.
Conversely, those that view Kohelet as the final composition think
that he never regained his former status.
Having granted that midrashim often
emerge from sensitive reading, we would still not say that this Talmudic episode
reflects peshuto shel mikra (the straightforward meaning of the biblical
text). Rather than attempt to work
this tale into the biblical verses, it behooves us to look for an allegorical
interpretation of such a fantastic story.
R. Moshe Avigdor Amiel suggests a brilliant reading in his Derashot el
Ami (in the section for Shabbat Chol Ha-moed Pesach). A drifting and rootless individual
symbolizes the Jew wandering through exile.
Ashmodai replacing Shlomo stands for other groups claiming our mantle. Note that the demon takes command in
the story after receiving the chain and ring with the name of God upon them. Originally, only the Jewish people
spoke about one God, but then others started to spread their version of the
monotheistic message. Christianity
claimed to have formed a new covenant with God and become Israel. Kings bear a special Divine message,
and the new king, Christianity, dispersed the Jewish people while asserting that
Christianity has the only relevant message.
Jews wandered from location to location but could not convince the world
of our enduring Divine calling.
However, at the end of the story, people of discernment recognized the
authenticity of our unique religious teaching.
The demon king places one foot in the heavens
and one on the earth when he sends Shlomo into exile. For R. Amiel, this reflects a
characteristic of Christianity.
During the Second Temple period, groups differed wildly on attitude to
physicality. The Essenes rejected
the physical, abandoned society, and renounced marital life. Amei ha-aretz, on the other
hand, fully immersed themselves in the corporeal.
Our ancestors, the Pharisees, avoided these extremes and lived a life
integrating the spiritual with the physical.
R. Amiel contends that Christianity often adopted the Essene position in
theory, but emulated the amei ha-aretz in practice. They called for blessing the meek (Matthew
5:5) and recommend giving up your cloak to someone who already took your coat (Matthew
5:39). They also idealized celibacy. Furthermore, some interpret,
Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the
things that are God's (Matthew 22:21) as teaching that Christianity
should play no role in the political arena.
Yet the reality of Christian behavior in the Middle Ages was often far
different. Thus, they had one
foot in the heavens and one foot on the ground.
Generalizing about major religions requires caution, since plenty of
exceptions exist and conflicting texts can be cited fairly easily. Not all Christian thinkers favor
renouncing the world, and rabbinic literature contains ascetic and quietist
themes as well. At the same time,
generalizations often reflect a reality.
In the wide variety of rabbinic thought, the position championing
celibacy does not exist.
Furthermore, halakhic requirements to eat on Shabbat and festival days
invariably generate momentum towards the idea that we should sanctify the
corporeal rather than abstain from it.
For these reasons, R. Kook portrays Buddhism as fully giving up on this
plane of existence, and Christianity as renouncing some aspects of this
existence, whereas Judaism tries to sanctify the totality of our world (Orot
Hakodesh 2: p. 488-489).
Why does Shlomo retain his staff or his cloak?
R. Amiel explains that this symbolizes
our remarkable ability to survive in exile and adapt to varying situations. A staff represents the ability to
travel from place to place. Clothing
refers not to one specific royal robe, but to a regal wardrobe including a great
variety of garments. We don the
clothing relevant to each Diaspora context and endure. Of course, this does not mean that we
alter our fundamental value system, but that we adjust externalities to the
needs of the day. Indeed, our
survival and continuity through almost two thousand years of exile reflects one
of the most remarkable stories of human history.
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