Solomon And Solomonic Literature Part 6

Armaiti has a daughter, "the good Ashi," whose function is to pa.s.s between earth and heaven and bring the heavenly wisdom (Vohu-Mano, "Good Thought") to mankind. The soul of the world thus reaches, and is reached by, heaven, and Armaiti thus becomes a personification of the combined human and superhuman Wisdom ascribed to great men, such as Solomon. At the same time the "sons of men" are all the children of Armaiti, and she finds delight among them. Even the rudest are restrained by her culture. "By the eyes of Armaiti the (demonic) ruffian was made powerless," says Zoroaster. The spirit of the Earth, laughing with her flowers and fruits, survived in Persia the sombre reign of Islam, to sing in the quatrain of Omar Khayyam: "I asked my fair bride--the World--what was her dower: she answered, 'My dower is in the joy of thy heart.'"

"The sons of men" is not an Avestan phrase, for to Armaiti her daughters are as dear as her sons, but we find in the Vendidad "the seeds of men and women." These are sprung from those who were selected for preservation in the Vara, or enclosure, of the first man, Yimi, made by direction of the deity, when the evil powers brought fatal winters on the world. The deformed, diseased, wicked, were excluded; the chosen people were those formed of "the best of the earth." From long and prosperous life on earth, the Amesha of immortality, the good angel of death, conducted them to eternal happiness; they are the immortals, children of the demons being mortals. There was something corresponding to this in the Jewish idea of their being a chosen people, as distinguished from the Gentile world (see Deut. x.x.xii. 8), and no doubt the phrase "sons of men" represented a divine dignity afterwards expressed in the t.i.tle, "Son of Man." [13]

The Solomonic hymn of Wisdom at the creation (Proverbs viii. 22-31) contains other Avestan phrases. "From eternity was I existent," recalls Zervan akarana, "boundless time," and verse 26, relating to the earth, is still more significant: in it "the sum" has been suggested by the Revisers for (E. V.) "the highest part" (of the earth), but in either rendering it is near to the Avestan phrase, "the best of Armaiti"

(Earth). This phrase is reproduced in the Bundahis (xv. 6), where the creator, Ahura Mazda, says to the first pair, "You are men (cf. Genesis v. 2, he 'called their name Adam'), you are the ancestry of the world, and you are created the best of Armaiti (the Earth) by me." (West's translation. Sacred Books of the East. Vol. V., p. 54, n. 2.) The word for Earth in Proverb 26 is adamah, and in the Septuagint (various reading) it is actually translated Armaith,--Armaiti's very name. We may thus find in Proverb 26 (viii.) the idea of Omar Khayyam, "Man is the whole creation's summary."

Whether there is any connexion between the Sanskrit Adima and Hebrew Adam is still under philological discussion: probably not, for their meaning is different, Adima meaning "the first," and Adam relating to the material out of which he is said to have been formed. Adam is derived from Adamah: after all, man came from the great Woman--"the Mother of all living." [14] Adamah, according to Sale, is a Persian word meaning "red earth," and in Hebrew also it connotes redness. Armaiti might have acquired an epithet of ruddiness from her union with atar, the genius of Fire (Fargard xviii. 51, 52. Darmesteter. Introduction, iv. 30). In Hebrew adamah combines three senses--a fortress, redness, and cultivated ground. In Proverbs (viii. 31) we have the fortress or enclosure, "the habitable part of his earth"; in verse 26 the cultivated earth, "the highest part (or sum, or best) of the dust of the earth." The "delight" in which Wisdom dwelt (verse 30) is Eden, the garden of delight, and in verse 31 this delight a.s.sociated with the human children of the earth. Here we have the elements of the narrative of the creation of Adam in Genesis, and of the garden, though clearly not derived from Genesis. And in Genesis we find something like a personification of the earth, as in ix. 13, "It (the rainbow) shall be a token of a covenant between me and the earth."

The idea of a creative deity requiring, as in Proverbs viii., the a.s.sistance of another personal being, is foreign to Jahvism, but it is of the very substance of Zoroastrianism, and it reappears in the Elohism of Genesis. Another important and fundamental fact is, that we find in the prologue to Proverbs a deity contending against something, circ.u.mscribing forces that need control, not of his creation. It is plain that the conception of monotheistic omnipotence had not yet been formed. There are higher and lower parts of the earth.

Although there is no evidence that any such compilation as our "Genesis" existed at the time when the prologue (viii., ix.) to the "Proverbs of Solomon" was composed, the Elohistic opening of Genesis, especially in its original form, harmonises with the Parsi conflict between Light and Darkness.

"When of old Elohim separated heaven and earth--when the earth was desolation and emptiness--darkness on the face of the deep, and the spirit of Elohim brooding on the face of the waters,--Elohim said, Be Light; Light was." [15]

The spirit of G.o.d "brooding" over the waters (Genesis i. 1) may be identified with the Wisdom of Proverbs ix. 1, who "builds her house" as the Elohim built the universe, and "hath hewn out her seven pillars" like a true Armaiti, "Queen of the Seven." She is the Spirit of Light. And perhaps the darkness that was on the face of the abyss suggested the antagonistic personification in the next chapter (ix.) named by Professor Cheyne "Dame Folly." Wisdom, having builded her house, spread her table, mingled her wine, sends forth her maidens to invite the simple to forsake Folly, enjoy her feast, and "live." Dame Folly,--who though she has "a seat in high places" is "silly,"--clamours to every wayfarer that even the bread and water of her table, being surrept.i.tious, are sweeter than the luxuries and wine offered by Wisdom. This appears to be the meaning of Dame Folly's somewhat obscure invitation.

"'Waters stolen are sweet!

Forbidden bread is pleasant!'

He knoweth not her phantoms are there, That her guests are in the underworld."

In this contrast between Wisdom inviting all to enter her house, drink her wine, and "live," and Folly inviting them to her "Sheol,"

we have nearly a quatrain of Omar Khayyam: "Since from the beginning of life to its end there is for thee only this earth, at least live as one who is on it and not under it."

In the Avesta the good and wise Mother Earth (Armaiti) is opposed by a malign female "Drug" (demoness), whose paramours are described in Fargard xviii. (Vendidad). These two are fairly represented by Wisdom and Folly as personified in Proverbs viii. and ix.

The Jahvist who in Proverbs i. 1-7 (excepting the first six verses) undertakes to edit the original and ancient editor as well as Solomon, presents the curious case of one of Dame Folly's phantoms interpreting the words of Wisdom's guests. Unable to comprehend their portraiture of Dame Folly, he imagines that the allusion must be to harlotry, admonishes his "son" that "Jahveh giveth wisdom," which among other things will "deliver thee from the strange woman," whose "house sinketh down to the underworld and her paths unto phantoms." Which recalls the pious lady who on hearing her ritualistic pastor accused by a dissenter of leanings toward the Scarlet Woman, anxiously inquired of a friend whether she had ever heard any scandal connected with their vicar's name!

Our Jahvist editor seems to be one who would often say of laughter "it is mad"; and naturally could not imagine how Wisdom could "sport"

before the Lord (viii. 30) unless she were in some sense mad. The sport before Jahveh could only be in mockery of some sinner's torment, like the derision ascribed to Jahveh (Psalm ii. 4); consequently our editor represents Wisdom crying abroad in the streets:

"Because I have called and ye refused....

I also will laugh in the day of your calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh."

But Pliny mentions the Mazdean belief, confirmed by Parsi tradition, that Zoroaster was born laughing. To him Ahura Mazda says: "Do thou proclaim, O pure Zoroaster, the vigor, the glory, the help and the joy that are in the Fravashis (souls) of the faithful."

However, we may see in these first seven chapters of Proverbs that Wisdom had become detached from the sons of men, in whom she had once found delight, was no longer in the human heart, but had finally ascended to wield the heavenly thunderbolts. And yet it is probable that we owe to this vindictive and menacing att.i.tude of deified Wisdom the preservation of so many witty and sceptical things in books traditionally ascribed to Solomon. The orthodox legend being that the Lord had put supernatural wisdom into Solomon's heart, and never revoked it despite his "idolatry" and secularism, it followed that the naughty man could not help continuing to be a medium of this divine person, Wisdom, and that it might be a dangerous thing to suppress any utterance of hers through Solomon,--unwitting blasphemy. However profane or worldly the writings might appear to the Jahvist mind, there was no knowing what occult inspiration there might be in them, and the only thing editors could venture was to sprinkle through them plenteous disinfectants in the way of "Fear-of-the-Lord" wisdom.

The proverbs in which the name Jahveh appears are not, of course, to be indiscriminately rejected as entirely Jahvist interpolations. It seems probable that little more than the word Jahveh has been supplied in some of these,--e. g., xix. 3, xx. 27, xxi. 1, 3, xxviii. 5, xxix. 26. But in a majority of cases the proverbs containing the name Jahveh are ethically and radically inharmonious with the substance and spirit of the book as a whole, which is founded on the supremacy of human "merits" as fully as Zoroastrianism, in which salvation depends absolutely on Good Thought, Good Word, Good Deed. In dynamic monotheism (as distinguished from ethical) of which Jahvism is the ancient and Islam the modern type, the doctrine of human "merits"

is inadmissible: a man's virtues are not his own, and in Jahveh's sight they are but "filthy rags," except so far as they are given by Jahveh. But in the Solomonic proverbs the highest virtues, and the supreme blessings of the universe, are obtained by a man's own wisdom, character, and deeds. And in some cases the claims for Jahveh appear to have been inserted as if in answer or retort to proverbs ignoring the partic.i.p.ation of any deity in such high matters. I quote a few instances, in which the ant.i.thesis turns to antagonism:

Solomon--By kindness and truth iniquity is atoned for.

Jahvist--By the fear of Jahveh men turn away from evil. (xvi. 6.)

Solomon--He who is skilful in a matter findeth good.

Jahvist--Whoso trusteth in Jahveh, happy is he! (xvi. 20.)

In several other cases entire proverbs seem to be inserted for the correction of preceding ones,--these being not always understood by the interpolator:

Solomon--Treasures of evil profit not, But virtue delivereth from death.

Jahvist--Jahveh will not suffer the righteous man to be famished, But the desires of the unrighteous he thrusteth away. (x. 2, 3.)

Solomon--The tongue of the just is choice silver; The heart of the evil is little worth: The lips of the just feed many, But fools die through heartlessness.

Jahvist--The blessing of Jahveh, that maketh rich, And work addeth nothing thereto. (x. 20-22.)

Solomon--The virtuous man hath an everlasting foundation. (x. 25.)

Jahvist--The fear of Jahveh prolongeth days. (x. 27.)

Solomon--Hear counsel, receive correction, That thou mayst be wise in thy future.

Jahvist--Many are the purposes in a man's heart, But the counsel of Jahveh, that shall stand. (xix. 20-1.)

Solomon--The acceptableness of a man is his kindness: Better off the poor than the treacherous man.

Jahvist--The fear of Jahveh addeth to life; Whoso is filled therewith shall abide, he shall not be visited by evil. (xix. 22-3.)

Solomon--The upright man considereth his way.

Jahvist--Wisdom is nothing, heart nothing, Counsel nothing, against Jahveh. (xxi. 29, 30.)

In one instance the Jahvist has made a slip by which his hand is confessed. In xvii. 3 we find:

The fining-pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold, But Jahveh trieth hearts.

But he omitted to notice the repet.i.tion in xxvii. 21, where we find the profound sentence which the Jahvist had reduced to commonplace:

The fining-pot for silver and the furnace for gold, And a man is proved by that which he praiseth.

The Jahvist spirit is also discoverable in xx. 22: