In
Kabbalah
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
, Eisheth Zenunim (
Heb. אֵשֶׁת זְנוּנִים, "Woman of Whoredom") is a princess of the
Qliphoth
In the Zohar, Lurianic Kabbalah and Hermetic Qabalah, the ''qliphoth/qlippoth/qlifot'' or ''kelipot'' ( ''qəlīpōṯ'', originally Aramaic: ''qəlīpīn'', plural of ''qəlīpā''; literally "peels", "shells", or "husks"), are the represent ...
who rules Gamaliel, the order of the Qliphoth of
Yesod
Yesod (Hebrew: יְסוֹד ''Yəsōḏ'', Tiberian: ''Yăsōḏ'', "foundation") is a sephirah or node in the kabbalistic Tree of Life, a system of Jewish philosophy. Yesod, located near the base of the Tree, is the sephirah below Hod and ...
. She is found in
Zohar
The ''Zohar'' ( he, , ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five ...
1:5a as a feminine personification of sin.
In
Jewish mythology
Jewish mythology is the body of myths associated with Judaism. Elements of Jewish mythology have had a profound influence on Christian mythology and on Islamic mythology, as well as on world culture in general. Christian mythology directly inhe ...
, she is said to eat the souls of the damned.
In popular culture
In
's
Kushiel's Legacy
''Kushiel's Legacy'' is a series of fantasy novels by Jacqueline Carey, comprising the Phèdre Trilogy and the Imriel Trilogy (called the "Treason's Heir" trilogy in the United Kingdom). Since the series features a fictional version of medieval ...
saga, Eisheth is one of eight angels who follow
Elua
''Kushiel's Legacy'' is a series of fantasy novels by Jacqueline Carey, comprising the Phèdre Trilogy and the Imriel Trilogy (called the "Treason's Heir" trilogy in the United Kingdom). Since the series features a fictional version of medieval ...
. She was noted for being gentle. In the series, she is noted as the patron angel of music, medicine, and art, and associated with the sea. Her province is Eisande.
See also
*''
Many Waters
''Many Waters'' is a 1986 novel by Madeleine L'Engle, part of the author's Time Quintet (also known as the Time Quartet). The title is taken from the Song of Solomon 8:7: "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it. If a ...
''
References
{{Kabbalah-stub
Individual angels
Angels in Judaism
Qliphoth
Female legendary creatures
Mythological princesses