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Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism
Only one of the world's mythologies has remained essentially unrecognized--the mythology of Judaism. As Howard Schwartz reveals in Tree of Souls, the first anthology of Jewish mythology in English, this mythical tradition is as rich and as fascinating as any in the world. Drawing from the Bible, the Pseudepigrapha, the Talmud and Midrash, the kabbalistic literature, medieval folklore, Hasidic texts, and oral lore collected in the modern era, Schwartz has gathered together nearly 700 of the key Jewish myths. The myths themselves are marvelous. We read of Adam's diamond and the Land of Eretz (where it is always dark), the fall of Lucifer and the quarrel of the sun and the moon, the Treasury of Souls and the Divine Chariot. We discover new tales about the great figures of the Hebrew Bible, from Adam to Moses; stories about God's Bride, the Shekhinah, and the evil temptress, Lilith; plus many tales about angels and demons, spirits and vampires, giant beasts and the Golem. Equally important, Schwartz provides a wealth of additional information. For each myth, he includes extensive commentary, revealing the source of the myth and explaining how it relates to other Jewish myths as well as to world literature (for instance, comparing Eve's release of evil into the world with Pandora's). For ease of use, Schwartz divides the volume into ten books: Myths of God, Myths of Creation, Myths of Heaven, Myths of Hell, Myths of the Holy Word, Myths of the Holy Time, Myths of the Holy People, Myths of the Holy Land, Myths of Exile, and Myths of the Messiah. Schwartz, a renowned collector and teller of traditional Jewish tales, now illuminates the previously unexplored territory of Jewish mythology. This pioneering anthology is essential for anyone interested in the Hebrew Bible, Jewish faith and culture, and world mythology.
618 pages, ebook
First published January 11, 2004
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896 people want to read
About the author
Howard Schwartz
98 books36 followersHoward Schwartz is Professor Emeritus at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He is a prolific writer who has published fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. In searching for themes and images for his work in various genres, he has often found his inspiration in biblical, midrashic, and kabbalistic lore. Many of his works retell ancient folktales, reflecting his belief in the importance of passing cultural lore from one generation to the next. His poetry frequently reflects the dreamlike and mysterious elements of Jewish mythology.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 24, 2021
After The Great Voice Fell Silent
According to the book of Deuteronomy (5:22), YHWH spoke his last direct words to Israel in the Sinai epiphany. At the same time, and the only time, He wrote his words down in stone. As much as the contents, the form of this divine communication is critical. The written word would henceforth become a surrogate for the Great Voice that had fallen silent.*
God’s silence and his endorsement of writing initiated a profound change in the religion of Israel. In a verbal culture of tale-tellers, amendments, additions, and variations in the stories being told are essentially invisible. Interpretation, although undoubtedly pervasive, can’t be noticed except by the interpreter. But with writing, the text remains more (but not entirely) stable and separate interpretations abound. This, of course, leads quickly to interpretations of interpretations, all of which may be compared, and some of which are incorporated back into the original text. YHWH Himself initiated a process which has continued without interruption.
In doing so, God put His Word definitively into human hands. What had gone before is a kind of hearsay pregnant with untold meanings waiting to be born. His are a people that not only tell stories, but also write them. This is perhaps the most important aspect of the Sinai revelation. God would speak through human beings, not just through the prophets but through every Jew. And He would speak primarily through the written word, the meaning of which would expand and adapt as necessary to meet new circumstances and experiences while the original is preserved. The Word acquires a history which can’t be separated from it.
Writing has an even greater effect on interpretation than the mere ability to compare alternatives. In the Torah each letter is recognised as having significance so that interpretation is intensified as the significance of ‘every jot and tittle’ is drawn out by rabbinic scholars. The spaces between letters become important in ways that the pauses between spoken words cannot. The spoken word certainly carries nuance, but the written word allows an infinite number of variations to be carried simultaneously. Thus the interpretive process is accelerated in the very process of writing. YHWH’s wisdom in sharing not just the content but the engine of continuous development of revelation with His people is vindicated by their subsequent dedication to adding to it generation upon generation.
So despite the ‘closure’ of the Tanakh, the official Jewish scriptures, early in the Christian Era, the process of revelation has never stopped. The Septuagint, the various texts used to create the Masoretic compilation, the Mishnah, the Aramaic Targums, the Talmud, the Midrash literature, as well as other countless commentaries including the Haggadah and Kabbalah have since been produced. And so have the less scholarly myths that provide creative background to biblical characters and events or that attempt to reconcile apparent contradictions or divine inconsistencies in officially recognised texts. The Voice never ceases to flow.
Myth in this context is not a pejorative term. Schwartz notes that “… midrash suggests its own definition of mythology: that which is foremost in the mind of God.” For the anthropologist Clifford Geertz, “myth both provides a model of reality, what is really real, and a model for reality, how one is to behave in its light.” In his foreword, Elliot Ginsburg captures the spirit of Jewish myth: “God is, as the benediction has it, noten ha-torah, the one who ever gives Torah, each moment anew.” That is, the Torah, despite its fixedness as a text, never stops developing, adapting, and revealing. What it reveals is a way of interpreting the world and these are best described as mythical.
Myths are also the most flexible and most widely understood form of communicating a reality that cannot be fully comprehended. They are sacred stories which contain archetypal characters and events. By being simultaneously profound and fanciful, myth presents comprehensible images that are instructive but not dogmatic, practical but not prosaic, spiritual without being ethereal. They suggest and ‘reframe’ without directing behaviour. Schwartz points out how radical mythical themes can be in Judaism. For example, “… there is even a talmudic myth about the rabbis rejecting God’s interpretation of the Law in favor of their own, after which God is said to have laughed and exclaimed, ‘My children have overruled Me!’” Like the Torah itself, the interpretive power of myth can never be exhausted.
Tree of Souls is an anthology that demonstrates the range and depth of Jewish interpretive imagination. As such it would be exhausting and probably fruitless to be read from beginning to end. Rather it is something to be consulted, to get lost in, to assimilate over an extended period. It could well be just the ticket for daily spiritual reading. Many of the stories are short vignettes that nonetheless invite extended meditative thought. And while these stories are Jewish, like all good myths they are almost always universal in their import and their aesthetic beauty. In short, they are relevant as a major component of the Western culture which they have helped to shape. We all share in the silence of the Great Voice, do we not?
* Hence the significance in the Christian Bible of the divine announcement reported in all the synoptic gospels: “This is my beloved son.” Regardless of the interpretation given to the word ‘son,’ no Jew could fail to appreciate the import of the claim that God has broken His silence.
According to the book of Deuteronomy (5:22), YHWH spoke his last direct words to Israel in the Sinai epiphany. At the same time, and the only time, He wrote his words down in stone. As much as the contents, the form of this divine communication is critical. The written word would henceforth become a surrogate for the Great Voice that had fallen silent.*
God’s silence and his endorsement of writing initiated a profound change in the religion of Israel. In a verbal culture of tale-tellers, amendments, additions, and variations in the stories being told are essentially invisible. Interpretation, although undoubtedly pervasive, can’t be noticed except by the interpreter. But with writing, the text remains more (but not entirely) stable and separate interpretations abound. This, of course, leads quickly to interpretations of interpretations, all of which may be compared, and some of which are incorporated back into the original text. YHWH Himself initiated a process which has continued without interruption.
In doing so, God put His Word definitively into human hands. What had gone before is a kind of hearsay pregnant with untold meanings waiting to be born. His are a people that not only tell stories, but also write them. This is perhaps the most important aspect of the Sinai revelation. God would speak through human beings, not just through the prophets but through every Jew. And He would speak primarily through the written word, the meaning of which would expand and adapt as necessary to meet new circumstances and experiences while the original is preserved. The Word acquires a history which can’t be separated from it.
Writing has an even greater effect on interpretation than the mere ability to compare alternatives. In the Torah each letter is recognised as having significance so that interpretation is intensified as the significance of ‘every jot and tittle’ is drawn out by rabbinic scholars. The spaces between letters become important in ways that the pauses between spoken words cannot. The spoken word certainly carries nuance, but the written word allows an infinite number of variations to be carried simultaneously. Thus the interpretive process is accelerated in the very process of writing. YHWH’s wisdom in sharing not just the content but the engine of continuous development of revelation with His people is vindicated by their subsequent dedication to adding to it generation upon generation.
So despite the ‘closure’ of the Tanakh, the official Jewish scriptures, early in the Christian Era, the process of revelation has never stopped. The Septuagint, the various texts used to create the Masoretic compilation, the Mishnah, the Aramaic Targums, the Talmud, the Midrash literature, as well as other countless commentaries including the Haggadah and Kabbalah have since been produced. And so have the less scholarly myths that provide creative background to biblical characters and events or that attempt to reconcile apparent contradictions or divine inconsistencies in officially recognised texts. The Voice never ceases to flow.
Myth in this context is not a pejorative term. Schwartz notes that “… midrash suggests its own definition of mythology: that which is foremost in the mind of God.” For the anthropologist Clifford Geertz, “myth both provides a model of reality, what is really real, and a model for reality, how one is to behave in its light.” In his foreword, Elliot Ginsburg captures the spirit of Jewish myth: “God is, as the benediction has it, noten ha-torah, the one who ever gives Torah, each moment anew.” That is, the Torah, despite its fixedness as a text, never stops developing, adapting, and revealing. What it reveals is a way of interpreting the world and these are best described as mythical.
Myths are also the most flexible and most widely understood form of communicating a reality that cannot be fully comprehended. They are sacred stories which contain archetypal characters and events. By being simultaneously profound and fanciful, myth presents comprehensible images that are instructive but not dogmatic, practical but not prosaic, spiritual without being ethereal. They suggest and ‘reframe’ without directing behaviour. Schwartz points out how radical mythical themes can be in Judaism. For example, “… there is even a talmudic myth about the rabbis rejecting God’s interpretation of the Law in favor of their own, after which God is said to have laughed and exclaimed, ‘My children have overruled Me!’” Like the Torah itself, the interpretive power of myth can never be exhausted.
Tree of Souls is an anthology that demonstrates the range and depth of Jewish interpretive imagination. As such it would be exhausting and probably fruitless to be read from beginning to end. Rather it is something to be consulted, to get lost in, to assimilate over an extended period. It could well be just the ticket for daily spiritual reading. Many of the stories are short vignettes that nonetheless invite extended meditative thought. And while these stories are Jewish, like all good myths they are almost always universal in their import and their aesthetic beauty. In short, they are relevant as a major component of the Western culture which they have helped to shape. We all share in the silence of the Great Voice, do we not?
* Hence the significance in the Christian Bible of the divine announcement reported in all the synoptic gospels: “This is my beloved son.” Regardless of the interpretation given to the word ‘son,’ no Jew could fail to appreciate the import of the claim that God has broken His silence.
February 7, 2020
I want to give this a better rating in deference to the sheer scope of the work, which is frankly exhaustive. The thing is, the cover design and promo copy subtly suggest that this is a book for the casual reader when in fact it's pretty scholarly and dense. I think it's best used as a resource to research or investigate a particularly topic—citations and a good index help a lot—as opposed to a pleasurable cover-to-cover read.
January 26, 2008
This book, more like 5 books in one, was amazing. A deep and wide collection of jewish myths and tales, and the history behind each one. I was smitten by this book.
August 7, 2018
The problem with this book is that what exists in its pages is NOT mythology...it is Traditional Judaism. To explain this, for Christians this would be the equivalent of finding the New Testament in a book labeled, "Christian Mythology". This so-called "mythology" is actively believed as a faith by millions of people around the world; it may seem like mythology to Jews who are not Orthodox or to gentiles, but this is most assuredly NOT mythology. All of this comes from the Torah and other accepted sources of Jewish knowledge such as the Zohar. There is a difference between the mythology/apocrypha of a religion and its current, active form. This is Orthodox Judaism in its current, active form, and should be labeled as such.
March 13, 2022
I can't describe how helpful this book is to filling in the gaps of biblical knowledge. A 40 page bibliography... research of Hebrew texts not yet translated and published in English.
March 29, 2015
This is a very special book. It came to my attention because I was teaching a unit on Frankenstein and how monsters play an important sociological and psychological role as the avatars of our fears. A friend of mine suggested that I check this book out as there are a number of vampire and zombie/Golom stories.
There are, but there is also so much more. I was delighted to read the myths Schwartz has compiled as they too, not just the Talmud or codes of law, are our precious Jewish textual inheritance. I've used the ideas in many of these myths in my poetry because they display all the beauty, complexity, tragedy and humor as the Greek myths which we've come to canonize.
To give one example: we learn a Jewish Icarus story. Yozel Frandrik, who could speak since birth, decided to steal the name of God from the Holiest of Holies. Frandrik sews the piece of paper with THE NAME into his foot which gives him the ability to fly. You know where this is headed. A jealous angel and a bucket of water ground Frandrik but not his story.
This is just one of the hundreds of amazing stories you've never heard. Schwartz won the National Jewish Book Award for Tree of Souls for good reason. This is a treasure I will return to again and again.
There are, but there is also so much more. I was delighted to read the myths Schwartz has compiled as they too, not just the Talmud or codes of law, are our precious Jewish textual inheritance. I've used the ideas in many of these myths in my poetry because they display all the beauty, complexity, tragedy and humor as the Greek myths which we've come to canonize.
To give one example: we learn a Jewish Icarus story. Yozel Frandrik, who could speak since birth, decided to steal the name of God from the Holiest of Holies. Frandrik sews the piece of paper with THE NAME into his foot which gives him the ability to fly. You know where this is headed. A jealous angel and a bucket of water ground Frandrik but not his story.
This is just one of the hundreds of amazing stories you've never heard. Schwartz won the National Jewish Book Award for Tree of Souls for good reason. This is a treasure I will return to again and again.
January 10, 2013
Jewish mythology can get a little tiring even if you're already into Jews and/or mythology, but there are a lot of interesting tidbits and even though the myths themselves can get tedious, it's fascinating how much Jewish myth is tied up in the power of words and letters themselves. Also you can learn a lot of cool shit about Jewish Hell.
June 6, 2017
This book gave me an incredible insight to Jews stories and myths. The book is arranged by topic instead of by history or by book, which allows for a deeper understanding of each theme. I really have a newfound respect for judaism as a religion, and found a deeper appreciation for its beautiful myths and stories.
Currently reading
February 20, 2009I read this book before bed, then do weird spiritual shit while I'm falling asleep.. I swear to god, I healed my sore throat last week after reading about the Guf, the chamber in Aravot where souls gather while they wait to be born. No joke! I woke up totally fine.
May 8, 2009
A must-have desk companion for anyone interested in ancient Judaism, Torah, Talmud, Pseudopigrapha. Fascinating, bizarre, and amazing. Great index as well.
July 30, 2009
This book was very interesting. Suprisingly i read through it fairly quickly even though it's a huge book.
Read
September 23, 2010Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism by Howard Schwartz (2007)
Read
September 24, 2012In important resource for research for one of my WIPs.
May 31, 2015
magisterial.
May 17, 2020
This book was a lot! It was very comprehensive and part of it were very interesting but I did find it somewhat repetitive. I read a good portion of it and skipped the bits that I found boring.
Want to read
December 23, 2022Prompt #34 in this challenge
July 19, 2013
An erudite collection of tales with wonderful contextual notes, this is a must-read for professional religious storytellers, and for those who cherish the lore and mythologies of world religions.
January 23, 2016
I am very happy this book exists. The selections and more so the commentary sometimes feel rather idiosyncratic, but that is perhaps inevitable in a work that aims for such scope.
August 14, 2025
Nathaniel if you are reading this please return this book to the synagogue library so that I can steal it
April 30, 2017
Really well sourced!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews