Golden Dildos In The Bible
This bible verse (Ezekiel 16:17) was used as an epigram in The Stimulators about which I blogged yesterday.
Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them.
“Commit whoredom” seems like a somewhat vague complaint by Ezekiel, who is usually fairly specific in passing on what he claimed were God’s objections to the abominations then being committed in the City of Jerusalem. But then again, I’m not sure what “and didst stick them repeatedly in your hoo-hahs” should look like after being translated from the original by sexually-squeamish religious men. It’s entirely possible that old Ezekiel himself was rather more direct and clear about the objectionable uses to which the “images of men” were put.
Similar Sex Blogging:
Shorter URL for sharing: https://www.erosblog.com/?p=7716
Well, this could be a translation issue. The Authorized Version (KJV) was translated in the early 17th century, and the term “dildo” had only just been coined in English (By Shakespeare, as it turns out).
The other thing is that it could be talking about temple prostitution and idolatry, and not the use of sex toys at all.
The vagueness of this line doesn’t lend itself to any sort of clarity of what was actually going on.
The Leningrad codex (the oldest complete edition in Hebrew extant) has this passage as
וַתִּקְחִ֞י כְּלֵ֣י תִפְ×ַרְתֵּ֗ךְ מִזְּהָבִ֤י וּמִכַּסְפִּי֙ ×ֲש×ֶ֣ר × Ö¸×ªÖ·Ö£×ªÖ¼Ö´×™ לָ֔ךְ וַתַּעֲשִׂי־לָ֖ךְ צַלְמֵ֣י זָכָ֑ר ×•Ö·×ªÖ¼Ö´×–Ö°× Ö´×™Ö¾×‘Ö¸Ö½×׃
I am neither a Bible scholar nor do I speak Hebrew (and this is classical Hebrew, which is of course not the same as the modern language), but I think the word at stake here is , which Google Translate does not have a translation for. Maybe someone more learned can take it from here?
Yeah, it’s a bit cryptic to me…
There’s the linked passage in Amos 5:23 King James 2000 Bible (©2003)
“But you have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch, and Chiun your star god, your images, which you made for yourselves.”
Moloch is the pagan idol found at the Bohemian Grove activities (http://1.bp.blo...h.jpg ), and allegedly the street map of Washington, D.C. ( http://truthqua...ideo/ )
I think you can watch the infamous Cremation of Care ceremony / idol worshiping here:
http://www.info...b.htm
…where they offer up an effigy of a child in remembrance of:
http://www.equa...0.jpg
Prohibitions against burning children sacrificially can also be found in 2 Kings 16:3, 2 Kings 21:6, and 2 Kings 23:10…
Chiun, the star god mentioned above is believed to be the planet Saturn, who apparently had a similar reputation:
http://en.wikip...s_Son
…or star god could be a reference to Lucifer, the ancient name of the Morning Star, now called Venus.
… or may refer to Astarte, a.k.a. Ishtar, a sex and fertility goddess whose symbol was the owl:
http://en.wikip...t.jpg
The owl image can also be found depicted in the streets of Washington, D.C.:
http://www.info...i.htm
…which according to the Google-translation of the German Wikipedia page ( http://translat...ilith ) is also known as Lilith, who was a goddess also known as a killer of children.
But then again, these phallic-shaped magic talismans or idols may have been dildos as well:
http://gnostrad....html
http://www.askw...s.php
Some modern dildos are rather directly patterned after ancient goddess figurines like this Nile River Goddess:
http://cariferr...moon/
This one looks like a butt-plug with a retrieval ring:
http://www.reso...1.jpg
After all, you can’t spell the word dildo without using the anagrammed word idol…
According to Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible ( http://clarke.b...6.htm ):
“And madest to thyself images of men – צלמי זכר tsalmey zachar, male images. Priapi are here meant, which were carried about in the ceremonies of Osiris, Bacchus, and Adonis; and were something like the lingam among the Hindoos. Herodotus, lib. ii, c. 48, 49, gives us an account of these male images: Πηχυαια αγαλματα νευÏοσπαστα, τα πεÏιφοÏεουσι κατα κωμας ται γυναικες, νευον το αιδοιον, ου πολλῳ τεῳ ελασσον εον του αλλου σωματος. This was done at the worship of Bacchus in Egypt: and they who wish to see more may consult Herodotus as above. In this phallic worship the women were principally concerned.”
Here we have an ancient Greek Herm or Priapi:
http://en.wikip...a.jpg
This I believe is a modern copy:
http://d3ds4oy7...O.jpg
This is depiction of a Pompeiian idol:
http://www.sacr...riap/
A Roman priapos:
http://www.less...;cl=1
A broken Priape:
http://www.flic...4170/
An artist’s depiction of a woman with a herm:
https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRfI0NNP4LNxwIEHr8z3x9aNzuffN0f-zHIO6JR4WAiaZCJlCng
Recently found Herm:
http://ina.tamu...e.jpg
Here we have a rather unique use of a herm in the background:
http://upload.w...h.jpg
Actually, most Herms of Hermes had an upward slanted hole drilled through the stone figure’s crotch, through which an ever-erect, rot-resistant, cypress rod was driven (from behind), upon which maidens could deflower themselves.
This was a solution agreed upon after the stone penises were repeatedly broken off of the statues (which littered the roads and countryside), presumably as, ahem, souvenirs or mementos….
The wooden rod was driven through the tightly fitted hole with a mallet (so that the proper length could be maintained), and only a new “head” had to be carved onto the tip.
Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible suggests that the women committed “spiritual adultery” with them…
http://gill.bib...6.htm
Dr. Whiplash, wow. I find Clarke’s Commentary particularly persuasive; a more serious scholar of the Bible it would be hard to identify.
Yeah, Clarke’s commentaries are sorta known as the bible on well, the Bible…
I understand that it was customary to smear grease or rub oil on those outdoor wooden penises, to help repel moisture, and preserve the color and integrity of the wood.
This practice kind of gives a new meaning to that whole “…thou anointest my “head” with oil…” Psalm.
I wonder if they had “tung” oil back then… ;^P
The passage referred to by Clarke from the Histories of Herodotus, Book 2, Chapter 48 from http://www.pers...s.edu
*********************************************************
[1] To Dionysus, on the evening of his festival, everyone offers a piglet which he kills before his door and then gives to the swineherd who has sold it, for him to take away.
[2] The rest of the festival of Dionysus is observed by the Egyptians much as it is by the Greeks, except for the dances; but in place of the phallus, they have invented the use of puppets two feet high moved by strings, the male member nodding and nearly as big as the rest of the body, which are carried about the villages by women; a flute-player goes ahead, the women follow behind singing of Dionysus.
[3] Why the male member is so large and is the only part of the body that moves, there is a sacred legend that explains.
*********************************************************
Are these Greek festivals in Egypt or an “equivalent” god such as Osiris or Min?
I was intrigued so I tried to work it out, I think Clarke’s short quote is [my bad translations from Liddell Scott]:
“two feet high [cubit-long] puppets [glories, delights, honours, statues to honour the gods] moved by strings, processed around the villages [making merry?] by women, the phallus [private part? can be used of male or female genitals] nodding [inclining in any direction/beckoning], [truly] as big [mighty][a thing] [less][a sum] than the rest of the body.”
Olive oil was the classic base of the holy anointing oil described in Exodus. The Calamus referred to is sometimes now thought to refer to another aromatic cane, the Cannabis. 3kg of cane in 4-7 litres of olive oil, with 9 kg of cinnamons (which increase blood flow in, and permeability of, the skin) and 6kg of the (now known to be opioid analgesic) myrrh. That would keep the wood well-varnished but slippery.
Note to Hug:
I believe there was also wine in the anointing oil, which may have helped extract or dissolve alkaloids, which are typically psychoactive, and assisted skin permeability as well. As soon as Wikipedia is working again, this can probably be verified.
Your formula is getting very close to the various colloquial flying ointments of European witches. This is interesting, as it may well be a precursor!
The Old World witches would reportedly slather the ointment on their broom handles, as a way of introducing the components into the various tender body cavities which are lined with their more absorptive epithelial tissues and mucus membranes etc. To voyeurs and new initiates, it appeared as though they were trying to “ride” on their broomsticks…
Some historians believe that evidence may show that various civilizations around the planet traveled it at will, well before Columbus or Lief Ericson, and traded in shamanic plants like ayahuasca and amanita muscaria.
We may never know the secret rites of the Eleusinian Mysteries (drug induced lesbian orgy?) and exactly what the soma of antiquity was…
Dr. Whiplash, the witch ointments were what came to my mind as well and representations of Egyptian Min having libations poured on his member.
Not my formula though, God Himself made that one up. Exodus 30: 23-25 http://clarke.b...0.htm
The drug used in the Eleusinian Mysteries is actually quite easy to discover. They are the Mysteries of Demeter who, among other things, gave the gift of opium poppies to humanity to relieve the suffering and grief of mortality. She is often depicted with a crown of poppies. The “entheogen” lobby are blind to the fact that opium is hallucinogenic/visionary as it is seen as not as noble as mushrooms and LSD. The ergot usually cited by that lobby is not something that could be used for fun, as Alcibiades did when he stole the kykeon.
Modern varieties of opium poppy are higher in morphine but the ones used back then were more likely to be similar to the wild varieties which have more papaverine and other alkaloids which make the experience more visual, especially in a darkened room. Remember those Romantic poets inspired by opium and laudanum (and nitrous oxide but that is another matter)?
The mint or pennyroyal in the kykeon was probably useful in reducing the nausea of high doses of opium.
The argument for Ephedra as Soma is as conclusive as any identification of ancient plants. If it were not for those blinkered “entheogen”-lovers again, who think it must be a proper hallucinogen, there would be little dispute. They have obviously never tried amphetamines or ephedra itself. They fill you with the power of the thunder-god Indra and the fire-god Agni.
I always think that “Cross-eyed and Painless” by Talking Heads conveys the feelings of that experience quite well.
http://www.yout...1hZVo
Part of this argument was made in:
Falk, H “Soma I and II.” Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies (1989) 52(1): 77-90
I would also add that ephedrine alkaloids are eliminated in the urine very quickly, drinking urine could recycle the compounds just as with fly agaric, if you are that desperate. However, the urine references may be dodgy in the original Sanskrit. They do mention that the heart can be stressed by the experience of Soma.
Mummies discovered in the Central Asian deserts (dating from 4000 to 2000 years ago) often have pouches of ephedra around their necks. The Kalash in Pakistan still use it recreationally and call it somani. Parsis still use it as haoma, local names in South Asia include many variations on hum and som. The substitutes used in South India where it is too hot for ephedra to grow are all similar in appearance.
Note to Hug:
I’m well aware of the obvious poppy-pod tiaras seen on drawings and sculptures of Demeter, and the plethora of poppy-pod shaped pots of the era, but it is my understanding that the libations of the cult were closely held secrets, that were thought to be adulterated with various psychotropic compounds.
Also, if by “desperate” you mean for strictly economic purposes, I understand that the reason for drinking the urine, was chiefly because the body tended to purify the compounds, and remove the oft experienced unpleasant reactions (cramping, regurgitation etc.), to the accompanying inactive compounds, thereby amplifying its transportive properties.
The experienced shaman typically ingested the raw plant substances, and later offered his/her urine to the inexperienced initiate. If this was transferred in a (ahem), direct manner, it’s no wonder that the shaman was often thought of as a powerful god or goddess.
Speaking of “better living through chemistry”, I find it interesting that the papaverine which you mention, when injected directly into the penis, often causes priapism, and is rather commonly used as a treatment for impotence. As a cream, it can also be used for tissue expansion or “enhancement”…
http://www.ncbi...7029/
I appreciate your informative response!
The ingredients were indeed secret but we know what plants were available and which were sacred to the Goddess. There are various enthusiastic theories about the active ingredients but no evidence that there were various additives. The Mysteries of Eleusis appear to have been founded around the time that opium reached Egypt.
Considering the smaller population of shamans and tribes where all indulged for religious reasons the more common recycling of fly agaric-enriched urine in Siberia was probably that of the poor folk who would sit outside the houses of the rich during parties. In some parts a reindeer could be bought for one fly agaric. When the rich folk came out to relieve themselves they would magnanimously fill the bowls of the poor. The introduction of vodka reduced the consumption of fly agaric to virtually nothing.
Is papaverine still commonly used since orally-active treatments for impotence became common? I don’t know which of the alkaloids in wild opium poppy (Papaver setigerum) is responsible but it is definitely more visionary. The cultivated P. somniferum has more papaverine in opium from the first cut, which is preferred by connoisseurs.
Young’s Literal Translation:
17 And thou dost take thy beauteous vessels Of My gold and My silver that I gave to thee, And dost make to thee images of a male, And dost go a-whoring with them,
Note to Hug:
My understanding that soma was not only had a variety of additives but was possibly “shroom”-based comes from the likes of:
http://en.wikip...asson
Funny you should mention reindeer. I can’t help but wonder if you knew about the Santa Claus/fly agaric connection.
Santa name is thought to be from the pre-Christian (pagan) Sinterklass, who morphed from Nikolaos of Myra and a shaman who “evolved” from Odin or Wodanaz/Wodan/Woden:
http://en.wikip...klaas
It has been suggested by some scholars, that Santa’s famous conical hat, with its white border and white top knot or wart, was originally meant to represent a Phrygian cap (think Smurfs), or immature fly agaric (amanita muscaria), mushroom cap.
http://ridge.ic...c.jpg
http://en.wikip...n.jpg
http://web.arch...2.jpg
The top-knot representing the remnant of the “universal veil”:
http://en.wikip..._veil
…and the bottom border representing the “partial veil”:
http://en.wikip..._veil
Some of the older drawings of Santa show him wearing a hat with the ear-flaps of the traditional Lapland cap.
http://1.bp.blo...3.jpg
http://www.kell...d=596
http://www.etsy...p-hat
http://img0.ets...2.jpg
http://planetco...8.jpg
It has also been suggested that because these fungi tend to thrive symbiotically in the environment of the shade of an evergreen trees (It feeds on the decaying shed needles of firs, pines, cedars, and spruces), that the whole idea of brightly colored presents found under a Christmas tree represents the activity of a forest search for these hallucinogens.
Santa’s entire suit is in fact believed by some to represent the fly agaric mushroom, as Santa is thought to represent the shaman, and his “jolliness” a result of mushroom use:
Hoffer, A.; Osmond, H. (1967). The Hallucinogens. Academic Press. pp. 443—54. ISBN 0-12-351850-4.
Laplanders (the Sami), report that reindeer seem to enjoy eating fly agaric, and will prance around afterward as if attempting to take off and fly, like Odin’s eight-legged horse, which led hunting parties across the skies.
The deer’s digestive system metabolises the more unpleasant poisonous components of the fungus, leaving filtered urine with the hallucinogenic and psychotropic elements of the toadstool intact. Reportedly the Sami will drink the tainted deer urine (and the deer will also eat the tainted urine of the Sami, left in the snow), creating an intensifying, reciprocating cycle:
http://web.arch...9.htm
Agaric’s effects are said to concentrate and intensify by a factor of ten when dried. The traditional stockings of Christmas, hung over the fireplace, are meant to represent the gathering sacks used at first frost to harvest the red and white mushrooms before they are lost to the ice and snow of winter.
In Italy, we have Babbo Natale (“Father Christmas”) and La Befana (similar to Santa Claus; she rides a broomstick rather than a sleigh, but is not considered a witch).
More here: http://h2g2.com...84218
Woefully, due to the often misguided process of Christianization, we may never know the real truth about these matters:
http://en.wikip...es.29
As far as papaverine use today, I’m not so sure that I would say that it is among the preferred treatments, but it is used when the patient has unfavorable reactions to the more convenient oral methods because of its effectiveness.
Wasson was the High Priest of identification of ancient intoxicants with hallucinogens.
I would characterise their main mistake being the assumption that these ancient intoxicants made you see gods rather than the possibility that they allow you to feel like gods. Fascinating stuff but flawed in analysis. Robert Graves perhaps inspired a bit too much poetic fantasy. Scholars in the field are more likely to discount them. Unfortunately, such scholars (like Falk who I referenced above) will never get the publicity that Wasson got due to his discoveries of Psilocybe mushrooms and the rapid rise of hippy culture in the decade after.
I am a hippy and I love psychedelics (and the works of Wasson and Graves) but that is no excuse for sloppy scholarship. The Jains of northern India had the most remarkable statues of saints with Amanita caps with little landscapes in them on their heads. That was only in the tenth century AD, a completely different time but a fascinating find in itself. The Chinese alchemists in the 2nd to 5th centuries AD used at least five different psychedelic mushrooms in the attempt to achieve immortality. Their aim was to die while tripping. The mercury in the formulae helped with that. Fascinating but not healthy.
Getting back to the theme of the blog post, for fly agaric theories I prefer those of J.M. Allegro. He was the first scholar to publish translations of the Dead Sea Scrolls, by 30 years. Strangely he was the only scholar on the team who was not a Catholic (possibly all priests as well?).
“The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross” was his marvellous decoding of the New Testament to show that the entire thing was an instruction manual on how to take fly agaric for enlightenment. He was ambiguous on whether Jesus actually existed. There was a lot of sexual imagery involved in his interpretation of the symbolism. The shaft of the toadstool being embedded in the bowl of the cap like a pestle in a mortar, for example.
The book was a complex and marvellous weaving of philology and the origins of cults, myths and religions but was generally derided as the work of a nutter.
His next book was “The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Christian Myth” and went into more depth about the origins of the fertility cults of the Eastern Mediterranean and Christianity’s place amongst them. I recommend reading both.
http://en.wikip...legro
Note to Hug:
re: “I would characterize their main mistake being the assumption that these ancient intoxicants made you see gods, rather than the possibility that they allow you to feel like gods.”
I would agree that most recreational drugs tend to have the latter effect on most consumers. They say Hitler’s doctor administrated a certain cocktail of drugs that tended to literally have that effect on him.
I think there is a possibility of a blurring of the two views, but that becomes a semantical exercise.
I understand that those who consume ayahuasca/iowaska under the guidance of an experienced shaman, have a more “spiritual” experience that those who are looking for a different sort of result, and who shun guidance.
re: “I am a hippy and I love psychedelics…”
I rarely find such articulate individuals as yourself who admit to “loving psychedelics”, if by that I can infer that you mean that you love to CONSUME psychedelics.
Now I just feel teased…
I realize that this discussion is beginning to veer off topic a bit, but personally, I’ve yet to consume any psychedelics, so if my assumption is true, I’m curious about what you might have to say about them (like a brief “review”), especially if you could impart some sort of differentiation based on your own personal experience.
I hope National Hug Day (yesterday), was good to you…
http://en.wikip...g_Day
I’m sorry but you really should not trust those sexually-squeamish religious men’s translation. There are no hoo-hahs in this particular Hebrew texts. Nor is there “my jewels”, pre say, that Hebrew word means my utensils or my weapons. This word probably refers to the utensils of gold and silver that were in the temple in Jerusalem. Further what they made them into is just the standard word for image or idol. I know that this is so disappointing. But keep looking, for there iare quite a lot of sexual goings on that have been lost in translation. There are even hoo-hahs.
Yours in Christ
Tola
The flickr link in comment #3 above (“A broken Priape:”), may no longer be working properly. I think you may now find it here: http://www.flic...1672/
B.T.W., I’ve always found B.C. objects that look like this: http://upload.w...l.jpg rather curious.
What’s the inspiration? …the purpose of the length? …the purpose of the “flared base” or wing-shaped arms that are reminiscent of the exterior portion of modern-day butt-plugs?
What’s the real purpose/necessity of the movable legs, that are more like bell clappers, that could be used to cause a premechanical age vibration…
Er… Two more reference sites for comments #12 & #14:
http://www.eros...room/
http://o1.metro...M.jpg