The Duality of Man: A Study in Talmudic Allegorical Interpretations (2008)

An often-neglected area of study is talmudic readiness to use rather radical allegorical interpretations of biblical texts. An example that adequately illustrates this process is three verses dealing with duality of man. In its attempt to understand and perceive embedded meanings in these verses, Talmud (with Midrash) allegorically interweaves multifaceted considerations of man/woman, Divine and mortal, body and soul, as we shall see. These verses are: And created in His own image, in of created He him; and created He them (Gen. 1:27). Then Lord formed of dust of ground, and breathed into his nostrils breath of life; and became a living soul (2:7). And Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon man, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up place with flesh instead thereof. And rib, which Lord had taken from man, made He a woman, and brought her unto (2:21-22). It will be noted that all narrate actual creation of First Man, though one is in Chapter 1 of Genesis and others in Chapter 2. Furthermore, texts lay problems us. Each contains ambiguities of its own, and each is in a way inconsistent with other verses. Does Genesis 1:27 mean to say that a human being was created both and female? If so, then, intertextually, verse is in conflict with other quoted verses, which do not speak of a joint creation of and female, but rather of respective separate creative processes for each. Genesis 2:7 implies that was created only as male, and verses 2:21-22 explicitly state that woman was created from rib of an already existing man. Pinchas Kahn attended Yeshiva University, received his Ph.D. in Psychology in 1961, and was a supervisor of psychologists at NYC Board of Education and a clinical psychologist in private practice. He received his smicha from Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary in 1956 and was rabbi of Young Israel of Mapleton Park, Brooklyn, New York. He made aliyah in 1993, is retired in Jerusalem and busy learning and teaching. The Talmud uses these verses from Genesis in a discussion centered upon understanding Psalm 139:5, in itself an example of ambiguous duality. The Psalm begins with a description of an omniscient who examines and knows completely. Then, in verse 5, it states: Thou hast hemmed me in and before, and laid Thy hand upon me. Ostensibly, this verse has no connection with creation of man. Nevertheless, with this verse, Babylonian Talmud (Brachot 61a-61b) begins a lengthy discussion on man's duality by referring to verses in Genesis. R. Jeremiah b. Eleazar said: created countenances in first [italics mine], as it says, Behind and hast Thou formed me [a rephrasing of Ps. 139:5]. (1) The reference to two countenances in first man is an evident allusion to Genesis 1:27: ... and created He them. The introductory reference to Psalm 139:5 appears to obviate possibility that Genesis 1:27 be understood as referring to in general as if in same category as other animals, and (as in Gen. 6:19). If male and female in Genesis does not mean separate beings, what then does it mean? The Talmud perceives necessity of an allegorical interpretation to understand male and female and finds it embedded in phrase behind and before of Psalm 139:5. Thus, Talmud initially interprets the first man as being created with two countenances. Joseph B. Soloveitchik (2) pushes R. Jeremiah's dictum further. He proposes that verse is not referring to physiology of man, but conceptually to image of God in man. The phrase male and female is to be understood not physically, but as representing abstract psychological tendencies; namely, passive and active. …