The Leviathan as an Archetype

I recently led a discussion in my Jewish community about the Leviathan (Leviatan).

I argued the perspective that this enormous sea creature, described in some sources as having tremendous light-blocking scales and glowing eyes, is a symbol of the unconscious, the underwater, dangerous creature that on one hand, was more present in primordial times and had to be suppressed for the world to be human habitable, and on the other hand, we will come to know more in the future. I'd love to write more about that later, and trace out the symbolism, but in the meantime, here are the sources we looked at:

Genesis 1:21: "God created the great sea monsters (Taninim)." Rashi comments: "According to legend this refers to the Leviatan and its mate. God created a male and female Leviatan, then killed the female and salted it for the righteous, for if they were to procreate the world could not stand before them."

Two (out of 5) Direct Biblical References:
4. Psalms 104:24-26: "O Lord, what a variety of things you have made! In wisdom you have made them all. The earth is full of your creatures. Here is the ocean, vast and wide, teeming with life of every kind, both large and small. See the ships sailing along, and Leviatan, which you made to play (l’sachek) in the sea. NLT
5. Isaiah 27:1: "In that day the LORD with His severe sword, great and strong, Will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan that twisted serpent; And He will slay the reptile that is in the sea." NKJV

Talmudic References : Avoda Zara (3b):
"Rav Yehuda says, there are twelve hours in a day. The first three hours God sits and learns the Torah, the second three hours he sits and judges the world. The third three hours God feeds the entire world... the fourth three hour period God plays with the Leviathan as it is written: "the Leviatan which you have created to play (l’sachek) with."

Baba Batra (74b) Rab Judah said in the name of Rab: All that the Holy One, blessed be He, created in his world he created male and female. Likewise, Leviathan the slant serpent and Leviathan the tortuous serpent he created male and female; and had they mated with one another they would have destroyed the whole world. What [then] did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He castrated the male and killed the female preserving it in salt for the righteous in the world to come; for it is written: And he will slay the dragon that is in the sea. (Isaiah 27: 2.) And also Behemoth (*) on a thousand hills were created male and female, and had they mated with one another they would have destroyed the whole world.What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He castrated the male and cooled the female and preserved it for the righteous for the world to come; for it is written: Lo now his strength is in his loins — this refers to the male; and his force is in the stays of his body, — this refers to the female. There also, [in the case of Leviathan], he should have castrated the male and cooled the female [why then did he kill the female]? — Fishes are dissolute.Why did he not reverse the process? — If you wish, say: [It is because a] female [fish] preserved in salt is tastier. If you prefer, say: Because it is written: There is Leviatan whom Thou hast formed to sport with, and with a female this is not proper “derech eretz” ). Then here also [in the case of Behemoth] he should have preserved the female in salt? — Salted fish is palatable, salted flesh is not.

* for context, the Behemoth are other legendary animals, male and female, which, like the Leviatan, are to provide part of the feast of the righteous in the world to come. Behemoth eat the grass of a thousand hills a day. -SLK

(the Talmud quotes here are mostly from Soncino, with some editing from me)


"The Destruction of the Leviathan," an 1865 engraving by Gustave Doré