The Ancient of Days comprises two main parts—the Ancient One
and the Small-faced One. It can be taken to pieces, cleaned and reassembled.
Amongst other features, the assemblage has skulls, a brain, eyes, noses, beards
(divided into several parts), testicles and a penis. What can the
Ancient of Days be?
Conventionally, 'Ancient of Days' is thought of as an epithet
for God in Heaven, but can He really be thought of in the terms outlined above?
There are three possibilities.
First, it could indeed be a description of God in Heaven, but
we can rule this out unless (a) God is really like this and (b) the writer knew
that God is really like this. Second, it could be a description of God by a
fanciful mystic (or a school of fanciful mystics). Third, it would be a
description of something other than God, known as the Ancient of Days.
The third possibility seems the most appropriate, because
there is always a clear distinction drawn in the texts between God in Heaven
(The Holy One, Blessed be He! - QB''H) and the Ancient of Days. Of course, the
Ancient of Days could be another heavenly resident, but apart from this being
inconsistent with monotheism, the texts give a very clear statement of what the
Ancient of Days does (or did):
The dew distills into the skull of the Small-faced One . . .
and from this dew they grind the manna . . . and the manna did not appear to be
derived from this dew except at one time; the time when Israel was wandering in
the desert . . .
It was these words which first suggested to us that the
Ancient of Days, far from being God—or even a god—was a machine for making
the manna which nourished the Israelites during their desert wanderings
(Exodus 16, Numbers 11, Deuteronomy 8, Joshua 5, etc.). (Gene Sassoon, The
Kabbalah Decoded: A New Translation of the 'Ancient of Days' Texts of the Zohar
[ed. Rodney Dale; London: Duckworth, 1978], ix-x; cf. George Sassoon and Rodney
Dale, The Manna Machine [London: Granada Publishing, 1978])
This is a warning that what R. Simon is about to teach them,
the physical details of the Ancient of Days, sounds remarkably like a
description of an idol, whose worship would be strictly banned.
11. R. Simon started [to speak], saying: (Ps 119:126) 'Time for
thee, O Lord, to go to work.' Why [does it say] 'Time to go to work, O Lord?
Because 'they have made void thy law.' Why have they made void thy law?
[Because it is] the law [from] above which is made void if it is not observed
in its parts [i.e. properly] (or in the Name of the Lord]). And this is also
said to [i.e. applies to] the Ancient of days.
12. It is written: (Deut 33:29) 'Happy art thou O Israel. Who
is like unto thee?'; and it is written [also]: (Exod 15:11) 'Who is like unto
thee, O Lord, among the gods?'
13. He called to R. Eleazar his son to sit down before him,
and to Rabbi Abba [to sit] on the other side. He said: We are the completion of
the whole; now the foundations are laid.
14. They were silent, [and] they heard a voice; and their knees
knocked together [with fear]. What voice? The voice of the gathering above [in
heaven] which was assembling.
15. R. Simon rejoice, and said: (Hab 3:1) 'O Lord, I have
heard thy speech and was afraid.' However, that was [the voice] of strength; as
far as we are concerned, it is the voice of love, of which it is written: (Deut
6:5) 'And thou shalt love the Lord thy God', and also (Deut 7:8) ' . . . the
Lord loved you' and (Mal 1:2) 'I have loved thee [saith the Lord], etc. (Ibid.,
2-3)
R. Simon concludes his lesson on the forehead by giving the
class a text which will serve as a mnemonic, to help them remember the two
Edens:
110. As it is said: (Job 28:23) 'The Elohim understand the
way thereof, and [they] know the place thereof.'
111. 'The Elohim understand (BIN) the way (DRK) thereof'—this
is the lower Eden, which is known by the Small-faced One. 'And they know (IDO)
the place (MQVM) thereof'; this is the upper Eden, that is known to the Ancient
of Days, [most] concealed of all.
112. HIS EYES of the white head are different from other
eyes. There is no cover over the eye, and neither is there an eyebrow over the
eye.
113. Why? It is written: (Ps 121:4) 'Behold, he that keepeth
Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.' [This is] Israel above [i.e. those in
the 'world to come' who live on manna].
114. And it is written: (Jer 32:19) 'For thine eyes are
open'.
115. Tradition: Everything that brings [lit comes in[ mercies
(RChMI) has no cover over the eye, neither does it have an eyebrow over the
eye. Then how much less does the white head [the Ancient of One] require
[ocular] protection!'
116. R. Simon said to R. Abba: What does this suggest? [R.
Abba] answered: It suggests the fishes of the sea, that do not have a covering
over the eye, nor eyebrows over the eye. They neither sleep, nor do they
require protection over the eye.
117. How much more is this true of the Ancient of Days, who
does not require protection; how much more is it true of him, who watches over
all, by whom all are fed, and who does not sleep?
The Ancient of Days was such a strange being, that many
curious explanations were found to account for these traditions. Here he is
being compared with fish, which certainly have no eyelids or eyebrows, but it
could hardly be said that they 'bring mercies' (115). In fact, as 112 badly
admits, the eyes were very strange indeed even as to their number. (Ibid., 15)
168. Whoever rides [the throne] has control over it,
169. until he is taken off that throne and sits on another
throne. The first throne is then cast down, so that no-one except the Ancient
of days himself should have power to ride on it.
Here it is interesting to note the implication that the
Ancient of Days is taken from the throne; he does not move under his own steam.
Also, the passage quoted from Daniel continues: 'And his wheels (GLGLVHI) as
burning fire'. The word GLGVHI can also mean 'his skulls'; and we see in these
books of the Zohar that he has many of them. There can be no doubt that the
Ancient of Days of Daniel, and the Zohar, are one and the same entity. (Ibid.,
21)
If the Ancient of Days were also 'the Anointed One' [i.e.,
the Messiah (MShICh)] as we suspect, it would make sense of 189 below.
184. And at that time [the coming of the Messiah] the Ancient
of Days will excite the spirit that goes out of the brain [i.e. start working
again].
185. When it is unloosed, all the lower spirits are excited
by it.
186. And what are they? They are the holy surrounds of the
Small-faced One, and there are six other spirits that will be kindled (MBI).
187. These are the six spirits, three of which contain three
others, of which it is written: 'The spirit of wisdom and understanding, the
spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the
Lord.'
188. For this is the tradition: it is written (1 Chron 29:23)
'Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord', and it is written: (1 Kings
10:19) 'The throne had six steps'.
It is possible that there is a connection between the six
steps and the six feet of the Ancient of Days. We are, however, in the midst of
a typical numbers game here, for in the next verse we find that 'the seventh'
if both the top step and the spirit of the Ancient of Days that is on it. This
continues until verse 198 when the seven becomes 'upper paths'.
189. And when the time comes the Messiah will sit on the
seventh. These [spirits] are the six [steps], and the spirit of the Ancient of
Days that is on them is the seventh.
190. As has been said, there are 3 spirits that include 3
others.
191. R. Simon said to [R. Yosi]: Thy spirit shall rest in the
world to come.
192. Come and see! It is written: (Ezek 37:9) 'Thus saith the
Lord God; Come from the four winds, O spirit etc.' But what are the four winds
(or spirits; or breaths) of the world doing here?
193. The four winds are excited: they are these three
[spirits], and the breath of the Ancient Concealed One [makes] four.
194. For when his latter breath goes out, there go with it
the three that include iwth them the three others.
195. And sometimes the QB''H wishes to make go out one spirit
that contains them all,
196. for it is written: 'Come from the four spirits, O
spirit!', and not 'Come, O four spirits!' 'From the four spirits' is what it
says.
197. And in the days of the Messiah they will not need to
teach one another, for this spirit that contains all the spirits will teach
them everything: wisdom; understanding; counsel; strength; knowledge; and fear
of the Lord. Because it is the spirit that contains all the spirits.
198. And therefore it is written: 'From the four spirits',
referring to those four that are contained in the seven upper paths that have
been mentioned.
199. Tradition: all of them are contained in this spirit of
the Ancient of Ancient Ones which goes out from the concealed brain to the tube
of the nose.
200. Come and see! What is the difference between [this] nose
and [that] nose?
201. The nose of the Ancient of Days is life in all its sides
(or aspects). Of the nose of the Small-faced One it is written: (2 Sam 22:9)
'There went up a smoke in his nose, and fire out of is mouth devoured, etc.'
202. 'The smoke went up in his nose"—from this smoke a
fire is kindled.
203. After the smoke goes up [continuing the quotation],
'coals are kindled by it.' By what? By the smoke from that nose by that fire.
204. Tradition: when Rav Hamnuna the Elder was saying his
prayers, he said: 'To the Lord of the Nose (BOL ChVTM), I pray, from the Lord
of the Nose I beg favour!' (ibid., 23-24)
“Adam” being differentiated from the “Ancient of Days”:
1054. Blessed are those just men whose souls are drawn out
from his holy body which is called 'Adam', which contains the whole of the
place of the enclosures and holy surrounds joined there in the knot (TzRVRA)
which includes [them]. . . .
1058. The Lord, the Ancient of Days, he is God and all of him
is one. Blessed be his name for eternity and for the eternity of eternities!
(Ibid., 113-14)