Monday, February 11, 2008

how to make a golem (difficulty: challenging)

Introduction
The Hebrew golem is a silent creature in the shape of a man used by Jewish mystics to carry out menial tasks. The most famous golem in folklore was created by Rabbi Yehuda (Judah) Loew ben Bezalel, Maharal of Prague, to defend the Jews of Prague's ghetto from attack. Here's how to make a golem.
Instructions
Difficulty: Challenging
Things You'll Need
• "Sefer HaYetzera," the Kabbalistic Book of Formation
• Clay or mud
• Stylus (optional)
• Parchment with God's name (optional)
Steps
Step One
Obtain a large quantity of soil or clay.
Step Two
Knead the clay into a figure resembling a man. Leave the figure imperfect, because only God can make things perfectly.
Step Three
Impart the name of God onto the golem in one of several ways: Walk or dance around it saying letters from the Jewish alphabet that form the secret name of God, engrave the Hebrew letters for the word "truth" on its forehead or attach a parchment with God's name onto the golem's arm or mouth.
Step Four
Instruct the golem to perform a desired task. Give orders carefully, because golems will interpret orders given to them literally.
Step Five
Disable the golem by reversing the procedure used to create it: Walk or dance around it backwards speaking God's name backward, remove the first letter from the word for truth to make the word for "death" or remove the parchment from its mouth or arm.
Tips & Warnings
• While all golems are strong, some have additional powers. Maharal Loew's golem supposedly could become invisible, deliver a heated touch and use the Maharal's walking stick to summon the dead.
• Jewish golem folklore inspired Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," Carel Kapek's "RUR" and also the robot Gort from the movie "The Day The Earth Stood Still."
• While most golems are incapable of disobeying their creator, some golems in folklore can do so, particularly those that increase in size the longer they are activated. Rabbi Eliyahu of Chelm supposedly had a golem that grew so large, the rabbi had to resort to trickery to kill it, at which point it fell on the rabbi and crushed him.
(from a really stupid site ehow.com)

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