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Spooky Judaism: Did Adam Father Demons?

Spooky Judaism: Did Adam Father Demons?

Last updated on: October 14, 2026 at 4:59 pm by Rebecca Wallace Keene

Spooky Judaism: Did Adam Father Demons? 2026-10-14T16:59:41-04:00 Rebecca Wallace Keene

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Spooky Judaism: Did Adam Father Demons? Screenshot from Rebecca Keene's ancestry tree

Spooky Judaism: Did Adam Father Demons?

Welcome to our new series, Spooky Judaism. As a Jewish convert, I no longer celebrate Halloween. However, Jewish teachings do have a spooky side. I thought it would be fun to explore that this October. So, while continuing our Ark series, we are also going to do a series of Spooky Jewish tales. Dybbuks, Demons, and Angels. OH MY!!!

Did Adam Father Demons?

Let’s start with demons. Did you know, according to the Talmud, Adam and Eve were separated for 130 years during their marriage? You thought marital issues were new? Think again! The first man had two wives and couldn’t keep either full time. However, when most of us struggle with our marriage, the result is not demonic forces entering the world. Or is it? For Adam, that is exactly what it meant.

In Eruvin 18B, the Talmud tells us, “All those years during which Adam was ostracized for the sin involving the Tree of Knowledge, he bore spirits, demons, and female demons…” It further tells us that this happened during his 130-year separation from his wife Eve, saying:

“Adam the first man was very pious. When he saw that death was imposed as a punishment because of him, he observed a fast for a hundred thirty years, and he separated from his wife for a hundred thirty years and wore belts [zarzei] of fig leaves on his body as his only garment for a hundred thirty years. If so, how did he father demons into the world?.”

Adam’s First Wife: Mother of Demons

That leaves a huge question. Who was Adam creating these demons with? For that answer, we need to look to The Aleph Bet of Ben Sira. This source is usually dated to roughly the 8th–10th century CE and tells us, “When the Holy Blessed One created the first Adam alone, They said (Genesis 2:18), ‘It is not good for this Adam to be alone.’ They created for him a wife out of the Earth like he had been, and called her Lilith.” It further tells us that Lilith is the mother of demons, stating, “She also agreed to have one hundred of her children die every day. Accordingly, every day one hundred demons perish.” Finally, the Jewish Encyclopedia explicitly states:

“The queen of demons is Lilith, pictured with wings and long flowing hair, and called the “mother of Ahriman” “When Adam, doing penance for his sin, separated from Eve for 130 years, he, by impure desire, caused the earth to be filled with demons, or shedim, lilin, and evil spirits” (Gen. R. xx.; ‘Er. 18b), and according to Pseudo-Sirach (“Alphabetum Siracidis,” ed. Steinschneider, p. 23) it was Lilith, as Adam’s concubine, who bore them (compare “Chronicles of Jerahmeel,” ed. Gaster. xxiii. 1).”

Adam’s Demon Spawn

Did Adam Father Demons: Ahriman

Most of the children of Adam and Lilith are unnamed demons or spirits. That makes sense considering 100 a day are sacrificed so that Lilith doesn’t have to return to him. However, at least two of the demons are named. Those are Ahriman and Naamah. These are interesting characters. Ahriman is mentioned in The Talmud passage Bava Batra 73a which states, “Rabba said: I have seen the one called Hurmin, son of Lilith…” Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, identifies Hurmin with Ahiman in its footnotes stating, “one of her offspring is Hurmin, evidently identical in name with the Persian Ahriman.” Here his father is not named but considering Adam and Lilith conceived demons together we can infer he is Adam’s. Although, it is important to note a Persian source identifies his father as Samuel. That source is The Bundahišn. It tells us that Ahriman creates demons himself. The Jewish Encyclopedia goes further, stating, “Ahriman created only the harmful and unclean animals, diseases, evil spirits (dævas), sin and death.” If we think of these creations as children, that means Lilith and Adam had grandchildren and great grandchildren. All of them were demons.

Did Adam Father Demons: Naamah

The other named child is Naamah. She is sometimes misinterpreted as Lilith herself. However, the relevant text in the Zohar says that Naamah was born from Adam in the 130-year separation from Eve. We have established from other texts that Lilith already existed by that time and was the person he was creating demons with. Therefore, the chronology does not work for her to be Lilith. She must be one of the demons he and Lilith created together. She is described as attracting the sons of man, finding men who sleep alone, and lying with them at night. The Zohar, Acharei Mot 59–60 says that Naamah gives birth to spirits through human desire and dreams. In this way, Naamah has succubus energy. She also bears children to the fallen angels Aza and Azael. These unions result in the birth of the Nephilim who had sex with the daughters of man.

Finally, there is Lilith Hablas. She is a granddaughter of Lilith, and she is said to be dangerous to children and unborn babies. Lilith Hablas is very interesting because we have her name showing up on bowls that were excavated from ancient Jewish homes.

So, stay tuned, because next week we are going to explore how to get rid of Lilith Hablas. It isn’t the exorcism that you would expect. Instead, Lilith Hablas requires a much more legal eviction. Sign up for the newsletter so you don’t miss an episode of Spooky Judaism.

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About Rebecca Keene

Rebecca Keene holds a B.S. in Psychology and Religion and is currently pursuing an M.A. in Women, Gender, Spirituality, and Social Justice. An ordained minister, Kabbalah student, and fierce advocate for the marginalized, she is the author of Faith Under the Rainbow: Reclaiming the Truth About Homosexuality and the Bible. Rebecca founded the social media community Reclaiming the Truth and lives in Kentucky, where she practices Non-Denominational Judaism. Read Rebecca's articles at Reclaiming the Truth. You can read more about the author here.

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