Golems

Nationality/Culture

Jewish

Pronunciation

GOH-luhmz

Alternate Names

None

Appears In

The Talmud, Jewish folk tales

Lineage

None

Character Overview

According to Jewish legend, a golem was a human-shaped object brought to life by a magic word. Usually the golem functioned like a robot and could perform simple tasks. However, in some tales, the golem became a violent monster that could not be controlled, even by its creator.

Although the idea of a golem goes back to biblical times, most legends about the creature appeared during the Middle Ages. A golem was created from mud or clay. Typically, the golem came to life when a special word such as “truth” or one of the names of God was written on a piece of paper and placed on the golem's forehead or in its mouth. At any point, the creator of the golem might end its life by removing the paper with the sacred word. If the word emet (”truth”) was used to activate the golem, the golem could be made still by erasing the first letter so that it read met (”death”).

In a famous story from the 1500s, Rabbi Judah Low ben Bezulel of Prague created a golem from clay in order to defend the city's Jews from attack after the Emperor ordered the Jews to leave. The Emperor, seeing the power and destruction the golem was capable of, agreed to let the Jews stay. According to legend, the deactivated golem remains in the attic of a Prague synagogue just in case the Jews need protecting again in the future. In another legend, set in Poland, a golem made by Rabbi Eliyahu of Chelm became so powerful and dangerous that the rabbi hurriedly changed it back into a lifeless heap. Unfortunately, when the golem collapsed to the ground, it crushed its creator.

Golems in Context

The Jewish people that settled throughout Europe had a long history of being persecuted by others, especially European Christians. They were often blamed for the death of Jesus—citing an old legend surrounding the Crucifixion—and were commonly thought to be selfish and unclean. Because of this, Jewish communities in many European cities were fairly self-contained and separate from other districts. The idea of a creature that could protect the Jews from being attacked or driven out of their homes was a welcome and, in some ways, inevitable development in Jewish folklore.

Key Themes and Symbols

Golems are symbols of pure, mindless power and strength. They are also symbols of protection for the Jewish people, though their power can prove dangerous as well. The tale of Rabbi Eliyahu is centered on the theme of hubris, or overconfidence in one's abilities. The rabbi creates a golem thinking he will be able to control it, but is eventually destroyed by his creation.

Golems in Art, Literature, and Everyday Life

The idea of the golem was influential outside traditional Jewish folklore. The creature in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein bears some resemblance to the classic description of a golem, though the book makes no mention of the Jewish myth. The 1915 silent film The Golem, co-written and directed by Paul Wegener (who also starred as the golem), was the first and most well-known cinematic adaptation of the traditional golem myth. Karel Capek's 1921 play Rossum's Universal Robots, in which the author invented the term “robot,” was a science fiction version of the golem legend. A golem also features prominently in the 2000 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon.

Read, Write, Think, Discuss

Compare myths about the golem in Jewish folklore with modern myths about robots. Do the stories in movies like The Matrix and The Terminator resemble traditional tales of the golem? How are they different?

SEE ALSO Semitic Mythology