Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezerפִּרְקֵי דְּרַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר

English

Eight things were created on the first day, namely, Heaven, Earth, Light, Darkness, Tohu (Chaos), Bohu (Void), Wind (or Spirit), and Water, as it is said, "And the wind of God was moving upon the face of the waters" (Gen. 1:2). Some (wise men) say that day and night also, as it is said, And there was evening and morning, one day (Gen. 1:5). Eight things were created on the second day, namely, the Well, the Manna, the Rod, the Rainbow, the art of writing, the written characters, the Garments, and the destroying spirits. Ten things arose in the thought (of the Creator), namely, Jerusalem," the spirits of the patriarchs, the paths of the righteous, Hell (Gehenom), the waters of the flood, the second tables, the shabbat, the temple and the light of the world to come.

Gerald Friedlander, 1916 · pd

Hebrew / Aramaic

Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer 3 · pd

Notes

An inventory, and the darkness is on it. Eight things were created on the first day: heaven, earth, light, darkness, tohu, bohu, wind and water. There is no argument, no proof text for the darkness in particular, and no sense that anything needs defending — the list simply has light and darkness next to each other as two of the eight. Set beside Alcuin's answer to the same question, 'which creatures were made out of nothing? — heaven, earth, angels, light, air, water and the soul of man', the two lists are the same kind of thing with the contested items swapped: Alcuin has the angels and the soul and no darkness, Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer has the darkness and the tohu and no angels. Neither list argues; each is the settled answer of a bench.

Threads

• → parallel · Remigius of Auxerre
  Darkness as a creature, stated without argument on both benches. Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer puts it fourth in a list of eight things created on the first day, between light and tohu, with no proof text and no defence. Remigius says God made both and proves it from the Benedicite. Neither is arguing with anybody; each is the settled answer of a tradition, and they are the same answer.
• → parallel · Alcuin
  Two enumerations of what was made at the beginning, answering the same question with incompatible inventories. Alcuin, at the question next but one to this: heaven, earth, angels, light, air, water and the soul of man. Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer: heaven, earth, light, darkness, tohu, bohu, wind and water. The Latin list has the angels and the soul and no darkness; the rabbinic list has the darkness and the tohu and no angels. Neither list argues, and between them they contain the whole disagreement of this crux.