Adam or Eve: who lived longer? The meaning of the biblical female name Eve

People of the Prophet Ibr A h And Ma, peace be upon Him, still persisted in his unbelief. Only a small number of them believed. Then, seeing that people did not heed His call and stubbornly did not want to accept the Faith, Prophet Ibr A h And m, peace be upon Him, decided to leave for another area where He could freely worship Allah and call people to Islam. Maybe there people will respond to His call and accept Faith, recognizing that only Allah is the Only Creator, Who has Power over everything.

In the Sacred TO ur`ane it is said (Sura “A With—WITHA ff A t", Ayat 99):

﴿ وَقَالَ إِنِّي ذَاهِبٌ إِلَى رَبِّي سَيَهْدِينِ ﴾

It means: "Prophet Ibr" A h And m, peace be upon him, said,[moving from an unbelieving people] : “I am going where my Lord commanded me to go,[that is, to the territory of Sham] , where I can freely worship Allah Almighty.”

And also in other Ayats TO ur'ana is said about the Prophet Ibr A h And me (Surah Al-‘Anqab at t", Ayats 26-27):

﴿ فَآمَنَ لَهُ لُوطٌ وَقَالَ إِنِّي مُهَاجِرٌ إِلَى رَبِّي إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ X وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ إِسْحَقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ وَجَعَلْنَا فِي ذُرِّيَّتِهِ النُّبُوَّةَ وَالْكِتَابَ وَءَاتَيْنَاهُ أَجْرَهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَإِنَّهُ فِي الآخِرَةِ لَمِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ ﴾

It means: "Prophet Lu" T was a believer like other Prophets, and He was the first to recognize Ibr A h And Ma, peace be upon Him, as the Prophet, when he saw that the fire did not harm Him. Prophet Ibr A h And m said: “I am moving to where my Lord commanded me[to the territory of Sham] . Indeed, Allah will protect me from my enemies, and He knows everything.” Allah granted Ibr A h And mu[son] Is hack a and[grandson] I' ku ba, and gave Ibr to the descendants A h And ma Prophecy and Heavenly Scriptures. Allah gave Ibr A h And mu special thing in this life[since Muslims very often praise Him by reciting the du' A` and h caviar] , and in the Next World He will be in Paradise.”

Prophet Ibr A h And m, peace be upon Him, fulfilling the Command of the Almighty, he moved with his wife Sarah and nephew Lou T om to the blessed land of Sham.

Allah Almighty said in TO ur`an (Sura Al-Anbi I`", Verses 71-73):

﴿ وَنَجَّيْنَاهُ وَلُوطًا إِلَى الأَرْضِ الَّتِي بَارَكْنَا فِيهَا لِلْعَالَمِينَ X وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ إِسْحَقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ نَافِلَةً وَكُلاًّّ جَعَلْنَا صَالِحِينَ X وَجَعَلْنَاهُمْ أَئِمَّةً يَهْدُونَ بِأَمْرِنَا وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْهِمْ فِعْلَ الْخَيْرَاتِ وَإِقَامَ الصَّلاةِ وَإِيتَاءَ الزَّكَاةِ وَكَانُواْ لَنَا عَابِدِينَ ﴾

It means: “By the Command of Allah, Prophet Ibr A h And M and Lou T moved to a special, blessed territory[Sham] . Allah gave the Prophet Ibr A h And many pious descendants, among them – Isa hack a and I' ku ba. They were Prophets, leading people along the path of Truth, as the Almighty commanded them. Allah commanded Them through Revelation to do good deeds - perform Namaz, give Zakat. They worshiped only Allah Almighty.”

_________________________________________

Sham is the territory of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Jordan.

Lou T was the son of Ibr's brother A h And Ma, peace be upon them.

People of the Prophet Ibr Aһ And Ma decided to take revenge on Him because He broke their idols and thereby showed the insignificance of these idols. After Prophet Ibr A h And m won the argument with Numrud, presenting him with irrefutable mental evidence, Numrud and his subordinates decided to burn Him in fire, and thus punish Him.

Said in the Sacred TO ur'ane (Sura "A With—WITHA ff A t", Ayat 97):

﴿ ﴾

It means: A h And ma into the fire."

It is also said in TO ur`an (Sura Al-Anbi I`", Ayat 68):

﴿ قَالُواْ حَرِّقُوهُ وَٱنصُرُواْ ءَالِهَتَكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ فَاعِلِينَ ﴾

It means: “Numrud said: “Burn him in the fire and take revenge on your idols if you want the idols to win.”

The unbelievers began to prepare a fire for the Prophet Ibr Aһ And ma, collecting firewood from everywhere. So they wanted to take revenge on Him for their idols, which they deified. Their hatred of Prophet Ibr Aһ And Mu and the thirst for revenge was so strong that even sick women vowed to collect wood for this fire if they recovered.

After it has been collected great amount firewood, the unbelievers dug a deep hole and piled the firewood in it. Then they lit a fire. A bright flame flared up and began to flare up with extraordinary force. Huge sparks flew upward, the likes of which had never been seen before. The fire was so strong that people could not even approach it and throw the Prophet Ibr into it A h And ma. Then they built a catapult to throw Him into the fire from afar. The unbelievers tied His hands and placed Him on the bowl of the catapult. Prophet Ibr A h And M, peace be upon Him, had great faith in His Creator, and when He was thrown into the fire, He uttered these words:

«حَسْبُنَا اللهُ وَنِعْمَ الوَكِيْل»

It means: “Our trust is in Allah, only He grants protection from harm.” Narrated by Al-Bukhariy from Ibn ‘Abb A sa.

By the Will of Allah, the fire did not burn the Prophet Ibr A h And Ma, peace be upon Him, and even His clothes remained intact, since fire does not create combustion, but Allah creates it.

In the Sacred TOI`", Verse 69):

﴿ قُلْنَا يَا نَارُ كُونِي بَرْدًا وَسَلامًا عَلَى إِبْرَاهِيمَ ﴾

It means: “Allah made the fire cool for Ibr A h And and did not burn Him.”

By the Will of Allah, this strong fire was cool and safe for the Prophet Ibr A h And ma, peace be upon him. Some scholars said that the fire only burned the ropes that bound His hands. Some Salafist scholars reported that at that moment in front of the Prophet Ibr A h And Angel Jabr appeared as mom A`And l, peace be upon Him, and asked: “Oh, Ibr A h And uh, do you need any help?” Why Prophet Ibr A h And m, trusting in the Almighty Creator, answered: “I don’t need you.”

After the flames of this huge fire went out and the smoke cleared, people saw that Prophet Ibr A h And m alive and well, and that the fire did not harm Him at all. So they saw the Miracle with their own eyes. But even despite this, they still remained in their delusion and did not believe in the Prophet Ibr A h And ma, peace be upon him.

Allah did not allow the unbelievers to win. They wanted to avenge their idols, but as a result they themselves were defeated.

In the Sacred TO ur`ane it is said (Surah Al-Anbi I`", Ayat 70):

﴿ وَأَرَادُواْ بِهِ كَيْدًا فَجَعَلْنَاهُمُ الأَخْسَرِينَ ﴾

It means: "The disbelievers wanted to punish Ibr A h And ma, but instead they themselves received a painful punishment from Allah.”

It is also said in TO ur'ane (Sura "A With—WITHA ff A t", Ayats 97-98):

﴿ قَالُواْ ٱبْنُواْ لَهُ بُنْيَانًا فَأَلْقُوهُ فِي الْجَحِيمِ فَأَرَادُواْ بِهِ كَيْدًا فَجَعَلْنَاهُمُ الأَسْفَلِينَ ﴾

It means: “Numrud said: “Build a catapult and throw Ibr from it A h And ma into the fire." The unbelievers wanted to burn Ibr A h And ma to stop His call. But as a result they failed, and Prophet Ibr A h And m was saved."

The story of how Prophet Ibr A h And m called to Islam the tyrant Numrud, who called himself a god

After Prophet Ibr A h And m, peace be upon Him, smashed the idols, the angry pagans brought Him to the people's court before their ruler Numrud and influential nobles. And then Prophet Ibr A h And m, peace be upon him, explained to people the falsity of their worship of idols. Numrud began to deny Islam and the fact that Allah is the Lord of all, and that there is no other deity besides Him. Because of his pride and stubbornness, Numrud called himself a god and said Ibr A h And mu: “Tell us who you worship by calling others.” Prophet Ibr A h AndTo Ara", Ayat 258):

﴿ رَبِّيَ الَّذِي يُحْيِ وَيُمِيتُ ﴾

It means: “My Lord is the One who gives life and death.”

Prophet Ibr A h And m explained to him that Allah Almighty is the Creator of everything. And to prove the existence of the Creator, He pointed out what we see in animate creatures - life and death, and also that the stars, and the wind, and the clouds, and the rain necessarily have someone who controls them, that is Creator. Then Numrud said: “I give life and kill. Let them bring to me two people sentenced to death - I will order one to be executed, and thus I will kill him, and I will release the other, and so I will give him life.”

In his arrogance and stubbornness, Numrud wanted to show people that he was able to answer Ibr A h And mu. Then Prophet Ibr A h And m, peace be upon Him, decided to bring a strong argument against Numrud that would silence him, in order to stop this discussion and show his ignorance and stupidity to people. Ibr A h And m, peace be upon Him, said (Surah Al-Ba To Ara", Ayat 258):

﴿ فَإِنَّ اللهَ يَأْتِي بِالشَّمْسِ مِنَ الْمَشْرِقِ فَأْتِ بِهَا مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ ﴾

It means: “Verily, Allah commands the sun to rise from the east. If you are the Lord, then command him to ascend from the west.”

So Prophet Ibr A h And m proved to him that Allah is the Creator of everything, and He predetermined everything that happens in the world, and what Numrud said about himself is a lie. Ibr A h And m, peace be upon Him, explained that the sun was created exactly this way (that it gives benefits and appears in the east every day) Allah Almighty is the Creator of the whole world. And only He who gives life and kills can do what he wants, and no one can hinder or hinder Him in this. And Numrud, who imagines himself to be the giver of life and the giver of death, will not be able to make the sun rise from the west. With this strong argument, Numrud was finally broken and was defeated in front of the entire people, being no longer able to object to Him with anything.

Allah Almighty said (Sura Al-Ba To Ara", Ayat 258):

﴿ أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِي حَآجَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي رِبِّهِ أَنْ ءَاتَاهُ اللهُ الْمُلْكَ إِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ رَبِّيَ الَّذِي يُحْيِ وَيُمِيتُ قَالَ أَنَاْ أُحْيِ وَأُمِيتُ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ فَإِنَّ اللهَ يَأْتِي بِالشَّمْسِ مِنَ الْمَشْرِقِ فَأْتِ بِهَا مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ فَبُهِتَ الَّذِي كَفَرَ وَاللهُ لاَ يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ ﴾

It means: “Hasn’t the story reached you about how Numrud, to whom Allah gave a hugepower, argued with the Prophet Ibr A h And about the Existence of Allah? Numrud asked Ibr A h And ma: “Who is your Lord?” Ibr A h And m, peace be upon him, said: “My Lord is the One who gives life and death.” Numrud objected to Ibr A h And mu, saying: “I give life and kill.” He wanted to say that he could execute one person and save another from the death penalty, and supposedly in this way he could kill and give life. Then Prophet Ibr A h And m said to him: “Truly, Allah commands the sun to rise from the east. If you are the Lord, then command him to ascend from the west.” So Numrud was finally broken. And truly, unbelievers will not be saved from punishment in the Next World.”

As reported, Allah Almighty sent one Angel to the unbeliever Numrud, who stubbornly did not want to accept the Truth, who called him to believe in Allah and accept Islam. However, Numrud did not believe. Then the Angel appeared to him again and called him to the Faith, but he still did not accept Islam. And the third time, when an Angel came to him, he did not listen to Him and remained in his delusion. Then the Angel said to him: “Gather your army, and I will gather mine.” In the morning, at sunrise, Numrud gathered his large army, and at that time Allah sent them clouds of mosquitoes as punishment - there were so many of them that they obscured the sun.

The mosquitoes destroyed Numrud's entire army - they ate their flesh and sucked their blood so that only their bones remained. Numrud himself was also punished: one mosquito flew into his nose and lived there for 400 years, tormenting him. During this time, from terrible torment and unbearable pain, Numrud beat himself on the head with an iron hammer to alleviate his suffering. In the end, this is what he died from.

Polna Eva Leonidovna (b. 1975) is a Russian singer, lead singer of the national pop group “Guests from the Future,” lyricist and composer, winner of nine Golden Gramophone awards. She writes poetry under the pseudonym Vozderzhak Josephine Askoldovna.

Childhood

Eva was born in Leningrad on May 19, 1975. My interesting surname she inherited from her father, who was an ethnic Pole. When she was little, she often had to visit her father's homeland.

Eva remembered well one unpleasant moment from her childhood. As a little girl, she fell in love with film actor Vladimir Konkin and told her parents about it. Naturally, they did not take it seriously and even laughed a little at the child. If Konkin was shown on TV, then the little girl’s name was called: “Eva, come quickly, they are showing your love.” At these moments the girl blushed, burned with shame, she felt unpleasant and a little hurt, as if she had done something obscene. When Eva became an adult, she told her mother that they had traumatized her then. And the parents asked their daughter for forgiveness: “Daughter, we didn’t know that it was so serious for you.”

From this childhood incident she learned a good lesson for herself in adult life. No matter what her children say, never, even if it is very funny and she wants to choke with laughter, Eva will not show this to the child. Because for a little person this can be very important.

Otherwise, Eva had very happy childhood, the singer remembers these years with special tenderness and warmth. Eva had an excellent relationship with her parents. The family was intelligent and at that time considered wealthy. The girl studied music. Her father instilled a love for this type of art in her; he was able to explain to his daughter and show what it is good music. As a child, Eva listened to musical compositions performed by Ella Fitzgerald. There was an antique piano in the house, on which the girl learned to play and sing.

Years of study

She was the only child in the family, so to speak. home education. The girl did not go to kindergarten. And when her grandmother took her to school for the first time, Eva was in a stressful state: the little girl opened the door to the classroom, and there were a lot of people there. At first she didn't like school at all. When her grandmother brought Eva to class in the morning, she didn’t want to stay here. The girl asked the uncles and aunties who brought their children to school to pick her up and take her away from here. But it’s clear that no one took her anywhere, she had to turn around and go to class.

Along with secondary school and music, Eva studied dancing and choreography; her idol in this art form was the ballerina Anna Pavlova. However, in childhood, when all the girls dreamed of the stage, Eva dreamed of becoming an astronaut. She loved to read books, especially science fiction. Her favorite TV show was “Obvious - Incredible” with host Sergei Kapitsa. She nevertheless later realized her dream of a cosmic and unknown world, working and performing in a group with fantastic name"Visitors from the future".

When Eva graduated from school, she did not have the slightest idea of ​​what she would like to become in the future. The parents, of course, insisted that their daughter receive higher education. At that time, Eva needed to tighten up her cultural level and get a good humanitarian base. Therefore, in 1991, she chose Leningrad University to enroll. state institute culture named after Krupskaya, after graduating from which she received a specialist diploma in “librarian-bibliographer”.

Along with this, Eva received another higher education, her second profession is an information management and marketing specialist.

And after all this, the girl submitted documents for admission to the St. Petersburg College of Arts, after graduating from which she received a diploma as a choreographer.

"Visitors from the future"

Having received three specialties, Eva never worked in any of them. While still studying, she first appeared on stage with the rap group “A-2”, first as a dancer, then as a backing vocalist. Polna worked in this team for a year, after which she began performing independently. Eva’s favorite genre at that time was classic rock music of the 70s. In many St. Petersburg clubs she wonderfully performed similar musical compositions. There was even a case when Eva sang on stage for five hours, but her name was not known to St. Petersburg music lovers.

Eva Polna's real creative career began in 1996. DJ and composer Yuri Usachev worked at that time in the Cast Iron Skorokhod team. At one point, the idea of ​​creating a new pop group came to his mind. So, together with Evgeny Arsentyev, they came up with “Guests from the Future”, and invited Eva Polna, whom they saw during a performance in one of the clubs, as a soloist. Soon the singer showed her other talents: she created stage images and costumes, wrote lyrics.

In 1997, the group recorded their first album. The compositions were in jungle style, recording took place at one of the St. Petersburg home studios. They made the album literally overnight and gave it the intriguing title “After Hundreds of Years.” Listeners did not immediately accept the six compositions with an unusual sound; the album's circulation was small.

However, soon one of the songs called “Sand Time” brought fame to the group. It was heard and approved by the famous St. Petersburg DJ Groove, he began to broadcast a demo version of the song often, and it unexpectedly ended up on the first lines of the chat. After this, the group “Guests from the Future” received an offer to hold their first performance.

On March 8, 1998, a concert took place at the Titanic club in St. Petersburg. Eva was very surprised when she saw from the stage that the audience was singing along with her, and she sang some songs three times as an encore. This day is considered the official founding date of the group. Soon they released their new songs, which were included in the album “Time Sand”. But popularity was still narrow.

Then Evgeny Arsentiev decided to leave the team. And Yuri Usachev decided to change the style and musical direction of the group. They were left alone with Eva and chose a pop dance style for themselves. Their first song, “Run From Me,” was a success. Eva had a special style of performance – detached and romantic. At the same time, the song had a strong sexual overtones. All this in short term made the song a hit, it was played on all radio stations, it sounded from music stores and kiosks.

This contributed to the group’s transition to a new level, and Eva and Yuri went to Moscow. Producer Evgeny Orlov signed a contract with them. Several video clips were filmed and the album “Run from Me” was recorded. The group “Guests from the Future” burst into the world of show business; photos of Yuri and Eva appeared on the covers of popular magazines. A series of concerts began, which were completely sold out. Already in 1999, the group “Guests from the Future” became a participant in the final program “Song of the Year”, where Eva performed the composition “Dislike”. And the song “I’m with you” brought them the first Golden Gramophone figurine.

The year 2000 was marked by the release of a new album entitled “Winter in the Heart” and the first foreign tour. In London they shot a video for the song “Games,” which instantly became a hit. Eva could already be collecting “Golden Gramophones”:

• 2000 - for the song “You are somewhere”;
• 2001 - for “Ondine”;
• 2002 - for the composition “He’s a Stranger”;
• 2003 - for the song “Why You”.

Musical compositions the group “Guests from the Future” firmly established itself at the top of the domestic charts. Their new album was released every year:

• 2000 - “It’s stronger than me, part 1”;
• 2001 – “Best”;
• 2002 – “Eva”;
• 2003 - “In the Mood for Love”, “It’s Stronger than Me, Part 2”.

They had millions of fans all over the country, and music critics recognized the group as phenomenal.

On March 8, 2003, “Guests from the Future” celebrated its first anniversary – five years – among fans. However, less than a month later, at the beginning of April, in northern capital, St. Petersburg, a public celebration of their small anniversary took place. A grand concert took place at the Yubileiny Sports Palace.

Along with the performances, everyone in the group did a little bit of their own thing. Yura became the general producer at Gramophone Records. Eva began to take her first steps in the modeling business. No, she didn’t start working as a model, Polna modeled the clothes herself, and her new collection"Denim Symphony" was a success during its run.

“Guests from the Future” released several more albums (“Traffic Rules”, “More Than Songs”, “Behind the Star”), but they creative career went into decline. In 2009, Eva Polna announced that Yuri Usachev had left the group.

Solo career

The original singer had no intention of leaving the stage and continued her solo performances. They turned out to be quite successful, Eva again replenished her collection of “Golden Gramophones”:

• 2011 - for the song “Ships”;
• 2012 - for the composition “I’m not you either”;
• 2016 – for the song “Little”.

In 2016, on Valentine's Day there was a big solo concert Polny. This holiday is especially suitable for her work, because Eva sings all her songs only about love. A stylish and bright singer, a confident and honest woman, she can make a sparkling joke and laugh contagiously, her voice cannot be forgotten or confused with others - for all these qualities, fans continue to love Eva’s songs and herself.

Personal life

Eva is a very unusual and extravagant woman. This is also her personal life. During his stage career yellow press Polna attributed many novels, not only with men, but also with the fairer sex.
Despite such rumors, Eva became the mother of two beautiful girls.

In 2005 she gave birth to Evelyn. Fans of the group “Guests from the Future” really wanted Yuri Usachev to be the singer’s husband and the father of the child, the couple looked too good and harmonious together. However, neither Eva nor Yura ever commented or gave interviews about their personal relationships. And the father of Evelyn’s first daughter was Russian pop singer Denis Klyaver. Eva carefully hid this and was never going to talk about it. But the whole country is about common daughter We'll let Denis know.

The second daughter Amalia was born in 2007. Her father was businessman and restaurateur Sergei Pilgun, with whom Eva was married. Despite the appearance of their daughter, the couple was unable to maintain marital relations and broke up. Now Eva is raising her daughters herself.

For girls interesting names, Eva chose them herself. As the singer says, she wanted the name of each of her daughters to be very beautiful and at the same time international. Since our lives now take place all over the world (work, travel), girls with their own names should feel comfortable in any country.

Eva’s daughters are very affectionate and at home they call their mother Musya (a derived name from Mamushi). The singer tries to be both a friend and a mentor for the girls. She instills in the little ones a philosophical attitude to life; explains that there are objective and subjective opinions; warns that life path they will have to deal with a lot of bumps, from which he tries to protect the girls if possible. Otherwise, Eva does not like to talk about her personal life, because she considers it a space where the singer can relax, unwind, calm down and draw new strength for creativity.

Eva Polna is always very bright on stage, and she prefers to be the same on stage. Everyday life, because everything around is already full of dullness and despondency, you need to cheer yourself up with colorful clothes. She is always feminine and elegant; it is unlikely that anyone will be able to see her in shorts and a T-shirt. Her main motto: “Make life brighter with your own hands”.

The question of who lived longer, Adam or Eve, is extremely difficult to answer, since we don’t even know what the age difference was between them. However, some sources give us such information.

Be fruitful and multiply

The issue of chronology of the lives of the biblical Patriarchs is complex and largely controversial. This is primarily due to the fact that the Old Testament books do not give us any dates. According to the Bible, we know in which year from the Creation of the world we live, but we do not know the exact date the birth of the first man, how much older was Adam than Eve (and was he older), when our first parents were expelled from the Garden of Eden and, finally, who died first, Adam or Eve?

Theologians claim that Adam and Eve saw the light as adults, fully formed and ready to reproduce. After all, it is said in the Pentateuch: “And God blessed them, and God said to them: Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (Gen. 1:27–28).

The Bible gives us some dates for the chronology of Adam's life. “Adam lived a hundred and thirty years and begat [a son] in his own likeness [and] in his image, and called his name Seth. The days of Adam after he begat Seth were eight hundred years, and he begat sons and daughters. All the days of Adam’s life were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died” (Gen. 5:3-5). But much less is known about Eve.

Eve's Fate

From the 2nd chapter of the Book of Genesis we know: “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man; and when he fell asleep, he took one of his ribs and covered that place with flesh. And the Lord God created a wife from a rib taken from a man, and brought her to the man. And the man said, Behold, this is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she will be called woman, for she was taken from [her] husband” (Gen. 2:20–23).

But how old Adam was when Eve was created from his rib, how old Eve herself was, how many years on earth the wife of the first man was allotted, the Bible is silent. Indirectly, Eve’s lifespan may be indicated by the age at which Adam had children. However, complexity arises already with the first-born of the ancestors of mankind. According to the Bible, Cain and Abel were born after the Fall and expulsion from Paradise - it was then that Adam knew Eve.

But Jewish commentators believe that the verb “knew” should be taken in the plusquaperfect. In other words, in their opinion, the conception occurred before the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. Perhaps immediately after the creation of our foremother from the rib of our forefather.

It is much easier with the third son of Adam and Eve - Seth. Based on the canonical text, we know that Seth was born when our forefather was 130 years old. And when Adam turned 800 years old, as the Holy Scripture indicates, he gave birth to more “sons and daughters.” It is logical to assume that the mother of all Adam’s children was Eve, which means that she was still alive by the 800th anniversary of her husband.

Islamic traditions

What does the Koran say about the life of the first people? The Islamic tradition reports that after being expelled from Paradise, Adam descended to earth on the island of Ceylon, and Hawa (Eve) in the Arabian Jeddah. For 200 years they prayed to the Lord for forgiveness until they met in the valley of Arafat. Then Adam and Chava went to the territory of modern Syria, where they gave birth to numerous offspring.

According to legend, Chava gave birth 20 times, with the exception of last son twins were born. In total, the couple had 39 children, and the interval between births was two years. However, the number “two” may not correspond to our modern chronology. In some Islamic sources you can find information that Adam lived for 2000 years, and Chava outlived him by 40 years, according to others - by only a year.

According to Islamic traditions (Muhammad's companions mention this), the burial place of Hawa is known - Jeddah. The monument over her burial was destroyed in 1928 on the orders of Prince Faisal to prevent the spread of superstition. The grave itself was concreted over by the Saudi authorities in 1975, as pilgrims prayed there, violating the rules of the hajj.

Even if we assume that the real Eve is in Jeddah, then in the foreseeable future archaeologists and scientists are unlikely to be able to get to the burial place.

And they died almost on the same day

The Old Testament apocrypha from the so-called “Apocrypha” can tell us much more about the life of Adam and Eve. Scrolls of the Dead sea”, which have come down to us in Arabic, Syrian, Ethiopian, Armenian and Slavic versions.

Thus, in the text called “The Book of Adam and Eve” it is reported that when Adam was 930 years old, he became seriously ill. At his request, Eve and Seth went to Eden to find a cure to relieve suffering. However, God refused to help them. Returning to Adam, they heard from him a story about a divine vision in which the Archangel Michael announced to Adam about his imminent death. Before he departed into another world, Adam guided Seth on the righteous path and asked him to keep the covenants of the Lord. Six days later, after Eve and Seth delivered Adam to the gates of Paradise, he rested.

According to the same apocrypha, six days after the death of Adam, Eve gathered all the sons and daughters (thirty brothers and thirty sisters of Seth) and said: “Listen to me, my children, and I will tell you what the Archangel Michael told us when I and your father sinned before God. Because of our sin, God will bring the wrath of his judgment upon our race, first by water, a second time by fire; With these two elements God will judge the entire human race.”

The text goes on to say that as soon as Eve had spoken, she stretched out her hands to heaven in prayer, “and knelt down, and while she worshiped God and gave thanks to him, she gave up the ghost. After that, all her children buried her and mourned loudly.”

What Science Says

What can science say about the age of the first people? Unfortunately, there is nothing about how long they lived. However, genetic scientists have been able to establish the approximate lifespan of mitochondrial Adam and Eve. This became possible due to the fact that the “evolutionary tree” of the male Y chromosome was restored.

After conducting long and painstaking research, geneticists were able to state that chromosomal Adam lived approximately 120-156 thousand years ago, and Eve - 99-148 thousand years ago. And although mitochondrial Adam and Eve have nothing to do with the biblical characters, in general, science confirms that the genetic ancestors of people now living on Earth existed almost simultaneously.

Where more complicated attitude science to the age of the biblical Patriarchs. According to the Bible, their lifespan was many hundreds of years. So, Adam's son Seth lived 912 years, grandson Enos - 905, great-grandson Cainan - 910. But the record holder was Enoch's son Methuselah, who lived to 969 years. It is no coincidence that the expression “Methuselah ages” exists. Before the Flood, judging by the Old Testament texts, the average age of the Patriarchs exceeded 900 years.

Gerontologists do not believe that such longevity was ever possible. Maximum resource ordinary person, in their opinion, 120-130 years. Some representatives scientific world This phenomenon is explained by the fact that the “biblical year” is equal to modern month, in this case, if Adam’s age (930 years) is divided by 12 months, we get 77.5 years. Seems to match average duration life of a modern person.

However, there is a serious catch here. If we agree with the scientists and convert the age of Adam Seth’s birth into modern calculus, we will get 10 years and 8 months! But Cain and Abel were born even earlier. Then Abraham, who according to the Bible lived 175 years, was supposed to die at the age of 14.5 years.

According to another version, supported by theologians, before the Flood, man lived in more favorable climatic and biological conditions, which allowed him to reach such impressive age marks. Burdened with the sins of their forefathers, the generation born after Noah began to steadily lose their ability to live long lives.

The name Eve is the name of the progenitor of all humanity. Derived from the Hebrew name Chava, meaning “life-giver”, “life”. In a modern context, it can be translated as “lively”, “mobile”, “mischievous”. This name was included in some languages ​​of Christian peoples as Eva (Czech, Polish), Iva (English). In Georgian it is called Khava.

Also Eve is short form not only some female names (Evangelina, Eugenia, Evdokia, Evnika), but also male names - Evstigney, Eutropius. A variant of the name - Ava - is also an independent name.

The diminutive Evita is also an independent name.

A woman named Eva has a strong-willed character, which is complemented by the ability to control herself in any situation. She is characterized by such qualities as balance, restraint, perseverance and attentiveness. Eve has her own, different from others, view of everything that can happen in life. Eva has her own, different from others, view of everything that can happen in life, and she always has her own opinion as a priority. various issues, which does not depend on what others may think.

Such a woman has an increased level of intelligence. If any enterprise seems dubious to her in terms of morality or law, she will never get involved in it. A woman named Eva, as a rule, has a flexible and resourceful mind. Eve is intelligent: she trusts facts and logic more than her intuition. She tries to plan and build her life herself and determine the values ​​​​in it.

As for her career, Eva can often become a top-class professional in medicine, linguistics, she can be a teacher or a specialist in modeling and tailoring. He performs well in administrative and clerical work.

When it comes to love, its inherent logic and rationalism recede into the background. Now she is an affectionate, gentle, cheerful woman, you will never get bored with her. As her life partner, Eva most often chooses a man with the same character and temperament as hers. She does not tolerate cold partners around her. She will not get married until she finds a man who fully corresponds to her ideals. It often happens that Eva’s first marriage may not be entirely successful.

She is the head of the family, but she exercises this leadership tactfully. A woman with that name is a wonderful hospitable hostess and an excellent cook who will more than once delight not only her family, but also her guests with her edible masterpieces. This makes the husband constantly crazy about his wife. Usually, Eva’s family life always brings her happiness and lasts long years. However, she does not want to live with her mother-in-law and is trying to build a family nest outside her husband’s parental home.

Often Eva can be strict towards other people, principled, even a little conflicting, and sometimes it is even impossible to predict how she will behave in a minute. But at the same time, she is quite cheerful and sociable.

Sound. Eva – short name, all consonants in which are voiced. The vast majority of people pay attention to its beauty. Almost always they also note the tenderness (93%), mystery (90%) and majesty (90%) of the sound of the name. Sometimes a certain femininity is also distinguished in it (92%). Names similar in phonosemantic profile are Aisha, Amalia and Leila.

Eve's birthday

Famous people named Eva

• Eve (foremother of all people, first woman (in Kabbalistic versions - second after Lilith), wife of Adam, made from his rib, mother of Cain, Abel and Seth)
• Eva Denise Curie-Laboisse ((1904 - 2007) French and American writer And public figure)
• Maria Eva Duarte de Peron ((1919 - 1952) Argentine actress, politician, first lady of Argentina, second wife of President Juan Peron, character in Andrew Lloyd Weber's musical "Evita", based on her biography, also known as Evita)
• Eva Anna Paula Braun (on the last day of her life - surname Hitler; mistress of Adolf Hitler, then his wife)
• Eva Romanova (Czechoslovakian figure skater who competed in ice dancing with her brother Pavel Roman; four-time world champions and two-time European champions)
• Eva Jacqueline Longoria Parker ( American actress and model, best known for her role as Gabrielle Solis on Desperate Housewives)
• Eve Arden ((1908 - 1990) American film actress)
• Yves Kuehler ((b.1936) American conductor)
• Eve Curie, Eva Curie, Eva Curie ((1904 - 2007) French writer and public figure, daughter of Pierre Curie and Marie Skłodowska-Curie)
• Eva Rutkai ((1927 – 1986) Hungarian actress)
• Eva Simonaityte ((1897 – 1978) Lithuanian writer, people's writer of Lithuania)
• Eva Mendes (American actress)
• Eve Figes ( English writer, literary critic, author of studies in the field of feminism, as well as a memoir describing her childhood in Berlin and subsequent experiences as a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany)
• Eva Herzigova (Herzigova) (Czech top model and actress)
• Eva Neumann (German-Ukrainian film director, citizen of Ukraine)
• Eva Rivas (real name - Valeria Aleksandrovna Reshetnikova-Tsaturyan; Russian-Armenian pop singer)
• Eva Ohlin (Swedish actress)
• Eve Arnold (American photojournalist and first female member of Magnum Photos)
• Eva Marie Saint (American actress, Oscar winner (1954))
• Eva LaRue (American actress)
• Eva-Lena Lundgren (film actress, Swedish supermodel, won 3rd place in the 1981 Miss Universe contest)
• Eva Serrano (French athlete, represented rhythmic gymnastics in individual exercises)
• Eva Hermann (née Eva Feldker; German television journalist, one of the presenters from 1998-2006 news program"Tagesschau"; dismissed for statements about National Socialism that do not coincide with the position of the management of the NDR television and radio company)
• Ewa Demarczyk (Polish singer)
• Eva Amurri (American actress, daughter of Italian film director Franco Amurri and American film actress Susan Sarandon. Eva starred in her first film at the age of seven.)
• Eva Gael Green (French actress, winner of the BAFTA Rising Star Special Award)
• Eva Korpela (former Swedish biathlete, world champion, two-time World Cup winner)
• Eva Ionesco (French film actress)
• Iva Majoli (Croatian tennis player, best Croatian tennis player of all time)
• Iva Slaninova (Czechoslovakian orienteer, medalist of the World Orienteering Championships in the relay race)
• Iva Kalibanova (Czechoslovakian orienteer, medalist of the World Orienteering Championships in the relay race)
• Evelyn Laurie (real name - Eva Slovikova; Slovak fashion model)
• Eva Bushmina ( Ukrainian singer, soloist of the Russian-Ukrainian female pop group “VIA Gra”)
• Eva Polna (Russian singer, lead singer of the Russian group “Guests from the Future”)
• Eva Ionesco (French film actress of Romanian origin)
• Eva Urbanova (Czech opera singer (soprano))
• Ewa Kowalewska (Polish artist)
• Eva Kjaer Hansen (Danish politician)
• Eva-Britt Svensson ((born 1946) Swedish politician)

Probably the majority Orthodox people When venerating the Crucifixion of Christ the Savior, they paid attention to the iconography of this image, namely, in the lower part, under the base of the Calvary Cross, a skull and two crossed bones are traditionally depicted.

Tradition has preserved the story according to which the Savior of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ, was crucified on the spot ancient grave the forefather Adam, and the blood of the God-man flowing down the base of the Cross fell on the head of the first man buried here, thereby washing away the sin of the forefather committed in the Garden of Eden.

Any churchgoer who listens carefully to the liturgical texts of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Precious and Life-Giving Cross, the Week of the Worship of the Cross (3rd Sunday of Great Lent) and Holy Week is probably familiar with the narrative of this legend.

But I encountered a certain bewilderment when I presented the first guide book about the Holy Land, written after repeated trips to Israel, to my teacher, a professor at the Kiev Theological Academy, just after picking it up from the printing house. His attention was drawn to the photograph I took in Hebron at the grave of our forefathers, or rather not a photograph, but a caption to it, which said: “A canopy over the burial place of Adam.”

“And who then is buried on Golgotha, under the place where the Savior was crucified?” - this question from the venerable professor prompted me to create a certain commentary on this signature, since information about the burial of the forefather Adam in Hebron is not readily available in the Christian tradition. Although, on the other hand, for monotheistic Judaism, it is the cave of the forefathers in Hebron that is the place where the remains of the first man are to this day.

How to reconcile the Christian tradition and the tradition of Midrash (Midrash - laמִדְרָשׁ, literally “study”, “interpretation”, a genre of literature of a homiletical nature, presented in the Mishnah, Tosefta, and then in the Gemara. However, very often the name midrash refers to a collection of texts which includes biblical exegesis, public sermons, etc., forming a consistent commentary on the books Holy Scripture Old Testament).

To do this, we will propose to visit ancient Hebron and reveal the secret of the Cave of the Forefathers - Mearat HaMachpela.

Streets of Hebron

"Gateway of the South"

“Gateway of the South” - this is the name Hebron received from the nomadic Semitic clans, which, driving their herds in search of new pastures, necessarily ended up along the road from Jerusalem, heading to Beersheba (Beersheba), Azoth (Ashdot), Ashkelon, to this ancient metropolis with guaranteed comfortable parking for nomads with numerous wells necessary for livestock.

Hebron is located in the southern part of mountainous Judea in a lush mountain valley, located at an altitude of 925 m above sea level and surrounded by high mountains. Around modern Hebron there are many Muslim villages, the inhabitants of which are engaged, as in the distant past, in agriculture and cattle breeding. Today you can get to Hebron from Jerusalem along the HaMinaro highway, bypassing Bethlehem, and then, continuing along the Okef Halkhul highway, after 16 km you will be met by gray-haired Hebron.

Under the sniper's sight

Visiting this city today is fraught with certain difficulties. In modern Hebron, clashes between Jewish settlers and Arabs occur very often. Administered by the Palestinian Authority, the city is surrounded by Israeli army checkpoints, making it difficult to visit. Hebron is clearly not the place where you can shine with your knowledge of Hebrew. Moreover, “this is the only place in the West Bank where you should not stay overnight,” as many guidebooks warn intrepid tourists and pilgrims to this biblical city.

If, according to the modern idiom, “Israel is a litmus test for the whole world,” then modern Hebron is a litmus test for the Arab-Israeli confrontation. Today the city is divided into two parts: the Arab quarter and the quarter where Jewish settlers live.

When we move from the checkpoint to the famous Cave of the Forefathers, we are a little worried by the close attention to any movements (in this case, yours) of Israeli patrols located almost every 50 meters. Looking up, it is not difficult to spot snipers on rooftops and observation towers. As soon as you deviate from the route, out of nowhere a bulletproof jeep or a dusty military Hummer with protruding antennas appears, from which you will definitely be asked to present documents. In general, everything is intended to hint to the guest of Hebron that for the sake of his own safety, the route of a pilgrim or tourist has been thought out to the smallest detail, and therefore there is no need to improvise.

It is noteworthy that there is no free communication between the Jewish and Arab quarters, and only a foreigner, taking advantage of his neutral position, can visit both parts of Hebron. Moreover, once in the Palestinian part of the city, he draws attention to the fact that here Hebron lives the usual life of Middle Eastern Arab cities with traditional traffic jams, the noise of car horns, the chanting of muezzins, the calling of street vendors, etc. The concrete barriers have disappeared somewhere, patrols, snipers and kilometers of barbed wire...

First property in the Holy Land

Among the four biblical cities of Israel (Shechem (Shechem), Bethel (Beth-El), Jerusalem, Hebron) that have survived to this day, Hebron is the most ancient. Patriarch Abraham chose Hebron-Kiryat Arba as the first place to settle in the Holy Land. It was in Hebron that he bought the first plot of land - the Cave of Machpelah - for the burial of his wife Sarah (Gen. 23: 8-17). Abraham bequeathed to bury himself in this cave.

The text of the Holy Scriptures conveys in detail the process of acquiring ownership of this particular plot with a grotto in Hebron. For Patriarch Abraham it was fundamentally important to acquire this particular cave for the burial of Sarah. Why?

Midrash - Oral Torah, complements the biblical narrative: “Abraham discovered the secret of the cave when he was chasing an ox, which he wanted to slaughter for his three mysterious guests - the angels. The ox led him straight to the Cave of Machpelah. Abraham saw inside bright light, part of that primordial light that God prepared for the righteous and inhaled the sweet aroma emanating from the Garden of Eden. Abraham heard the voices of angels: “Adam is buried here. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will also rest here.” Then Abraham realized that this cave was the entrance to the Garden of Eden, and from then on he wanted to get it for burial.”

The Book of Zohar confirms the narrations of the Midrash, reporting how the forefather Adam, after being expelled from the Garden of Eden, once passed by and recognized the light of Paradise in the light emanating from the cave. He realized that there was a tunnel connecting our earthly world and the Heavenly World, the tunnel through which our prayers rise to God, and souls enter Eternity after the death of the body. Therefore, Adam bequeathed to bury himself only in this cave.

Selling the cave of Machpelah, the Hittite Ephron had no idea about its holiness. He did not see anything valuable in this cave and initially even wanted to give it to Abraham for free, without any payment. But the acquired property was endowed with a guarantee that in the future the descendants of Abraham would be able to own this place and be considered the rightful owners. In the presence of all the Hittites, Abraham signed a treaty with Ephron, and the exact location was determined land plot and its borders.

Only after the deal was formalized in writing, and legal ownership of the cave was determined for all times to come, did Abraham bury his wife. Moreover, the Midrash describes in detail the burial of Sarah, which was accompanied miraculous phenomena: “As soon as Abraham entered the cave with Sarah’s body, Adam and Eve rose from their graves and headed towards the meeting. At the same time, they said that they felt shame for their sin: “Now that you have come here, our shame has become even greater, since we see your virtues.” “I will pray for you so that you will no longer suffer from shame,” Abraham told them. Hearing these words, Adam calmed down and returned to his grave, but Eve resisted until Abraham buried her again.”

The Mystery of the Cave of Machpelah

The Hebrew name מַּכְפֵּלָה "Machpelah" is interpreted in rabbinic literature as indicating a double cave or referring to the couples buried there.

In the burial grotto of Machpelah, according to Talmudic sources (Babylonian Talmud: Bava-Batra, 58a; Bereshit Rabba, 58), the forefathers Adam and Eve, as well as the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their foremother wives: Sarah, Rebekah, were buried or me. The burial of four pairs of forefathers in Hebron is expressed in another Hebrew name for Hebron - קִרְיַת־אַרְבַּע “Kiryat Arba”.

And the word itself חֶבְרוֹן “Hebron” goes back to the root, consisting of the letters het, bet, resh. The words haver, hibur, etc. are formed from the same letters. All of them are close in meaning and mean “unification”. That is, it turns out that Kiryat Arba is the place where four couples unite (in Hebrew אַרְבַּע “arba” - four). Thus, Hebron was initially established in the minds of the Israelis as the “city of the Forefathers.”

When we talk about the Mearat HaMachpelah, or in the Russian tradition the Cave of the Forefathers, as a rule, we mean a grandiose structure above the caves themselves. In the entire history of Hebron, only a few people had the opportunity to go down inside, into the caves themselves, where the biblical patriarchs were buried.

It is noteworthy that the construction of this monumental structure, located in the central part of modern Hebron with walls 12 m high, belongs to the king of Judea, Herod the Great. This majestic structure consists of stone blocks (the largest of them is 7.5 x 1.4 m). Each subsequent block overhangs the previous one by only 1.5 cm. The upper edge of the blocks is wider than the lower one. The surface of the walls of Mearat HaMachpela resembles the Western Wall of the Temple Mount (Wailing Wall) in Jerusalem.

Initially, the structure was, in all likelihood, without a roof. During the Byzantine era, the southern end of the building was turned into a church, consecrated in honor of the Patriarch Abraham. This did not in any way affect the ability of Jews to visit this shrine. Christians entered through one gate, Jews through another. In the VI century. according to R.H. galleries were built on all four sides. Having conquered Palestine, the Arabs entrusted the Jews, in gratitude for their support, with supervision of the cave. The overseer of the shrine received the title “servant of the fathers of the world.”

During the Arab conquest, Hebron was renamed “Masjid Ibrahim” (Mosque of Abraham). To this day, Muslims reverence the Machpelah Cave not only as the tomb of Abraham, but also as the place over which the Prophet Muhammad flew during his journey to heaven. According to Arab legend, when the Prophet Muhammad was flying on horseback to Jerusalem, over Hebron he heard the voice of the Archangel Jebril (Gabriel): “Go down and pray, for here is the grave of your father Abraham.”

In the 9th century. according to R.H. Joseph's cenotaph building (according to Muslim tradition Joseph the Beautiful, whose body was taken from Egypt during the Exodus, was also buried in the Cave of the Forefathers) blocked main entrance, and subsequently it was cut through the eastern side of the wall. The existing structure dates back to 1118-1131. according to R.H. (reign of Baldwin II).

Some records of pilgrims who visited Hebron in the early Middle Ages have survived to this day. Here, for example, is what the Jewish pilgrim Benjamin of Tudella wrote down in 1173: “And in the valley there is a hill called Abraham. Gentiles erected six tombs there, calling them after Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob and Leah, and they tell those who are mistaken that these are the tombs of their forefathers. If a Jew pays an Ishmaelite watchman, he will open the iron gate to the cave for him. From there you need to go down with a candle in your hand to the third cave, where there are six graves. On one side are the graves of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and opposite are the graves of Sarah, Rebekah and Leah.”

The fact that it was possible to penetrate into the burial crypt of the forefathers through “baksheesh” is evidenced by Petahya from Regensburg, as well as Jacob ben Nathaniel Cohen. Thanks to the records of pilgrims, it can be concluded that the burial crypt of the forefathers was a double cave connected by a passage; it is possible that there is another, internal cave.

But in 1267, the Mamluk Sultan Baybars I forbade Christians and Jews from entering the prayer halls of Mearat HaMachpela, although Jews were allowed to climb five, and later seven steps along the outer side of the eastern wall and lower notes with requests to God into the hole in the wall near the fourth step. This hole, which passes through the entire thickness of the wall of 2.25 m and leads into the caves under the floor of the structure, was first mentioned in 1521 and, apparently, was made at the request of the Jews of Hebron upon payment of a significant sum.

The decree of Sultan Baybars I banning non-Orthodox infidels from visiting Mearat HaMachpela was observed until the twentieth century. Although there were exceptions, in 1862, thanks to the specific relations between Turkey and Great Britain, the Ottoman authorities of Hebron allowed Prince Edward of Wales to visit the Machpelah Cave, who had the personal permission of Sultan Abdul Azis I himself. Thus, he became the first Christian who, six centuries later, (from 1267) was able to get to Mearat HaMachpela.

It was only in 1967, after the Six-Day War, that access for non-Orthodox (Jews and Christians) was officially reopened after a 700-year hiatus. Today, the site of the monument is administered by the Muslim community, but part of the complex functions as a synagogue.

The burial crypt of the biblical patriarchs itself has been surrounded by mysteries since archaic times. The stories and legends that began to take shape around the cave of the forefathers in Hebron are permeated with mysticism and mystery.

Thus, one of the stories reports that after the fall of the First Temple in Jerusalem, the Lord sent the prophet Jeremiah to Hebron to the grave of the forefathers with the news of what had happened, and then, having learned about the fall of the Temple, the forefathers tore their clothes and wept bitterly.

In 1643, Machpela was visited by the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. While inspecting the mosque, the Sultan accidentally dropped his saber into a hole in the floor, through which it fell into the funeral grotto of the patriarchs. By order of the Sultan, several servants were lowered onto ropes behind the saber, but they were all taken out of the cave dead. Local Muslim residents, even under pain of death, refused to go down to the grotto. Then one of the Sultan's advisers advised him to demand that the Jews take out a saber.

Avram Azulai (author of several books, including the most famous Chesed le-Abraham) took on this mission and descended into the cave. There he met Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah and other forefathers, who announced to him that he must leave the earthly world. However, in order to prevent the Sultan's anger from provoking the persecution of the Jews of Hebron, Abraham Azalay was allowed to be the first person in history to return from the cave of the forefathers. The saber was returned to the Sultan, and a day later Abraham Azoulay died.

Geographically, Hebron is part of the so-called “Jerusalem speleological region”. This region impresses with its diversity of speleological forms. Thus, the limestones of Ofra are huge karst fields, cut by vertical fireplaces up to 50 meters deep, the limestones of Beit Shemesh are developed horizontal caves, the area of ​​Bethlehem and Hebron are entire karst systems, often watered by an underground sewer.

Since ancient times, caves in this area have been used by humans as warehouses, living quarters, cattle pens, workshops, etc. Today, at the corner of the majestic Mearat HaMachpela, you can see a classic karst sinkhole with a diameter of 6 meters and a depth of 5 meters. The bottom of the hole is cemented, and guides, when asked what kind of depression this is, have been answering for several decades that it is a “pool.” In fact, according to the geological map, this is an exposed fragment of a fault, which, 30 km to the east, ends with an active stream flowing into the Dead Sea.

After Hebron was captured by the IDF on June 8, 1967, during the Six-Day War, and non-Muslims were again allowed to enter the building above the burial crypt of the patriarchs, many assumed attempts to enter the burial chamber through a narrow opening in the floor of the mosque (which when Then the Sultan's saber fell. The diameter of the opening did not exceed 30 cm.

Moshe Dayan (ex-Minister of Defense of Israel) tells about his first visit to the burial crypt after a 700-year interval in his book “Living with the Bible”: “The first to go down it was Michal, the daughter of one of our officers, a thin twelve-year-old girl, brave and quick-witted, not afraid not only of spirits and demons, the existence of which has not been proven, but also of snakes and scorpions, which are completely real danger. ...Going down into the cave with a flashlight and a camera, she took photographs and pencil sketches of what she saw. It turned out that in the dungeon there are tombstones and Arabic inscriptions from the 10th century. according to R.H., niches, steps that lead upstairs, although the entrance was sealed, moreover, no traces of the door were visible in the photographs.”

Michal herself later described her speleological expedition:

“On Wednesday, October 9, 1968, my mother asked me if I would agree to go down into the dungeon under Mearat HaMachpela. ...

The car started moving, and soon we were in Hebron... I got out of the car and we went to the mosque. I saw an opening through which I had to go down. They measured it, its diameter was 28 cm. They tied me up with ropes, gave me a lantern and matches (to determine the composition of the air below) and began to lower me. I landed on a pile of papers and paper money. I found myself in a square room. Opposite me were three tombstones, the middle one taller and more decorated than the other two. There was a small square opening in the opposite wall. At the top, the rope was released a little, I climbed through it and found myself in a low, narrow corridor, the walls of which were carved into the rock. The corridor was shaped like a rectangular box. At the end of it there was a staircase, and its steps rested on a sealed wall... I measured out the narrow corridor with steps: it was 34 steps long. On the way down, I counted 16 steps, but on the way up, only fifteen. I went up and down five times, but the result remained the same. Each step was 25 cm high. I climbed the steps for the sixth time and knocked on the ceiling. There was an answering knock. Came back. They gave me a camera, and I went down again and photographed the square room, the tombstones, the corridor and the stairs. She went up again, took a pencil and paper, and went down again and sketched. She measured the room in steps: six by five. The width of each tombstone was one step and the distance between the tombstones was also one step. The width of the corridor was one step, and its height was approximately one meter.

They pulled me out. While climbing, I dropped my lantern. We had to go down again and go up again. Michal."

Apart from this description of the burial crypt under Mearat HaMachpela, there is simply no more detailed description. Thanks to this modest description, we will be able to, at least approximately, imagine the interior of the funeral grotto of the patriarchs.

Today, the opening through which Michal descended into the crypt is closed with a stone slab; no one else has descended into the dungeon; this is closely monitored by the mosque guards and the Israeli police. The only opening into the grotto that is open is the hole located under the canopy on four pillars, into which an unquenchable lamp is lowered, according to Muslim custom. The flickering of a burning lamp can be seen by looking inside the hole. The light of the lamp is intended to remind all visitors to Mearat HaMachpela of the light of the Garden of Eden, which, according to legend, was where the forefather Adam saw.

Controversy surrounding the burial site of forefather Adam

The early Christian tradition about the burial of Adam, as we indicated above, is associated with the elevation behind the Jerusalem fortress wall, where the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified. This place was called Mount Golgotha. Origen also wrote about this, saying that “on the Place of Execution, where the Jews crucified Christ, the body of Adam rested, and the shed blood of the Savior washed the bones of Adam, reviving the entire human race in his person.”

In the 4th century. according to R.H. this legend has become almost universally accepted. In Pseudo-Athanasius we can read that Christ suffered in the place “where, as the Jewish teachers say, was the grave of Adam.” St. Epiphanius even pointed out in Panarion that the skull of Adam was actually found on Golgotha. The same tradition was supported by St. Basil the Great and St. John Chrysostom and many other Church Fathers.

In the Gospel, the Lord often calls Himself the Son of Man, which in Hebrew sounds like בֵן-אָדָם “Ben Adam” - “Son of Adam.” The Church is developing the doctrine of Christ as a typological correspondence to the first man. The Apostle Paul speaks of Christ as the “new”, “second” Adam. “The first Adam was created with a living soul,” wrote St. Ambrose of Milan, - the second is the life-giving Spirit. This second Adam is Christ.” The Lord Jesus Christ was interpreted in the patristic teaching as a kind of antitype of Adam. If the biblical forefather fell into original sin and doomed humanity to death, then Christ, the second Adam, cleansed people from sin and delivered them from death.

The typological rapprochement of Christ and the forefather Adam entailed a rapprochement, as well as identification of the holy places associated with them. In parallel, two traditions began to exist, each of which claimed that the biblical forefather Adam was buried, according to one version, in Hebron, and according to the other, in Jerusalem on Mount Golgotha. Moreover, blessed one. Jerome of Stridon, in his commentary on the Epistle to the Ephesians (5:14), even expressed doubt that Adam’s grave was located at the site of Christ’s crucifixion. Other church writers were equally critical of this version. The English pilgrim Zewulf, who visited Jerusalem during the Crusader era, as well as John of Wurzburg, who described the holy places of Palestine, who were undoubtedly familiar with the tradition of venerating Golgotha ​​as the tomb of Adam, nevertheless argued that Adam was buried in Hebron.

How can these two valid traditions be reconciled? The apocryphal manuscript “Cave of Treasures,” dated to the 7th century, sheds light. according to R.H., written in Syriac. This manuscript tells that the patriarch Noah saved the remains of Adam and Eve from the flood and after the completion of the flood they were again buried in Hebron. Patriarch Noah bequeathed only a skull and two bones to Shem, his son, to be buried in Jerusalem, where, according to the archaic idea, the center of the earth was located.

It should be noted that Talmudic sources identify Noah's son Shem and Melchizedek, king of Salem, claiming that they are one and the same person (in the original language מלכי-צדק "Malki-Tzedek" means "my righteous king" or "king of righteousness", which according to some exegetes, it cannot be a proper name). Well, if you compare the years of life of Shem and Abraham, you can see that Shem could actually live during the time of Abraham, which allowed their legendary meeting to take place after Abraham’s victory over the coalition of monarchs of Mesopotamia.

And this fact allows for the hypothesis that Shem personally confirmed to Abraham, on the one hand, the fact of the return after the Flood of the remains of Adam and Eve to the burial grotto of Machpelah, and on the other hand, the transfer, according to the will of his father, Patriarch Noah, of the head and two bones to ancient Salim ( Jerusalem), where he himself settled after the Flood and was “a priest of the Most High God (Gen. 14:18).”

This explains the ancient name of Mount Golgotha, which in Hebrew sounds like “Gulgolet” (גוּלגוֹלֶת), which translates as “skull”. Consequently, the two legends do not contradict one another - being buried in Hebron, the head of the forefather Adam was transferred to Jerusalem and interred in the place where the Lord Jesus Christ would later be crucified, whose Blood, falling on the remains of the biblical forefather, would wash away original sin.

In fact, this little-known Syriac apocrypha explains where iconographic tradition The Orthodox Church adopted the image of a skull and crossbones at the base of the Calvary Cross.

Today in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, in the chapel of the Crucifixion in the rock, you can see a crevice (a consequence of the earthquake that accompanied the death of the Savior), through which, according to Tradition, the Blood of the Son of God, falling on the skull of the forefather Adam, washed away the sin of the first man. It was here, back in the times of the Crusaders, that a chapel in honor of the forefather Adam was consecrated in the Temple of the Resurrection on this site.