While you lay peacefully in your bed, you are abruptly woken by a
creature that is beautiful. This creature intends to seduce you sexually
and carry out some evil plans. No, we aren't talking about your crazy ex,
we're talking about a seccubi or incubi. Succubus comes from the latin
term succubare or "to lie under" and is the female version
of such a creature. The male version, called an
Incubus, comes from Latin meaning
"Nightmare, one who lies down on the
sleeper”. The Christian Religion has
largely labeled both the Incubus and
Succubus as evil, but the question
remains: are the succubus and incubus just
getting a bad rap?
Lilith is a well known Succubus from Jewish
Mythology. According to folklore, she was Adams
first companion before Eve. She was made of the
same ground as Adam (rather than a rib) and
when she was to serve under Adam, she refused.
She wanted to be an equal - no less. When Adam
tried to put his foot down, Lilith protested and is
often associated with chaos. She has been linked to
hurting or killing young children seeking revenge
for the way she was treated. However, some ancient cultures vary
their perception of Lillith. There is no mention of her want to hurt
small children, and she's regarded as a symbol of knowlege, power,
liberation, and freedom of thought. For instance, she is a big hit with
womens' rights and feminism.
Some other famous Succubus include Nahemah and Belili. Nahemah
is known as the princess of all succubi or the angel of prostitution,
while Belili was known as the goddess of prostitution. While today in
culture, these illegal actions are looked down upon, this has not
always been the case. In many ancient civilizations, prostitution was
quite common and some prostitutes were considered sacred.