the snake's curse

[cellio]

Last week when Sean, Ralph, Lori, Eli, and I were hanging out together, someone raised the question of how the snake got around in its pre-slither days. (According to the Torah, the snake has to crawl on the ground as punishment for luring Chava to eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge.) I said that I was certain there's midrash on the subject, but I couldn't summon the knowledge at the time. I finally ended up asking a rabbi at Ohr Somayach (who provide a very friendly and helpful question-answering service).

Ok, here's the answer: according to Rashi (one of the leading commentators), the snake used to have legs but they were taken away as part of the curse. (So no, the snake wasn't "walking" on its tail or some such.) Rashi cites Midrash Rabbah (20:5), which I haven't a clue how to look up.

Comments

[saintlex.livejournal.com]

I added you to my friends list. I hope you don't mind.

You seem like a very cool person, and we seem to have some interests in common. :)

[cellio]

Mind? Why should I mind? I'm flattered. :-)

(You're the first previously-unknown LJ person who found/added me, as opposed to me finding/adding someone else.)

You sound like an interesting person too. I gather from your journal that you're a recent grad in search of an interesting job (in what field?). Good luck in the search! Are you in DC because that's where you want to be, or because that's where you already are?

Re:

[saintlex.livejournal.com]

Yes, recent grad in search of interesting job pretty much describes it. ;) I'd like to eventually go into human rights advocacy (meaning I'll be going to law school in the next few years), but for now I'm trying to break into either the nonprofit or legal field. No luck yet. *sigh*

I'm in DC because this is where I want to live. :) I wanted to move out, and my parents agreed to support me until I'm completely financially self-sufficient. I have some friends out here, and the nonprofit sector is very big here, as you can imagine. It's a cool place to be (though maybe this isn't the best time--but then, I just moved from a suburb of NY to a suburb of DC! I just can't stay away from disaster, can I?). ;)