{"id":4783,"date":"2026-04-21T09:29:53","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T09:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/shedim\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T14:29:21","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:29:21","slug":"shedim","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/","title":{"rendered":"Shedim"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"4783\" class=\"elementor elementor-4783 elementor-850\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-10fdade e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"10fdade\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-herohlft0 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"herohlft0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c3ceb64 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"c3ceb64\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-96ae5e1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"96ae5e1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Shedim, demons of the Jewish tradition<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e45238a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e45238a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Shedim are <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effects are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demons<\/span> of the Jewish <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span>.<\/p><p>The classic <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effects are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demon<\/span> concept of Judaism, between the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> and the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A linguistic ritual intended to summon or bind a power.\" tabindex=\"0\">incantation<\/span> bowl.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-klsbdg01 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"klsbdg01\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-klshtm01 elementor-widget elementor-widget-html\" data-id=\"klshtm01\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"html.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"iwg-pill-row\"><span class=\"iwg-klasse-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Demon: A supernatural being with mostly harmful or ambivalent effects. It stands between gods and humans, causes illness, temptation or misfortune, and is warded off through incantation, apotropaic objects and rituals.\">Demon<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/judaism\/\" class=\"iwg-kultur-badge\" tabindex=\"0\" data-tooltip=\"Jewish faith tradition from the Tanakh to Kabbalah and modern mysticism.\">Judaism<\/a><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3f74855 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3f74855\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1c30362 elementor-toc--minimized-on-tablet elementor-widget elementor-widget-table-of-contents\" data-id=\"1c30362\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-settings=\"{&quot;exclude_headings_by_selector&quot;:[],&quot;no_headings_message&quot;:&quot;Es wurden keine \\u00dcberschriften auf dieser Seite gefunden.&quot;,&quot;headings_by_tags&quot;:[&quot;h2&quot;,&quot;h3&quot;],&quot;marker_view&quot;:&quot;bullets&quot;,&quot;icon&quot;:{&quot;value&quot;:&quot;fas fa-circle&quot;,&quot;library&quot;:&quot;fa-solid&quot;,&quot;rendered_tag&quot;:&quot;&lt;svg class=\\&quot;e-font-icon-svg e-fas-circle\\&quot; viewBox=\\&quot;0 0 512 512\\&quot; xmlns=\\&quot;http:\\\/\\\/www.w3.org\\\/2000\\\/svg\\&quot;&gt;&lt;path d=\\&quot;M256 8C119 8 8 119 8 256s111 248 248 248 248-111 248-248S393 8 256 8z\\&quot;&gt;&lt;\\\/path&gt;&lt;\\\/svg&gt;&quot;},&quot;minimize_box&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;minimized_on&quot;:&quot;tablet&quot;,&quot;hierarchical_view&quot;:&quot;yes&quot;,&quot;min_height&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_tablet&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]},&quot;min_height_mobile&quot;:{&quot;unit&quot;:&quot;px&quot;,&quot;size&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;sizes&quot;:[]}}\" data-widget_type=\"table-of-contents.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-toc__header-title\">\n\t\t\t\tTable of Contents\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--expand\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Open table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-down\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M207.029 381.476L12.686 187.132c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941l22.667-22.667c9.357-9.357 24.522-9.375 33.901-.04L224 284.505l154.745-154.021c9.379-9.335 24.544-9.317 33.901.04l22.667 22.667c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941L240.971 381.476c-9.373 9.372-24.569 9.372-33.942 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__toggle-button elementor-toc__toggle-button--collapse\" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" aria-controls=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" aria-expanded=\"true\" aria-label=\"Close table of contents\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"e-font-icon-svg e-fas-chevron-up\" viewBox=\"0 0 448 512\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M240.971 130.524l194.343 194.343c9.373 9.373 9.373 24.569 0 33.941l-22.667 22.667c-9.357 9.357-24.522 9.375-33.901.04L224 227.495 69.255 381.516c-9.379 9.335-24.544 9.317-33.901-.04l-22.667-22.667c-9.373-9.373-9.373-24.569 0-33.941L207.03 130.525c9.372-9.373 24.568-9.373 33.941-.001z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"elementor-toc__1c30362\" class=\"elementor-toc__body\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-toc__spinner-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"elementor-toc__spinner eicon-animation-spin e-font-icon-svg e-eicon-loading\" aria-hidden=\"true\" viewBox=\"0 0 1000 1000\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M500 975V858C696 858 858 696 858 500S696 142 500 142 142 304 142 500H25C25 237 238 25 500 25S975 237 975 500 763 975 500 975Z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-herorght0 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"herorght0\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-heroimg00 iwg-hero-image elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"heroimg00\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"683\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim-683x1024.webp\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-4784\" alt=\"Shedim - demons from the Jewish tradition, historical and illustrative\" srcset=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim-683x1024.webp 683w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim-200x300.webp 200w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim-768x1152.webp 768w, https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-32917199 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"32917199\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-26e916cb e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"26e916cb\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-253a40d4 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"253a40d4\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1200c304 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1200c304\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Shedim<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-11758e7f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"11758e7f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><em>Shedim<\/em> is the most widely used collective term for demons in the Jewish tradition. Unlike Lilith, Asmodai or Azazel, the word does not denote a single figure but a class of invisible, often dangerous beings that stand between <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In the Abrahamic religions, a heavenly messenger being of God.\" tabindex=\"0\">angels<\/span> and humans.<\/p><p>Attested only twice in Biblical Hebrew (Deut 32:17; Ps 106:37), <em>shedim<\/em> becomes the standard term for demons in general in rabbinic literature.<\/p><p>The body of evidence is vast. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> contains numerous narratives and legal rulings that presuppose shedim; the Aramaic incantation bowls bind them by name; medieval Kabbalists place them in hierarchies of the &#8220;other side&#8221;.<\/p><p>The term remains in use into modern Hasidic folk <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The academic discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religion<\/span>. Its etymology links it to the Mesopotamian <em>shedu<\/em> (a protective genius, partly threatening), one of the densest linguistic and religious bridges between Mesopotamia and Judaism.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-159dcf9a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"159dcf9a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-48cee66f elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"48cee66f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">At a Glance: Shedim<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3f50d82c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3f50d82c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Type:<\/strong> Collective term for demons and invisible harmful beings<br>Origin: Probably Mesopotamian (<em>shedu<\/em>), adopted into Biblical Hebrew<br>Texts: Deut 32:17; Ps 106:37; <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> (among others Pesachim 110, 112); Aramaic incantation bowls; <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A current of Jewish mysticism with principal works such as the Sefer Yetzirah and the Zohar.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kabbalah<\/span><br>Period: Pre-exilic to the present<br>Distribution: Babylonia, Palestine, the worldwide diaspora<br>Defense: <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The verbal turning of a person toward a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">Prayer<\/span>, name <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of events through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magic<\/span>, <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A worn object to which a protective, misfortune-averting effect is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">amulets<\/span>, mezuzah, rabbinically regulated protective practices<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-18613602 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"18613602\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-262b8a9f elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"262b8a9f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Classification<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-46dcb7d e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"46dcb7d\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-61d3ab3 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"61d3ab3\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-117c166 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"117c166\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Period of the Texts<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-73997a0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"73997a0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The two biblical passages appear in the context of polemic against <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An image or statue venerated as divine.\" tabindex=\"0\">idol<\/span> worship; here the shedim are the &#8220;foreign powers&#8221; to whom Israel unlawfully brings <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A gift to a deity, expressing thanks, petition or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">offerings<\/span>.<\/p><p>The elaboration takes place in the rabbinic literature of the 3rd to 6th centuries CE, especially in the Babylonian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span>. The Aramaic incantation bowls (4th to 7th centuries) provide rich practical insights. Medieval <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A current of Jewish mysticism with principal works such as the Sefer Yetzirah and the Zohar.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kabbalah<\/span> and folk magic carry the tradition forward.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d47b156 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d47b156\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ff38c2b elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"ff38c2b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Area of Distribution<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4e49fcc elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4e49fcc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The center is Babylonia (the Sasanian Empire), where the incantation bowls originate. Alongside it stand Palestine and the entire later diaspora. The shedim remain present in modern Jewish communities worldwide, especially in Orthodox and Hasidic circles.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-db03c39 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"db03c39\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-229a87b e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"229a87b\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f471fc elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1f471fc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Source Situation<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-36b1201 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"36b1201\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Individual biblical passages, rabbinic literature (Mishnah, Tosefta, <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span>), midrashic texts, Aramaic incantation bowls in hundreds of examples, medieval <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A current of Jewish mysticism with principal works such as the Sefer Yetzirah and the Zohar.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kabbalah<\/span> (Sefer Raziel, <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Principal work of medieval Jewish mysticism (Spain, 13th c.); kabbalistic Torah interpretation.\" tabindex=\"0\">Zohar<\/span>), amulets, and modern folk-religious handbooks. One of the best-attested classes of demons in the entire Mediterranean region.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3ae0637c e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"3ae0637c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-31d07739 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"31d07739\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Designation and Spellings<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b7642947 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"b7642947\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a086266 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a086266\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Hebrew:<\/strong> <em>shed<\/em> (\u05e9\u05b5\u05c1\u05d3, singular), <em>shedim<\/em> (\u05e9\u05b5\u05c1\u05d3\u05b4\u05d9\u05dd, plural).<br>Aramaic: <em>sh\u012bd\u0101<\/em>, plural <em>sh\u012bd\u0113<\/em>.<br>Related terms: <em>mazzikim<\/em> (harmers), <em>ruchot ra&#8217;ot<\/em> (evil <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A bodiless being to which agency in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirits<\/span>), <em>lilin<\/em> (night figures). All denote overlapping but not identical categories.<\/p><p>The probable derivation from the Mesopotamian <em>shedu<\/em> (the protective bull genius at <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A structure that serves the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temple<\/span> and palace gates) is linguistically interesting: what was a protective force in Mesopotamia becomes a threat in Israel. This reflects the religious-historical position of biblical <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The belief in a single god.\" tabindex=\"0\">monotheism<\/span>: what others venerated as protective gods can only be a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effects are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demon<\/span> within the Israelite system.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-709a44a8 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"709a44a8\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2f585873 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2f585873\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Description<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-70621c12 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"70621c12\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4296eb49 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4296eb49\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Appearance<\/strong><\/p><p>Largely invisible. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> describes them with humor: &#8220;Whoever wishes to see their tracks should scatter ashes around his bed, and in the morning he will see the marks of rooster feet.&#8221; Individual texts give them wings, a basically human form, and non-human feet. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The study of pictorial content and its meaning.\" tabindex=\"0\">iconography<\/span> of the incantation bowls shows them bound, mostly anthropomorphic.<\/p><p><strong>Behavior<\/strong><\/p><p>Shedim inhabit unclean places (ruins, latrines, cemeteries), boundaries and places of transition. They cause illness, disturb sleep, stir up conflict, and seduce. Unlike Lilith, they have no specific area of responsibility; they are the &#8220;general&#8221; demonic threat of everyday life.<\/p><p><strong>Sphere of Influence<\/strong><\/p><p>Unclean places, transitions, nocturnal situations, travel. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> names specific danger zones: edges, doorsills, wells, privies, and paths at dusk.<\/p><p><strong>Mythological Origin<\/strong><\/p><p>Midrashic traditions know various origins: as the last beings of the week of creation, as the offspring of Adam with Lilith, as beings formed from dust that remained unfinished before the completion of creation. The diversity of these narratives is itself an expression of the openness of the category.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-44e71476 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"44e71476\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3c1fc3f0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3c1fc3f0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Profile: Shedim<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-84f33b8e e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"84f33b8e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-hqkdc67p elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"hqkdc67p\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The most important aspects of the shedim at a glance. You will find the detailed treatment of their name, description, defense and parallels in the following sections.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c5 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c1 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c1\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-qh9oavvu iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"qh9oavvu\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-awzx8k2k elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"awzx8k2k\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Origin<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-x6rowhv0 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"x6rowhv0\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A collective term, not a single being. Etymologically probably adopted from the Mesopotamian <em>shedu<\/em>, turned to the negative in Biblical and rabbinic Hebrew.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8e3o4kxs iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"8e3o4kxs\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-08rkdgov elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"08rkdgov\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Shedim's Targets<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-uwjelx8s elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"uwjelx8s\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A general threat. People who stay at unclean places or at thresholds; travelers at dusk; sleepers without a protective formula.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-jm2n74ec iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"jm2n74ec\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8vufse4c elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"8vufse4c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Appearance<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-mwb9u015 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"mwb9u015\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Largely invisible. Occasionally described with rooster feet, wings, and a human upper form. On incantation bowls they are depicted as anthropomorphic and bound.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-pemmx7c2 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"pemmx7c2\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-37ss2yr6 iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"37ss2yr6\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3v0wp3wx elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"3v0wp3wx\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Function<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-w3247g2m elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"w3247g2m\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Illness, nocturnal disturbances, conflict, sudden fright. Harmful effect without any sharpened thematic specialization.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0qpjal9w iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"0qpjal9w\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6ndoih0o elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6ndoih0o\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Protection<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6684tyh9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6684tyh9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The verbal turning of a person toward a deity.\" tabindex=\"0\">Prayer<\/span>, name magic, amulets, a mezuzah on the door, protective formulas when entering unclean places. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> gives detailed rules of conduct (for example when going to the latrine).<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3lfi7x32 iwg-steckbrief-card e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-child\" data-id=\"3lfi7x32\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0kg99ga1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0kg99ga1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Related Beings<\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-n0fum6kp elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"n0fum6kp\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Mesopotamian <em>shedu<\/em>\/<em>lamassu<\/em> (etymologically related), Greek <em>daimones<\/em> (a comparable collective category), Christian demons in general, and Arabic <em><span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In the Quran, beings made of smokeless fire with free will, neither angel nor demon, but an independent creation with their own morality.\" tabindex=\"0\">jinn<\/span><\/em>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7533bc7a e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"7533bc7a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2447d18d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"2447d18d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Practical Defense<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d5d0260c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"d5d0260c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-341be2ac elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"341be2ac\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Rituals of Defense<\/strong><\/p><p>The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> gives detailed instructions: protective formulas when entering a latrine, spitting three times at certain encounters, and washing the hands after waking. These small everyday rituals keep shedim at a distance without negotiating with them directly.<\/p><p><strong>Incantations<\/strong><\/p><p>The Aramaic incantation bowls are the richest source. Their texts conjure individual shedim by name, bind them with divine names and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In the Abrahamic religions, a heavenly messenger being of God.\" tabindex=\"0\">angelic<\/span> names, and send them back to unclean places. The central logic: whoever knows the name of a shed has power over it.<\/p><p><strong>Amulets and Protective Symbols<\/strong><\/p><p>A mezuzah on every doorpost, with the divine name <em>Shaddai<\/em> upon it, is regarded as a guardian. Kimpetzettel (childbed notes) for the lying-in period and the infant. Amulets with verses from the Psalms and angelic names. The hamsa hand against the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Widespread notion that an envious gaze from another person can cause harm.\" tabindex=\"0\">evil eye<\/span>.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5a584676 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"5a584676\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6d0757bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"6d0757bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Parallels and Afterlife<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-60563f68 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"60563f68\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5a93fdd6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5a93fdd6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Mesopotamia<\/strong><\/p><p>The name probably goes back to <em>shedu<\/em>, a protective bull there and a <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effects are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demon<\/span> here. This reevaluation is a model case of religious-historical change.<\/p><p><strong>Islamic Tradition<\/strong><\/p><p>The Arabic <em>jinn<\/em> structurally take over many features of the shedim: a class of invisible intermediary beings, ambivalent, between human and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In the Abrahamic religions, a heavenly messenger being of God.\" tabindex=\"0\">angel<\/span>. The parallels are close, without any direct dependence being demonstrable.<\/p><p><strong>Modern Jewish <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmitted folk culture with customs, narratives and songs.\" tabindex=\"0\">Folklore<\/span><\/strong><\/p><p>In Eastern European Hasidic traditions the idea of the shedim remains alive. Modern literature (I. B. Singer, dybbuk tales) draws on them. In contemporary Israeli speech, <em>shed<\/em> is used colloquially for &#8220;rascal&#8221; or &#8220;imp&#8221;, an ambivalently mischievous softening.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp0ac5bb5 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp0ac5bb5\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp56528b4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp56528b4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Few Biblical References and the Problem of Translation<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpc36c61c e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpc36c61c\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpc2c0977 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cpc2c0977\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The Hebrew word <em>shedim<\/em> occurs only twice in the entire Tanakh, both times in the plural. In the Book of Deuteronomy, Israel is reproached for having sacrificed to the <em>shedim<\/em>, who are no <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A being venerated as divine within a religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">deity<\/span>, new gods whom the fathers did not know.<\/p><p>In a Psalm it says that the people sacrificed their sons and daughters to the <em>shedim<\/em> and thereby shed innocent blood. Both passages closely connect the word with forbidden sacrificial worship, especially with child <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An offering to a deity to express gratitude, petition, or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">sacrifices<\/span> offered to foreign powers.<\/p><p>Even this slim evidentiary basis makes clear that the biblical <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The transmission of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">record<\/span> says almost nothing about the nature of these beings. The texts are polemical; they aim to devalue foreign cults, not to develop a demonology.<\/p><p><em>Shedim<\/em> appears here as a collective designation for the recipients of a cult that the biblical authors brand as idolatrous and bloody.<\/p><p>Scholarship connects the word with great probability to the Akkadian <em>shedu<\/em>. In the Mesopotamian region this designated a protective <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An incorporeal being to which effects in the world are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span>, often in the form of a winged bull-man, who guarded the gates of palaces and <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A structure that serves the veneration of one or more deities.\" tabindex=\"0\">temples<\/span>.<\/p><p>What in Mesopotamia was a benevolent protective genius was reinterpreted in the Hebrew Bible as a foreign, unlawful power to which one must not <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"An offering to a deity to express thanks, request, or veneration.\" tabindex=\"0\">sacrifice<\/span>.<\/p><p>This reinterpretation is a good example of a widespread pattern. The gods and spirits of the neighboring peoples are not denied in biblical <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The belief in a single god.\" tabindex=\"0\">monotheism<\/span> but devalued; they are not true deities but mere <em>shedim<\/em>, to whom no lawful <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The totality of religious acts of veneration for a deity or sacred figure.\" tabindex=\"0\">cult<\/span> may be directed.<\/p><p>Later Jewish demonology thus had hardly any biblical foundation on which to build, and had to develop the picture of these beings largely anew.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp01ffe67 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp01ffe67\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp4c67ed9 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp4c67ed9\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Elaboration of the Shedim in Rabbinic Writings<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpeb7801e e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpeb7801e\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp75df800 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp75df800\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Only the rabbinic literature, above all the Babylonian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> and the associated works of interpretation, turned the bare biblical word into an elaborated class of demons. Here the <em>shedim<\/em> appear as a numerous, ever-present kind of being.<\/p><p>An often-cited passage in the Talmudic tractate Berakhot describes how the shedim surround people in immense numbers, how each person has thousands of them on the left and on the right, and how the crowding in the study house or the weariness of the knees stems from their activity.<\/p><p>The rabbis placed the shedim in an intermediate position.<\/p><p>A well-known text lists three properties in which they resemble the ministering angels: they have wings, they fly from one end of the world to the other, and they know what is to come; and three in which they resemble humans: they eat and drink, they reproduce, and they die.<\/p><p>The shedim thus stand between <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"In the Abrahamic religions, a heavenly messenger being of God.\" tabindex=\"0\">angel<\/span> and human; they are corporeal enough to die and spiritual enough to possess hidden knowledge.<\/p><p>Various conceptions circulated about their origin. A widespread <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The passing on of knowledge and narratives across generations.\" tabindex=\"0\">tradition<\/span> connects them with the twilight of the sixth day of creation, when God created their souls but, because of the approaching Sabbath, no longer completed their bodies, so that they remained unfinished between the spheres. Other texts trace certain demons back to Adam.<\/p><p>The rabbinic literature also developed the names of individual leaders, gives hints about their preferred dwelling places, such as ruins, latrines, the shadows of trees and lonely paths at night, and names times of particular danger. In this way the biblical collective term became a detailed body of teaching that pervaded everyday life.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp5910d47 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp5910d47\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpf11b154 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cpf11b154\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Protection and Defense in Jewish Everyday Life<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cpe1b0a3d e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cpe1b0a3d\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp1bd9a61 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp1bd9a61\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>If, according to rabbinic conception, the world is densely populated with <em>shedim<\/em>, then everyday life requires protective measures. Over the centuries the Jewish tradition developed a rich repertoire of defense and precaution, drawn from the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span>, from the subsequent legal works, and from folk practice.<\/p><p>At the center stands the word. The pronouncement of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The bestowal of well-being and protection, often in a fixed verbal form.\" tabindex=\"0\">blessings<\/span>, the study of the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The Five Books of Moses, the foundational body of scripture of Judaism.\" tabindex=\"0\">Torah<\/span>, and especially the recitation of certain Psalms, above all the so-called Psalm against the plagues, were regarded as effective protection.<\/p><p>The Shema, the Jewish confession of faith spoken at bedtime, was also understood as a defense against the terrors of the night. The mezuzah on the doorpost, which contains verses from the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The Five Books of Moses, the foundational body of scripture of Judaism.\" tabindex=\"0\">Torah<\/span>, also protects the house from harmful powers according to widespread belief.<\/p><p>Alongside these stood concrete rules of conduct. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> advises avoiding certain endangered places, not walking through ruins alone and at night, not drinking water that has stood uncovered through the night, and not passing between two persons or between two trees at dangerous spots.<\/p><p>Performing certain actions in pairs, and avoiding even numbers in certain contexts, also belonged to these prescriptions.<\/p><p>In folk <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The lived religious attitude and practice of a person.\" tabindex=\"0\">piety<\/span>, especially in the milieu of Lurianic <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A current of Jewish mysticism with principal works such as the Sefer Yetzirah and the Zohar.\" tabindex=\"0\">Kabbalah<\/span> and of Eastern European Judaism, amulets were added, inscribed parchments with divine names, angelic names and biblical verses, worn on the body or affixed in the house.<\/p><p>Their use was especially widespread in protecting women in childbed and newborns, who were regarded as particularly at risk. These practices show that the shedim were no mere doctrinal opinion but a reality with which lived religion reckoned daily.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp50c27ba e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"cp50c27ba\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp3772d2d elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"cp3772d2d\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Solomon, the Mastery of Demons, and the Later Formation of Legend<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp466c7cf e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"cp466c7cf\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-cp24567e8 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"cp24567e8\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A distinct line of tradition connects the <em>shedim<\/em> with King Solomon. It proceeds from the biblical depiction, which ascribes to Solomon superior wisdom and dominion over all creation, and develops from it the idea that the king also ruled the spirits and demons.<\/p><p>The Babylonian <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> already contains a detailed narrative in which Solomon captures the leader of the demons with the help of a signet ring engraved with the divine name and forces him to serve in the building of the Temple.<\/p><p>In the course of the story, Solomon temporarily loses power over the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A spiritual being to which harmful or ambivalent effects are attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">demon<\/span> through his own arrogance.<\/p><p>This Talmudic narrative became the nucleus of a sprawling post-biblical legendary tradition. In later texts, some arising outside rabbinic Judaism, Solomon becomes the great master over the demons, who knows their names, their domains and the means of subduing them.<\/p><p>Part of the Jewish <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Practices that seek to intervene in the course of events through special actions or formulas.\" tabindex=\"0\">magical<\/span> literature of the Middle Ages, and the literature influenced by it, builds on this conception.<\/p><p>From the standpoint of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The discipline that studies religions comparatively and without confessional commitment.\" tabindex=\"0\">religious studies<\/span> this line is instructive, because it shows how an entire genre grows out of terse biblical allusions and isolated Talmudic narratives. The signet ring, the list of demons with their peculiarities, and the idea that knowledge of the name grants power over the being all became fixed building blocks.<\/p><p>At the same time, normative rabbinic Judaism remained reticent to disapproving toward the practical <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A verbal ritual meant to summon or bind a power.\" tabindex=\"0\">incantation<\/span> of demons.<\/p><p>The Solomon tradition therefore often moved at the edge of official religion or beyond it. Yet it shows that the <em>shedim<\/em> were conceived not only as a threat but also as masterable powers whose forces a sufficiently wise and pious person could press into service.<\/p><p>This tension between defense and mastery runs through the entire Jewish engagement with the shedim.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-36dd7469 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"36dd7469\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-13760ab4 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"13760ab4\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Further Links<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-28c87796 e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"28c87796\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5d6538df elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5d6538df\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Recommended internal links:<\/p><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/judaism\/\">Judaism<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/lilith\/\">Lilith<\/a> (a concrete representative of the class)<\/li><li><a href=\"\/en\/asmodai\/\">Asmodai<\/a> (king of the shedim hierarchy)<\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/mesopotamia\/\">Mesopotamia<\/a> (the shedu etymology)<\/li><li>Aramaic incantation bowls<\/li><li>The mezuzah and Jewish protective amulets<\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-grl4kl40 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"grl4kl40\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-bzsbfrmh elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"bzsbfrmh\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Research Literature<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2c13224a e-con-full e-flex e-con e-child\" data-id=\"2c13224a\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0eymh9ub elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0eymh9ub\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<footer class=\"iwg-literatur\"><p>A selection of central works on shedim and Jewish demonology:<\/p><ul><li><span data-nosnippet>Naveh, Joseph \/ Shaked, Shaul: <em>Amulets and Magic Bowls<\/em>. Jerusalem 1985.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Schrire, Theodore: <em>Hebrew Magic Amulets<\/em>. London 1966.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Bar-Ilan, Meir: &#8220;Between Magic and Religion. Sympathetic Magic in the World of the Sages.&#8221; In: <em>Review of Rabbinic Judaism<\/em> 5 (2002).<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Harari, Yuval: <em>Jewish Magic before the Rise of Kabbalah<\/em>. Detroit 2017.<\/span><\/li><li><span data-nosnippet>Trachtenberg, Joshua: <em><a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/jewishmagicsuper0000josh\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jewish Magic and Superstition<\/a><\/em>. New York 1939 (reissue Philadelphia 2004).<\/span><\/li><\/ul><div data-nosnippet=\"true\" class=\"iwg-litliste\"><p><strong>Standard literature (Judaism):<\/strong><\/p><ul><li><span data-nosnippet><strong>Hutter, Manfred<\/strong>: <em>Lilith. In: Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible. 2nd ed. Leiden 1999.<\/em><\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/footer>\n<p class=\"iwg-bib-more\"><span data-nosnippet>Further standard works in the <a href=\"\/en\/literature\/\">literature index<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgca-shedim-sec e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"iwgca-shedim-sec\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\" id=\"iwg-ca-shedim\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-iwgca-shedim-te iwg-ca-textwrap elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"iwgca-shedim-te\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div data-nosnippet=\"true\"><p class=\"iwg-ca-bridge\">The protective practice described here is a religious-studies classification of historical traditions. iWell Guard ties in with this cultural-historical line of wearable protective objects and represents a contemporary form of it. <a href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/about-iwell-guard-the-protective-pendant-in-detail\/?utm_source=iwell-guard.com&#038;utm_medium=text-link&#038;utm_campaign=schadwesen-tradition\">More about the iWell Guard \u2192<\/a><\/p><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-69c47af e-con-boxed e-flex e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"69c47af\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-e92870b elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"e92870b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2>Frequently Asked Questions about Shedim<\/h2><div class=\"iwg-faq-q\"><h3>What are shedim in the Jewish tradition?<\/h3><p>Shedim (plural of shed, Hebrew \u05e9\u05d3\u05d9\u05dd) are, in the Jewish tradition, a class of <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"A bodiless being to which an effect in the world is attributed.\" tabindex=\"0\">spirit<\/span> beings, mostly characterized as destructive or at least morally ambivalent.<\/p><p>In the Tanakh the term appears rarely (Deut 32:17; Ps 106:37), where it is used as a designation for the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"Synonymous with heathen; belonging to a pre-Christian religion.\" tabindex=\"0\">pagan<\/span> gods to whom the Israelites sacrificed their sons. In the <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> (especially Pesachim 110a-112b), shedim are treated as real, supernatural beings that live in toilets, at crossroads, in villages and in bramble hedges.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"iwg-faq-q\"><h3>How do shedim differ from mazzikim and lilin?<\/h3><p>Jewish demonology knows several classes: shedim are the most general class, body-like, intelligent beings with free will. Mazzikim (harmers) are specifically oriented toward harm. Lilin are the offspring of Lilith, night demons.<\/p><p>Ruchot are pure spirit beings, sometimes departed souls. The <span class=\"iwg-fachbegriff\" data-tooltip=\"The principal work of rabbinic Judaism, with interpretation of the religious tradition.\" tabindex=\"0\">Talmud<\/span> (Chagigah 16a) records that shedim share three properties with humans (eating, reproduction, mortality) and three with angels (wings, omniscience, invisibility); they are intermediary beings.<\/p><\/div><script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What are shedim in the Jewish tradition?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Shedim (plural of shed, Hebrew \u05e9\u05d3\u05d9\u05dd) are, in the Jewish tradition, a class of spirit beings, mostly characterized as destructive or at least morally ambivalent.In the Tanakh the term appears rarely (Deut 32:17; Ps 106:37), where it is used as a designation for the pagan gods to whom the Israelites sacrificed their sons. In the Talmud (especially Pesachim 110a-112b), shedim are treated as real, supernatural beings that live in toilets, at crossroads, in villages and in bramble hedges.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"How do shedim differ from mazzikim and lilin?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Jewish demonology knows several classes: shedim are the most general class, body-like, intelligent beings with free will. Mazzikim (harmers) are specifically oriented toward harm. Lilin are the offspring of Lilith, night demons.Ruchot are pure spirit beings, sometimes departed souls. The Talmud (Chagigah 16a) records that shedim share three properties with humans (eating, reproduction, mortality) and three with angels (wings, omniscience, invisibility); they are intermediary beings.\"}}]}<\/script>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Shedim, demons of the Jewish tradition Shedim are demons of the Jewish tradition. The classic demon concept of Judaism, between the Talmud and the incantation bowl. DemonJudaism Table of Contents Shedim Shedim is the most widely used collective term for demons in the Jewish tradition. Unlike Lilith, Asmodai or Azazel, the word does not denote [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4784,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_focuskw":"Shedim","_yoast_wpseo_title":"Shedim: Demons of the Jewish Tradition","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_angie_page":false,"gefaehrdungsstufe":"","wesen_kultur":"","wesen_klasse":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[79,80,84],"class_list":["post-4783","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cultures","category-demons","category-judaism"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v28.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Shedim: Demons of the Jewish Tradition<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Shedim\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"iWell Guard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1536\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"12 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/\",\"name\":\"Shedim: Demons of the Jewish Tradition\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-21T09:29:53+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00\",\"description\":\"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":1536,\"caption\":\"Demons from the Jewish tradition.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Start\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/home\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Shedim\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"iWell Guard\",\"description\":\"Schutz vor dunklen Einfl\u00fcssen\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Ittermann electronic GmbH\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png\",\"width\":1182,\"height\":237,\"caption\":\"Ittermann electronic GmbH\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/pantip.com\\\/profile\\\/9367242\",\"https:\\\/\\\/micro.blog\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.diggerslist.com\\\/iwellguard\\\/about\",\"https:\\\/\\\/skitterphoto.com\\\/photographers\\\/2870314\\\/iwell-guard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/iwellguard.wordpress.com\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/06\\\/iwell-guard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/hub.docker.com\\\/u\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pinterest.com\\\/iwellguard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/bit.ly\\\/m\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/entre-vos-mains.alsace.eu\\\/profiles\\\/iwellguard\\\/activity\",\"https:\\\/\\\/gravatar.com\\\/reallybeded8fd34\",\"https:\\\/\\\/naijamatta.com\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.goodreads.com\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/profile.hatena.ne.jp\\\/iwellguard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/experiment.com\\\/users\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/wakelet.com\\\/@iWellGuard82270\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.chordie.com\\\/forum\\\/profile.php?id=2555664\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instapaper.com\\\/p\\\/17757966\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mapleprimes.com\\\/users\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/businesslistingplus.com\\\/profile\\\/iwell-guard\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/telegra.ph\\\/iWell-Guard-06-06\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pbase.com\\\/iwellguard\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/b.hatena.ne.jp\\\/iwellguard\\\/20260607#bookmark-4788405196491818882\",\"https:\\\/\\\/fliphtml5.com\\\/home\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/anyflip.com\\\/homepage\\\/cmiwl#About\",\"https:\\\/\\\/transfur.com\\\/Users\\\/iwellguard\",\"http:\\\/\\\/delphi.larsbo.org\\\/user\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/jobs.lajobsportal.org\\\/profiles\\\/8380803-iwell-guard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/md.chaosdorf.de\\\/s\\\/jfbe5SBdJD\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.lingvolive.com\\\/en-us\\\/profile\\\/9ecaeaca-ce11-4e51-9e71-01d55e2bff36\\\/translations\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.fitday.com\\\/fitness\\\/forums\\\/members\\\/iwellguard.html\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.mymeetbook.com\\\/iwellguard\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pxhere.com\\\/en\\\/photographer-me\\\/5040798\",\"https:\\\/\\\/disqus.com\\\/by\\\/iwellguard\\\/about\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pastelink.net\\\/hjwciqwq\",\"https:\\\/\\\/pubhtml5.com\\\/homepage\\\/scjhn\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bitchute.com\\\/channel\\\/2O2eOKzNqujT\",\"https:\\\/\\\/audiomack.com\\\/iwellguard\"]},{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ralf Ittermann\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f\"},\"headline\":\"Shedim\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-21T09:29:53+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":2482,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/en\\\/shedim\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/iwell-guard.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Cultures\",\"Demons\",\"Judaism\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"description\":\"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Shedim: Demons of the Jewish Tradition","description":"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Shedim","og_description":"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.","og_url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/","og_site_name":"iWell Guard","article_modified_time":"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":1536,"url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"12 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/"},"author":{"name":"Ralf Ittermann","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f"},"headline":"Shedim","datePublished":"2026-04-21T09:29:53+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/"},"wordCount":2482,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp","articleSection":["Cultures","Demons","Judaism"],"inLanguage":"en-US","description":"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots."},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/","name":"Shedim: Demons of the Jewish Tradition","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp","datePublished":"2026-04-21T09:29:53+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00","description":"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp","width":1024,"height":1536,"caption":"Demons from the Jewish tradition."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Start","item":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Shedim"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/","name":"iWell Guard","description":"Schutz vor dunklen Einfl\u00fcssen","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization","name":"Ittermann electronic GmbH","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ittermann-Logo-1182x237-1.png","width":1182,"height":237,"caption":"Ittermann electronic GmbH"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/pantip.com\/profile\/9367242","https:\/\/micro.blog\/iwellguard","https:\/\/www.diggerslist.com\/iwellguard\/about","https:\/\/skitterphoto.com\/photographers\/2870314\/iwell-guard","https:\/\/iwellguard.wordpress.com\/2026\/06\/06\/iwell-guard\/","https:\/\/hub.docker.com\/u\/iwellguard","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/iwellguard\/","https:\/\/bit.ly\/m\/iwellguard","https:\/\/entre-vos-mains.alsace.eu\/profiles\/iwellguard\/activity","https:\/\/gravatar.com\/reallybeded8fd34","https:\/\/naijamatta.com\/iwellguard","https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/iwellguard","https:\/\/profile.hatena.ne.jp\/iwellguard\/","https:\/\/experiment.com\/users\/iwellguard","https:\/\/wakelet.com\/@iWellGuard82270","https:\/\/www.chordie.com\/forum\/profile.php?id=2555664","https:\/\/www.instapaper.com\/p\/17757966","https:\/\/www.mapleprimes.com\/users\/iwellguard","https:\/\/businesslistingplus.com\/profile\/iwell-guard\/","https:\/\/telegra.ph\/iWell-Guard-06-06","https:\/\/pbase.com\/iwellguard\/iwellguard","https:\/\/b.hatena.ne.jp\/iwellguard\/20260607#bookmark-4788405196491818882","https:\/\/fliphtml5.com\/home\/iwellguard","https:\/\/anyflip.com\/homepage\/cmiwl#About","https:\/\/transfur.com\/Users\/iwellguard","http:\/\/delphi.larsbo.org\/user\/iwellguard","https:\/\/jobs.lajobsportal.org\/profiles\/8380803-iwell-guard","https:\/\/md.chaosdorf.de\/s\/jfbe5SBdJD","https:\/\/www.lingvolive.com\/en-us\/profile\/9ecaeaca-ce11-4e51-9e71-01d55e2bff36\/translations","https:\/\/www.fitday.com\/fitness\/forums\/members\/iwellguard.html","https:\/\/www.mymeetbook.com\/iwellguard","https:\/\/pxhere.com\/en\/photographer-me\/5040798","https:\/\/disqus.com\/by\/iwellguard\/about\/","https:\/\/pastelink.net\/hjwciqwq","https:\/\/pubhtml5.com\/homepage\/scjhn\/","https:\/\/www.bitchute.com\/channel\/2O2eOKzNqujT","https:\/\/audiomack.com\/iwellguard"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f","name":"Ralf Ittermann","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/073c0153e350a5005b68eb752b445fea71f6b24a26da9449ad7e155e6b446c9d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/073c0153e350a5005b68eb752b445fea71f6b24a26da9449ad7e155e6b446c9d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/073c0153e350a5005b68eb752b445fea71f6b24a26da9449ad7e155e6b446c9d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ralf Ittermann"},"givenName":"Ralf","familyName":"Ittermann","jobTitle":"Gesch\u00e4ftsf\u00fchrer und redaktioneller Verantwortlicher","url":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/author\/claude\/","description":"Ralf Ittermann ist Gesch\u00e4ftsf\u00fchrer der Ittermann electronic GmbH und redaktioneller Verantwortlicher des iWell-Guard-Lexikons. Er verbindet langj\u00e4hrige Erfahrung in der Pr\u00e4zisionsfertigung mit medialer Praxis und religionsgeschichtlicher Quellenarbeit.","worksFor":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Ittermann electronic GmbH","url":"https:\/\/ittermann.de\/","address":{"@type":"PostalAddress","streetAddress":"K\u00f6hlergasse 16-18","postalCode":"99842","addressLocality":"Ruhla","addressCountry":"DE"}},"knowsAbout":["Religionsgeschichte","Mythologie","Mediale Praxis","Energetische Diagnostik","Schutzpraxis","Volksglauben","Westliche Esoterik"]},{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/"},"author":{"name":"Ralf Ittermann","@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/ee2a27f1cac3406c7c6fb5820cb7349f"},"headline":"Shedim","datePublished":"2026-04-21T09:29:53+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-05T14:29:21+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/"},"wordCount":2482,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/shedim\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/daemonen_judentum_shedim.webp","articleSection":["Cultures","Demons","Judaism"],"inLanguage":"en-US","description":"Shedim, the classic demon concept of Judaism, between Talmud and incantation bowl, with Mesopotamian roots."}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4783\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iwell-guard.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}