Ziz
Giant bird in Jewish myth that darkens the sun.
The Ziz is a giant griffin-like bird in Jewish mythology, described as large enough to block out the sun with its wingspan. It appears in the Hebrew Bible only in passing, in Psalms 50:11 and 80:13, where the Hebrew term 'zîz śād̲ai' is often translated ambiguously as 'beasts of the field.' Later Jewish aggadot, particularly in the Talmudic tractates Bava Batra and Bekhorot, expand on the Ziz as a monstrous bird appointed to rule over all birds, comparable in size to the sea monster Leviathan.
- field
- Jewish mythology
- known_for
- Giant griffin-like bird that darkens the sun with its wings; ruler of birds; served to the pious at the end of time
- also_called
- Renanim, Sekwi, son of the nest, Bar Yokni
Lore & Background
The Ziz is described in the Talmudic aggadot as a bird of monstrous size, with its ankles resting on the earth and its head reaching the sky. In one account, travelers at sea saw a bird standing in water that only covered its feet, and a heavenly voice warned them not to bathe there, because a carpenter's axe dropped at that spot took seven years to reach the bottom. The Ziz's wings are so huge that unfurled they darken the sun, and they protect the earth against storms from the south. An egg of the Ziz once fell and broke, flooding sixty cities and crushing three hundred cedars, though such accidents are rare because the bird normally lets eggs slide gently into its nest.
Reader's Guide
The Ziz holds significance in Jewish mythology as a primordial creature representing the avian counterpart to Leviathan, the king of fishes. Its name is said to derive from the variety of tastes its flesh has, tasting 'like this, zeh, and like that, zeh.' The Ziz is also called Renanim, the celestial singer, and Sekwi, the seer, and is associated with the heavenly spheres. According to the aggadot, the Ziz will be served as a delicacy to the pious at the end of time, compensating them for abstaining from unclean fowls. Non-Jewish writers such as Johannes Buxtorf and Humphrey Prideaux later referenced the Ziz, with Prideaux describing it as a giant celestial rooster that crows before the Lord. The Ziz's legacy endures as an example of ancient Jewish cosmological and eschatological imagery, illustrating the interplay between biblical text and later rabbinic elaboration.
Did You Know?
- The Ziz is mentioned only twice in the Hebrew Bible, in Psalms 50:11 and 80:14, where the term is often translated as 'beasts of the field.'
- An egg of the Ziz once fell and broke, flooding sixty cities and crushing three hundred cedars.
- The Ziz is also called Renanim because it is the celestial singer, and Sekwi, meaning 'the seer.'
- According to the Talmud, the Ziz will be served to the pious at the end of time as a reward for abstaining from unclean fowls.
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