The Torah begins with the Creation. Worlds before Creation of matter are not written in the Torah but are "brought down" in Kabbalistic works.  

In the case of Eve/Chavah, there is the "Eve of the Torah" [of Creation], and there is another Eve who is hidden between the words of the Torah and who is mentioned in Kabbalistic works.

The account of Creation in Genesis/Bereishis, Chapter 1, is different from the account in Chapter 2. In Chapter 1 we read that "G-d created man in His own image, male and female He created them." This means that they were created together.

In Chapter 2, the account says that man was created alone and Eve was created later, only after the creation of the animals. Only after Adam had named the animals and realized that he had no soul mate was Eve created.

How does Rashi explain these differences between Chapter 1 and Chapter 2?  Rashi offers two explanations:

• G-d created Adam and Eve joined together like Siamese twins, and afterwards He separated them into two.  This explains the account in Chapter Two.  Because they were joined together, Adam didn’t even view his wife as a separate person.  He simply couldn’t find her and couldn’t see her as his soul mate until they were separated.  Only after they were separated was he able to realize that she was there.  

• They were both created on the same day but at different hours.  Chapter 1 gives a general account, that they were created on the same day.  Chapter 2  gives more specific details of timing and chronological order.  

The question arises as to why G-d created Adam and Eve joined together and then separated them.  Why didn’t He create them separate from the beginning like the animals?  ....and Adam then could have recognized Eve right away and taken her as his soul mate immediately.

G-d chose to create them together in one unit, however, having no knowledge of each other.  Only when man wanted and asked for a soul mate - after seeing that all the animals had mates - did G-d separate Eve from Adam. Even though Adam appreciated Eve he blamed her for the sin.   

There are hints in the Torah of another Eve. According to the Zohar, there was a first Eve in Creation before this Eve, the one in the above paragraph.  The first hint is that G-d took Eve from one of Adam’s ribs.  According to all the sources, the Hebrew word "tsela" is not translated as “rib” but as “side.” As written in the Torah: "The second side {tsela} of the Tabernacle" [Exodus 26:20]. G-d created Eve from the left side and Adam from the right side. 

The verse in Bereishis/Genesis says that G-d took "one" of Adam's sides. The Zohar understands that there was another one. Instead of saying "a side from his two sides," it says "one of his sides." From this, the Zohar understands that there was another side, which means that there was another Eve.  This was First Eve whom we know as Lili.... (We don’t say her whole name.  She is a very detrimental force) and then G-d created a second Eve which we discussed in the beginning of this article.

This information was written, published and compiled by Atarah Gur and kabbalahtorah.com. 

Copyright © 2007Atarah C. Gur