Random Golem Is A Terrifying Creature (9 items)

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  (#7) Legend Has It Romantic Rejection May Drive A Golem To Rage

  Similar to the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein, in which the monster flies into anger after being spurned by the animated corpse intended to be his companion, Golems can reportedly be driven to rage by heartache. Bohemian legend has it that in the 16th century, Bezalel’s own Golem, which he created in order to protect his community, also became uncontrollable, and perhaps for the same reason.

  While one tale attributes the creature’s lashing out as a result of its creator’s neglect to release it from servitude on Sabbath, another has it that the Golem fell in love with a human woman. And as in the famous James Whale Frankenstein sequel, which followed centuries later, the Golem’s romantic yearnings were, too, rebuffed. Realizing that it would never experience love of family, the Golem rebelled against the rabbi, which resulted in its own eventual demise. 
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  (#9) The Golem Remains A Major Influence On Art, Film, And Popular Culture

  Whether the creature be depicted as messianic or horrific, the Jewish legend of the Golem has endured in popular culture, from its early influence on Frankenstein to its appearance in several films. In theaters, it first reared its clay head in director Paul Wegener’s 1920 German expressionist horror flick Der Golem: Wie er in die Welt Kam (The Golem: How He Came into the World) and on the stage in H. Leivick’s Yiddish play Der Goylem; the Golem has continued to surface in a range of artistic media.

  Depictions of the creature have made their way into comic books and television shows like The X-Files. The Golem is even found in video games - US developer Moonbot Studios took a run at the legend in 2013 with a proposal for a computer game The Golem, itself once supported by Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro.

  In addition, Doron and Yoav Paz’s 2019 film The Golem serves as a reimagining of the classic legend.  
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  (#3) The Most Famous Story Involves Bezalel, Who Created A Golem To Defend Against Persecutors

  One of the most enduring tales of the Golem is the story of Bezalel, the rabbi who created the Golem to defend the Prague ghetto from persecution under the Holy Roman Empire during the late 16th or early 17th century. According to legend, the rabbi created the Golem, dubbed Josef, from clay and mud from the Vltava River.

  However, while the creature was effective, it soon grew out of control. With the Hebrew word emet (“truth”) placed upon its forehead, the Golem then grew in strength and aggression. Fearing the creature's increasing instability, Bezalel removed the “e” from emet, effectively changing the word from “truth” to “death,” and thusly ended the creature’s reign of mayhem.

  According to folklore, the body of Bezalel’s Golem resides in the attic of one of Europe’s oldest synagogues, the Old-New Synagogue, which stands to this day.
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  (#5) Golems Were Supposedly Created Several Times, But Needed To Be Wiped Out After Running Amok

  Formed from lifeless substances, such as clay or dirt, and animated by ritual incantation of Hebrew letters, the mythical Golem was generally conjured by its human creators in order to bring forth an obedient companion, helper, and protector of a beset Jewish community.

  Much like Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, however, often the creature itself grew to such immense power that it ran amok and turned against its creator. With no other choice, its makers were often forced to eliminate the creatures themselves, as in the cases of two rabbis, Eliyahu of Chelm and Bezalel of Prague. This theme of the creator's hubris is often central to the story of the Golem, painting the creature as a symbol of an era’s perceived danger, lack of control, and hope for redemption.
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  (#6) A Rabbi Admitted To Trying To Create A Golem In The 1700s, But Said He Was Warned By God To Stop

  In all of Jewish history, only one rabbi has ever admitted to creating a Golem.

  In the 1700s, Rabbi Vilna Gaon admitted that when he was a youth, he tried to create his own clay Frankenstein’s Monster. He was said to have the secrets of the Kabbalah revealed to him by ancient prophets and Jewish forefathers. However, he believed he was sent a message from God telling him to cease his work.
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  (#4) There Is A Story Of A Golem Striking A Soldier To Defend A Synagogue

  Following its creation and deactivation by Bezalel in the 16th century, the mythical Golem, according to folklore, was entombed in an attic room of the Old-New Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of Josefov, Prague. Placed in a genizah (a room used to store religious writings), the shapeless giant purportedly rested peacefully for centuries.

  That is, until the advent of World War II and the Third Reich's occupation of Europe. As legend has it, an agent of the Third Reich breached the room and attempted to pierce the Golem, but lost his life in the process. On its heels, German high command not only spared the structure from destruction, but also purportedly avoided it entirely, with the Gestapo refusing to reenter the building, and shunned the attic altogether.

  According to one blogger, renovation of the synagogue and exploration of its attic in 2014 found no trace of the mythical creature.

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