LILITH

REAL NAME: Kiskillilla (her Sumerian name)

IDENTITY/CLASS: Demon/Vampire/Goddess

OCCUPATION: Succubus, former Goddess of the Underworld, former Storm Demon

AFFILIATION: Mother of the Lilin (Sumerian: Lilim), former member of the Anunnaki (Mesopotamian Gods); Centurious, Zarathos; possibly Asmodeus

ENEMIES: The Blood, Darkhold Redeemers,
Midnight Sons (Blade, John Blaze, Frank Drake, Dr. Strange,
Ghost Rider/Dan Ketch/Noble Kale, Hannibal King, Morbius, Vengeance),
Nightstalkers (Blade, Frank Drake, Hannibal King)

KNOWN RELATIVES: Aehr (possible father), Lillu, Ardat, Irdu (sisters),
the Lilin (Bad Timing, Bloodthirst, Carver, Creed, Dark Legion, Doc, Fang, Girth, Infinks, Meatmarket, Nakota, Outcast, Parasite, Pilgrim, Pixel, Short-Circuit, Sister Nil,
Skinner, Skitter, Spitfire--(all children),
Blackout (grandson or more distant relative),
child (fathered by Zarathos))

ALIASES: Lilitu (Babylonian Name), The Vampire Goddess, Mother of Demons, Mother of the Lilin

BASE of OPERATIONS: currently unknown; formerly the Shadowside Dimension; formerly within the Leviathan.

FIRST APPEARANCE: Ghost Rider III#28 (August, 1992)

POWERS: Lilith possesses the conventional powers of the Mesopotamian Gods plus several occult powers derived from her degeneration into a demon. She has superhuman strength (potentially Class 25), stamina and resistance to injury. She has vast knowledge of magical lore and the ability to tap into and manipulate the dark forces of the universe. She can also summon her children from other dimensions by giving birth to their energies in new bodies in the Earth's dimension. Moreover, the more children she "births," the stronger and more powerful she becomes.

HISTORY: (Mesopotamian Myth/Jewish Legend) Very little is actually known about Lilith and what few facts that have been passed down about her are actually speculatory and often contradictory.
She has often been referred to as the daughter of darkness, suggesting she may be the daughter of Aehr (Aer), the ancient god of darkness.

.She attempted to tempt Adam, the first man in Judeo-Christian theology. In fact, it was claimed she was created with Adam to be his wife, but she refused to be subservient to him. This contradiction may be an invention or mistranslation of Jewish tales repeated over thousands of years as a parable against wives.

Lilith fathered a number of children, the Lilin, possibly by the demon Asmodeus or via multiple sources. The vast majority of her children were slain, possibly by the Judeo-Christian God.

During the Sumerian Empire, Lilith lived in the desert beyond the Euphrates River from where she abducted unbaptised children.

In later Hebrew Legend, Lilith was subsequently destroyed by Senoy, Sansenoy and Semangol, three servants of God, who scattered her remains across Earth to never come together again.

BTS - She lived in Atlantis and survived its destruction, in the Great Cataclysm, @ 16, 500 BC. However, at some point, Atlantean sorcerers imprisoned her within the belly of "a leviathan."

(Ghost Rider III#28) - Possibly only as part of a vision of the future, the disembodied spirit of Dan Ketch encountered and is assaulted by Lilith.

(Spirits of Vengeance#1) - In Northern Greenland, Lilith emerged from the belly of "an ancient leviathan" in which she had dwelled for an unknown period of time. She killed the two scientist explorers who had witnessed her rebirth. She then used the entrails of her former prison as a medium to view the future and saw her children, the Lilin, defeated at the hands of Ghost Rider and Blaze. Lilith summoned Pilgrim to her aside and followed him through a portal in space to regather her remaining children to her side. They enlisted Creed, as well as Blackout, who is a more distant descendent, and Lilith sent them to attack GR and Blaze. Blaze killed Creed, and the other two fled back to Lilith, to gather more to their side before again challenging the Midnight Sons.

(Morbius#1) - Lilith, Pilgrim, and Blackout recruited Fang and Nakota at a Manhattan Gothic Club, in which she found an interest in Speed Metal music. She sent Fang to kill Morbius, which he attempted to do by adding his own poison blood to an elixir being used in an attempt to cure Morbius. The mixture did not kill Morbius, but instead mutated him into a more supernatural being.

(SoV#2) - Via Nakota, Lilith observed from a distance the battle between Steel Wind and Ghost Rider and Blaze. From this, she first learned of the existence of Centurious.

(GR30-BTS) - Apparently after an alliance with Lilith, Nightmare assaulted Dan Ketch/Ghost Rider. Lilith and the Lilin appeared in Nightmare's illusions.

(Darkhold#1) - DeGuzman was contacted by the demonqueen Lilith. He contracted with a ninja assassin named Li and his agents to assassinate Victoria Montesi to prevent her from interfering with his plans for the Darkhold. Li's assassins failed to kill Montesi, but instead crippled her best friends and lover, Nash Salvato. After this first failure, the Lilin Doc reshaped the assassins, increasing their strength and speed. The enhanced assassins were fought off and destroyed with the aid of Ghost Rider and John Blaze. Lilith observed this battle, but fled after being shot in the arm by Blaze. Nakota was left behind.

(SoV#3) - Lilith re-recruited Skinner and sent him after Ghost Rider and Blaze.

(Nightstalkers#1) - Meatmarket made Lilith a "quilt" from the skin of his victims, showing the faces of the nine who would be her foes (Blade, John Blaze, Sam Buchanon, Frank Drake, Ghost Rider/Ketch, Louise Hastings, Hannibal King, Victoria Montesi, Morbius). Lilith posed as a client for Borderline investigations and duped the Nightstalkers into attacking Ghost Rider and Blaze. Lilith attempted to bait Dr. Strange into pitting his sorcery against hers, but he refused, knowing that such a conflict would weaken the dimensional walls and allow more of her Lilin to return to Earth. Lilith left after Blade decapitated Meatmarket, taking him away to repair him.

(GR31) - Lilith used the carcass of the leviathan in which she had been buried to restore Meatmarket, with the aid of Doc. Lilith then had Pilgrim open a portal through her own body, through which she planned to return the rest of the Lilin to Earth. The "nine" arrived to stop her. Lilith pulled the then-disembodied spirit of Dan Ketch (go read the issues!) through the portal, making it reborn as one of her Lilin. As the Ketch/Lilin battled them, Lilith attempted to transform the rest of the "nine" into Lilin as well. As they fought back against her, she was forced to resorb power from her other Lilin. Ghost Rider managed to grab her and force her own head into the portal in her chest, causing a massive explosion that seemingly destroyed her and the Lilin. However, after the "nine" left, Lilith revived and drained the life of Nakota, the last surviving Lilin to replenish herself.

(GR32-BTS) - Dr. Strange removed the Lilin-taint from Ketch and restored him to true-life, remerging him with Ghost Rider in the process.

(SoV#13) - Due to the events of the "Midnight Massacre", the "nine" have fallen somewhat and have succumbed to varying degrees of corruption. A fat and happy Lilith spoke with her children from across the dimensional gulf, deciding that it is time for a gathering.

(GR41) - Lilith is prepared to give birth to her brood once again, but is unable to birth the children without assistance. She called out to any of the Lilin remaining on Earth. Outcast answered Lilith's call and tore her belly asunder, allowing the Lilin to be reborn anew. Blackout, in particular, is dramatically increased in power by being reborn through Lilith. Lilith sends Blackout, aided by Pilgrim, to wipe out the "nine" while they were weakened from recent events.
Lilith's call was heard by Centurious who thought she might aid him in his quest for the Medallion of Power, and he traveled to Greenland to meet with her and propose an alliance. The Ghost Rider overpowered Blackout and Pilgrim, but Centurious then appeared and abducted Dan Ketch's mother, Francis.

(SoV#14) - Lilith sent the Lilin, alongside Steel Wind, to attack the Quentin Carnival--allies of John Blaze. She watched as Centurious had Carver torture Francis Ketch for information, and watched again as Centurious captured John Blaze.

(Morbius#13, [14], 15) - Through Nakota's eyes, Lilith observed Morbius utilize the Darkhold's Page of Resurrection in an effort to revive his dead lover, Martine Bancroft. The spell allowed the Lilin Parasite to reanimate Martine's form. By this means, as well as Morbius' possession by Bloodthirst, Lilith hoped to turn Morbius to her side. Lilith allowed Morbius to remain part of the "nine", so that he could weaken their number from within.

(GR42) - Lilith observed as Carver went to work on John Blaze in an effort to obtain his portion of the Medallion. After Ghost Rider arrived and rescued Blaze, she traveled with Centurious and his agents to Cypress Hills Cemetery where they planned to take the Medallions form both Ghost Rider and Blaze.

(SoV#15) - Lilith observed as Centurious tapped into the power of Ghost Rider's chain.

(GR43) - Lilith, alongside Centurious, Blackout, and Outcast, confronted Blaze, Ghost Rider, Caretaker, and Vengeance in the catacombs beneath Cypress Hills Cemetery. In the course of the battle, Zarathos was released from Centurious' form.

(SoV#16) - The heroes fled from Zarathos, and Lilith abandoned Centurious in favor of Zarathos. Lilith summoned Pilgrim and Nakota to her side, and she took advantage of Zarathos' temporary partial memory loss to pose as a mother figure to him. Centurious attacked Lilith, hoping to punish her for her betrayal, but Zarathos banished him from their sight. The heroes returned to the fight, and by accessing the energies of the Medallion(s) of Power, succeed in driving back Zarathos, Lilith, and the Lilin. A portal opened up, and the demons were pulled into the Shadowside dimension, although the heroes believed them to have been killed.

(Nightstalk#14) - The Lilin burst forth from the now open portal to the Shadowside, attacking the now fully gathered "nine." Frank Drake, Blade, Louise Hastings, Jinx, and Modred investigated the fog issuing forth from the portal and were confronted by Lilith.

(GR44) - Alongside Zarathos and a large number of Lilin, Lilith returned through the portal back into Cypress Hills Cemetery. She sent the Lilin to spread the mist across Earth, and its magical energies would enable her to rule Earth more easily, with Zarathos at her side. The assault of the Lilin and Zarathos on the "nine" was temporarily halted by Dr. Strange, who formed a mystic shield between them and then teleported them to safety.

(Marvel Comic Presents#143) - Strange's teleportation spell was disrupted by Pilgrim, and Ghost Rider, Blaze, and Zarathos were teleported to Girth and Skitter, who attacked them. Pilgrim then brought himself, Lilith, and Zarathos to the battle, but the heroes escaped into another of Strange's dimensional portals, and Blaze blasted Pilgrim to prevent a similar occurrence.

(Darkhold#15) - Lilith, her Lilin, and Zarathos ambush the Darkhold Redeemers in their New Hope mansion. By combining their powers via a spell of magnification, Modred and Jinx dispelled the Lilin. Zarathos threw up a shield that defended them for the moment, but Jinx heard misinformation from Frank Drake that Modred had killed Louise Hastings, and turned against him, neutralizing both of them. Drake prepared to face off against the two arch-demons, but was then ambushed from behind by Morbius, still under control of Bloodthirst--the real killer of Louise.

(Morb#16) - Morbius returned to Dr. Strange's Sanctum, and his Lilin possessed presence allowed the rest of the Lilin to break through Strange's barriers and assault those present. Lilith arrived via Pilgrim, and attempted to convince the heroes to surrender the Amulet of Power, and she would leave them with their lives. Again, Strange refused to battle Lilith directly for fear of the damage that could be done to the dimensional walls. Strange helped Morbius bring Bloodthirst back under his control, but the rest of the "nine" still distrusted and attacked him.

(MCP#144/2) - Lilith convinced Zarathos to conserve his strength and leave with her while the Lilin finished off the nine. Pilgrim teleported the three of them away.

(Dr.Strange: Sorcerer Supreme#60) - Strange reformed the shields around his sanctum and forced the Lilin out. However, in an effort to purge the demon taint from his sanctum, he was forced to destroy it. Lilith and a number of her Lilin were waiting on the outside to start the battle anew.

(SoV#17) - Lilith left her Lilin to continue the fight, while she and Zarathos consummated their relationship in a mausoleum within Cypress Hills Cemetery. Afterwards, Ghost Rider, Vengeance, and Blaze arrived to confront them, and Lilith told Zarathos "Fight with the knowledge that, no matter what the outcome, your lien will be continued. This I promise."
Zarathos was temporarily defeated by the heroes, and Lilith and her Lilin were re-banished back to the Shadowside dimension.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#4) - After Zarathos was defeated/banished/turned to stone by the nine (now known as the Midnight Sons), Lilith appeared in the cemetery by the abandoned statue. She vowed to leave behind her old children, the Lilin, in order to be a devoted mother to the new offspring she and Zarathos had fashioned. She predicted that it would grow swift and strong and steeped in tales of its father's greatness.

Comments: Adapted by Howard Mackie and Kubert.

I would assume that the Leviathan from which Lilith was released would be the Leviathan of Hebrew legend, who was also known as Tiamat from Babylonian mythology. I'd like to see a story detailing how she got there. If this is indeed Tiamat, I believe it is her only appearance in the MU, although there are been numerous references.

She could have been imprisoned within Leviathan by the Atlanteans themselves. As detailed from Thor #401, Atlantean ruins existed on the shores of the Viking's version of the "New World." Given its hospitable clime, this New World may have been Iceland, placing it not too far geographically from Greenland, the location of Lilith's imprisonment. With this in mind, Atlanteans based on this outpost or other Atlanteans based on nearby Greenland may have placed Lilith within the monster. On the other hand, maybe the outpost was Lilith's in the first place. Any way you look at it, this opens up a possible story involving Lilith and Atlanteans in the "New World."
- Kyle

Lilith's imprisonment by Atlantean sorcerers does not have to precede the Great Cataclysm. There are numerous instances where groups of Atlanteans survived and escaped to other parts of the world to continue their existence. Among these are the Antillans (Conan of the Isles GN), Netheranians (Kala), and the original inhabitants of Pangea and the Savage Land.

"According to Hebrew tradition Lilith was the first wife of Adam. Where Adam was created from the dust of the earth, Lilith was flawed from the moment of her creation because she was fashioned from the filth and uncleanliness of the earth. However instead of leading Adam into temptation as his second wife, Eve, did Lilith was an unfaithful adulteress who consorted with evil spirits, chief among them the demon of the wilderness Asmodeus. From her couplings with Asmodeus a hundred demons were born each day, but God commanded all but one be slain for every brood born."
--off the top of the head of
Greg O (Sounds like as good an explanation for the Lilin as any, to me--Snood)

In Babylonian lore, she was mother of the first vampires. This differs from the MU story, in which vampires were created by the original Darkholders, who used the Darkhold (empowered by Chthon) to transform Varnae and a few others into the first vampires, in the Pre-Cataclysmic Era. Perhaps Lilith's power also entered into this spell in the MU.
Alternatively, it may be that there are different races of vampires in the MU, as there are literally dozens in myth/legend:
Compiled from a list of undead creatures in Vampire Tales (with a few additions based on the MU):

Peter David is using the legendary Lilith in a story for DC's Super-Girl.

In addition, Marvel Graphic Novel#20: Greenberg the Vampire, @ 1986, featured Lilith in her "Night Rider"/Infant Stealer role. This story contains no elements (short of the existence of vampires and Lilith herself and her children) to otherwise connect it to the Marvel Universe. In fact, as pointed out by John McDonagh, the letter page of Dr. Strange: Master of the Mystic Arts (Dr. Strange (vol2)) #66 states that the story of Greenberg the Vampire did not take place in the Marvel Universe. This was in answer to a question of whether he was destroyed by the reading of the Montesi Formula in Dr. Strange II#62
There's nothing within the story to exclude it from Earth-616, but I'll have to defer to the editorial comment. IF IT WERE IN EARTH-616, since Marvel's time scale just keeps on a'slidin', I would place 1986 now in the pre-modern era, which would explain why there weren't super-heroes, etc. Anyway, I still think it's worthy of a summary.

Lilith has the potential to be a really cool character, but she didn't impress me a whole lot in her 1990s--the Age of Hype--appearances, written mostly by Mackie. I'd love to see Warren Ellis, Garth Ennis, J. M. DeMatteis, Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, Steve Gerber, or someone equally twisted do a story involving the birth of her child of Zarathos.

For much, much more on the Lilith(s) of myth/legend, check out the Lilith page. In one story, she was mad at Adam for insisting that she always be on bottom during sex. She left him and was turned into a demon. She is credited/blamed for Sudden Infant Death as well as nocturnal emissions in men (she even was listed as...the Night Rider. No connection to the Phantom Rider(s) or that talking car show with David Hasslehoff, which the Germans love)

Babylonian Gods rank right up there with Lovecraft's work as one of the most common sources of demons in the MU: There's Baal, Inanna, Lilith, Marduk, Ningal, Nergal, Ullikumis, that I can come up with off the top of my head.
I had mentioned previously that I thought these gods may have degenerated into demons due to millennia without worship. To clarify: I didn't mean that any god without worship would automatically become a demon after a given period. It just seemed like one possible motivation/explanation. However, the Mesopotamian Gods seem to have been particularly susceptible to this phenomenon. They have had the longest time to...spoil.

Chronologies are NOT my strongsuit, but I think I did ok with this long one. I'm no quite sure where the Morbius stories fit in prior to the "Siege of Darkness", so I stuck them somewhere in the "Road to Vengeance", after she had returned to activity, but before she got too tied up with Centurious, b/c the battle with Ghost Rider and bunch led directly into the Siege.

Lilith has a profile in the OHotMU Master Edition, from which the top image was scanned.

Thanks to Will U, the Squid, and Greg O for passing on scads of mythological history.

Thanks to AJ Lewis and Will U for pointing out that I had mistakenly listed Bebe Newmar as the actress who played Lilith from Cheers.
You are obviously confusing her with Julie Newmar, who played Catwoman in the old "Batman" TV series of the 60s.

CLARIFICATIONS:
She should be differentiated from:

Asmodeus, the demon who allegedly fathered many of the Lilin, may or may not be

Blackout, the relative of Lilith and former agent of Deathwatch, @ Ghost Rider III#2, has no known connection to:

Centurious, the Man without a Soul, @ Ghost Rider II#74, should be distinguished from:

Leviathan, aka Tiamat, the Mesopotamian Goddess/Dragon, has no known connection to:

the Nine, a name for the grouping that later evolved into the Midnight Sons, @ Ghost Rider III#28, Nightstalkers#1,
have no known connection to:

 


Last updated: 12/24/03

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