© Reuven Kiperwasser,  | doi:./_ Chapter  The King of Demons in the Universe of the Rabbis Reuven Kiperwasser This paper deals with the figure of the king of demons in rabbinic literature. This figure, known in Palestinian rabbinic texts as Shamdon, and from the Babylonian Talmud and magic bowls as Ashmedai, is portrayed quite differ- ently in narratives of western and eastern origin. This paper aims to read rab- binic and extra-rabbinic sources (such as Jewish writings of the Second Temple period and Jewish Aramaic magic texts) in a nuanced way, emphasizing pre- viously harmonized differences between these two configurations. Almost every introduction to Jewish demonology makes two claims: first, the demon Asmodeus, known from the Book of Tobit, became a prominent figure in the demonology of the Talmud, where his name is Ashmedai. Second, he is a king of the demons, who became Solomon’s unwilling helper in building the tem- ple in Jerusalem. However, as I will show, this is an anachronistic generaliza- tion, and this demon obtained his royal office and probably his name only in the latest layers of rabbinic literature. I aim to show how the hierarchy of the demonic world was constructed differently by the imagination of Jews of the Land of Israel and the Jews of Sassanian Mesopotamia, according to their dif- ferent cultural perceptions. 1 The Chief Demon in Early Jewish Writings A clear pre-rabbinic attestation of the notion of a hierarchy in the demonic realm is the well-known accusation against Jesus found in Matt 9:32–34, where an archōn tōn daimoniōn (ἄρχων τῶν δαιμονίων) is mentioned: As they were going away, behold, a dumb demoniac was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the dumb man spoke; and 1 The figure’s name is spelt in a variety of ways in the sources. For ease, I will use Asmodeus (̓Ασμοδευς) throughout while dealing with the appearance of the figure in Greek texts, and Ashmedai in Hebrew and Aramaic texts. 2 Since the work of Alexander Kohut, Uber die jüdische Angelologie und Dämonologie in ihrer Abhängigkeit vom Parsismus, AKM 4 (Leipzig: F. A. Brockhaus, 1866), 72–80, it has become commonplace in encyclopedias and dictionaries. 9789004517141_Patmore_and_Lossl_14-Kiperwasser.indd 273 9789004517141_Patmore_and_Lossl_14-Kiperwasser.indd 273 04/05/2022 5:15:36 pm 04/05/2022 5:15:36 pm