Revelations of the Dark Mother
Lilith's epic poem counterpoint to The Book of Nod.
Revelations of the Dark Mother, subtitled Seeds from the Twilight Garden, is an epic poem by Phil Brucato and Rachelle Udell, illustrated by Rebecca Guay, Vince Locke, and Eric Hotz, published by White Wolf Publishing in November 1998. Based on Vampire: The Masquerade and the World of Darkness series, it centers on Lilith as a counterpoint to the 1993 poem The Book of Nod, which focused on Caine. The poem uses a vampire scholar framing device and heavy illustrations, mirroring the style of The Book of Nod.
Quick Facts
- Author
- Phil Brucato, Rachelle Udell
- Illustrator
- Rebecca Guay
- Vince Locke
- Eric Hotz
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Series
- World of Darkness
- Genre
- Epic poem
- Publisher
- White Wolf Publishing
- Published
- November 1998
Facts from the source article.
Summary
The poem provides background on Lilith within the Vampire: The Masquerade fiction, serving as her counterpoint to The Book of Nod's story of Caine. It is presented as a heretical document compiled by the vampire scholar Rachel Dolium, who writes a foreword describing her research, Lilith's lessons of growing through pain, and the Bahari cultists who follow Lilith. The work is divided into three chapters. "First Circle: The Book of the Serpent" recounts Lilith's creation and trials: Jehovah creates Adam and Lilith from True Earth in Eden; Lilith eats from the trees of life and knowledge and learns to hunt. Adam distances himself and mates with beasts; Jehovah tells him to mate with Lilith, but she refuses. After Adam attempts rape, Lilith is lifted to heaven and becomes Jehovah's lover. Jehovah later banishes her, not wanting an equal, and creates Eve from Adam's rib. In the desert, Lilith meets Lucifer, becomes his lover and ruler of the night. Disguised as a Great Serpent, she tricks Lucifer into letting her into Eden to steal seeds; she convinces Eve to eat the fruit and has sex with her; Eve shares the fruit with Adam. Jehovah exiles all four, and Lilith and Lucifer create a new garden and have six children.
Production and release
Phil Brucato and Rachelle Udell wrote the poem, with illustrations by Rebecca Guay, Vince Locke, and Eric Hotz. Guay used pencil or charcoal for the main Lilith illustrations; Locke illustrated the vampire scholar Rachel Dolium in the foreword. No works are signed by Hotz, though Don Bassingthwaite guessed he created the pictograms. The 123-page booklet was released in November 1998, later as an e-book. A German translation appeared in 1999 from Feder & Schwert, and the poem was followed by The Erciyes Fragments in 1999.
Reception
Yvonne J. Milspaw and Wesley K. Evans called the poem "powerful" in Western Folklore, finding the addition of Lilith to the vampire mythology elegant and depth-adding, with Lilith and Caine used as opposites to Adam and Abel across multiple axes. Don Bassingthwaite described Lilith's story as fresh, mature, and sophisticated, appreciating the voice given to a strong, independent, magickal woman. Backstab called the book graphic, poetic, and inspired, giving Vampire: The Masquerade more depth, and thought readers interested in alternate views would love it; Envoyer enjoyed exploring the cryptic writing. Bassingthwaite praised the design and layout, finding Guay's artwork beautiful and conveying a Lilith that is powerful, afflicted, sorrowful, loving, and avenging; he saw Locke's artwork as successfully setting off the foreword and called the pictograms interesting and organic. Backstab also liked Guay's illustration work, calling it superb.
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