Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

Welcome to the Judaism community on Codidact!

Will you help us build our community of learners? Drop into our study hall, ask questions, help others with answers to their questions, share a d'var torah if you're so inclined, invite your friends, and join us in building this community together. Not an ask-the-rabbi service, just people at all levels learning together.

Post History

60%
+1 −0
Q&A What is the purpose of God asking Adam to name the animals?

Haamek Davar (to verses 18–20) explains that the naming itself led to Adam's realization that he was partnerless: The nature of the human species is not uniform: all the character traits and all t...

posted 3y ago by msh210‭

Answer
#1: Initial revision by user avatar msh210‭ · 2020-10-20T18:37:14Z (over 3 years ago)
[_Haamek Davar_ (to verses 18&ndash;20)](//www.sefaria.org.il/Haamek_Davar_on_Genesis.2.18) explains that the naming itself led to Adam's realization that he was partnerless:

> The nature of the human species is not uniform: all the character traits and all the species are included in him. One man's nature may tend one way, and another's the opposite way. So the helpmeet should be made so as to be fit for whatever sort of man. That's the meaning of _k'negdo_ [a help "opposite him"]: whatever help he always needs, according to his makeup.&hellip;
> 
> That which Adam understood about the living spirit of a creature, i.e. its spiritual force, [became] the name of the creature, even when it didn't use that power. Because all is dependent on the stored power: it was made for that purpose when needed.&hellip;
> 
> By that which he assigned names, Adam realized that it was hard to find himself a helpmeet. The explanation is: Adam did not at first realize about himself that he had all the types of character traits. After all, he never angered, so how would he know he has anger? and likewise for pity and so on. But when he considered all the creatures and understood their natures, he understood about himself that he has all the character traits that are included in all the creatures. For otherwise he would not be able to understand their powers, for someone who cannot anger cannot understand anger or believe such a thing exists. And once he understood that, he understood also that he needs a helpmeet _k'negdo_, as we explained.&hellip;