ChristStory Bestiary

SPHINX

TETRAMORPH OR ENIGMA

The sphinx is a legendary creature made up of both human and animal parts. This figure originated in Egypt and then spread, with many modifications, throughout the ancient world. Its name comes from the Greek "sphingo" which means "to strangle." Since its form combines human and animal parts into one body, the sphinx usually symbolizes the union of mind and body or intellectual, spiritual, and physical strengths with varying results. It is also, when composed of four animals including a human, a symbol of the four elements - earth, wind, fire, and water.

The most popular and ancient sphinx are the Egyptian androsphinx (lions with pharaoh's head) which guard pyramids, tombs, and sacred highways. These once popular solar symbols are associated with the sun god Ra (a.k.a. Re); Horus in the Horizon; and Harmakhis, the Lord of the Two Horizons, who represents the rising and setting sun, rebirth, and resurrection. Androsphinx usually bear the face of the pharaoh who ordered their construction and symbolize the divine power and wisdom he used to rule and protect his people.

The Great Sphinx at Giza, created about 2600 B.C., measures approximately 66 feet high and 240 feet long and bears the image of Khafre (Chephren) whose nearby pyramid was built at the same time. It faced the Nile river and the rising sun. A sun temple once stood in front of this statue to receive offerings to the rising sun. Later the Romans built an altar between its paws. It is said that visitors once sought the advice of the sphinx by placing an ear against its lips. Legends claim that a tunnel runs from the Sphinx into the Great Pyramid and that other secret passageways and chambers are hidden by it. Recently a few minor tunnels have indeed been discovered around the monument. Some claim that the Great Sphinx was created as a mirror image of the lion-shaped group of stars above it. If so, it is a symbol of those who discover wisdom through self contemplation.

About 1400 B.C., a younger son of Pharaoh took a nap in the shadow of the Great Sphinx which had been mostly buried in the shifting sands of the desert. While he slept, the Sphinx spoke to the young prince and promised him the throne of Egypt if he promised to clear away the sand which covered him. Later, when his elder brother died an untimely death, and Thutmose IV unexpectedly became pharaoh, the new ruler ordered the sands cleared from the statue. He also placed the granite Dream Stela between its paws to commemorate the incident and honor the sun-god Harmakhis who had spoken to him through the Sphinx.

The Egyptian androsphinx is a symbol of abundance, power, wisdom, mysteries, riddles, truth, unity, and secrets. Sometimes a pair of sphinx were pictured with the tree of Life as a symbol of fertility and conception. Rarely was the Egyptian sphinx portrayed as a female. When it was, it symbolized Isis and/or the reigning queen. Today a mysterious or puzzling person may be called a sphinx.

The Greek sphinx was the antithesis of the Egyptian one. In Egypt the intellectual faculties ennobled the bestial traits present in the physical makeup of this creature. But, in early Greek mythology, the bestial nature warped the mind and spirit of this being and it was portrayed as an unhappy monster; a symbol of the 'terrible mother'; the monster of death; extreme bad luck; and the perversion of the intellect, womanhood, or power. It had the bust and head of a lady, the wings of an eagle, the body and legs of a lioness, and the tail of a snake or dragon. Sometimes it was portrayed with the body of a bull and the legs of a lion. Like many other fabulous beasts, the Greek sphinx was thought to live in the Ethiopian mountains.

The most famous Grecian sphinx was the terrifying child of Echidna who bore many other mythical monsters including Cerberus the three-headed dog, the Hydra, and a two-headed dog named Orthros with whom she conceived the sphinx. This sphinx stationed herself on a narrow pass leading into Thebes and killed any traveler who could not answer her famous riddle; "What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening? Finally, Oedipus solved the riddle, saying that man crawled on all fours in his infancy, walked on two legs as a man, and walked with a third leg, his cane, in old age. At this, the creature flew into a rage and threw herself off a nearby cliff. The Theban sphinx has come to symbolize the inescapable riddles of life.

The Phoenicians and Syrians linked the sphinx to the guardian spirit lamassu and made it a symbol of rulership and the guardian of temples and palaces. The Assyrian sphinx looked quite different from the Egyptian one. It had a human head, wings, and the parts of a bull and a lion. Sometimes it had five legs instead of the usual four. The Druids counted a many-breasted sphinx among their fertility and maternal symbols. The Roman sphinx was a simple solar symbol. Nomadic Arabs, coming across the Great Sphinx in the Egyptian desert, referred to it as the "Father of Terrors."

As the Lord of the Two Horizons, the Egyptian androsphinx became a fitting symbol of Christ the Lord of all that exists between the rising and setting sun; the east and the west; light and dark; birth and death. It symbolized His divine sovereignty and wisdom and His knowledge of secrets yet to be revealed to humans. The androsphinx's dual nature reflected the dual nature of Christ who was both human and divine. Like many other solar symbols, the androsphinx was placed in or near early Christian graves as a representation of the divine Light of the World.

Sphinx composed of a man's head and chest, eagle's wings, a bull's hindquarters, and a lions' forequarters became symbols of the Biblical tetramorph and the four living creatures of Revelation (Ezek 1:5-14; Rev. 4:6-8). These in turn represent the cherubim; the four Evangelists and their Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; the four kings of the created world - the lion (king of the jungle), the eagle (king of the air), the bull (king of the farm), and man (king of creation); and, according to St. Jerome, Christ's Incarnation (the man), His Passion (the bull), His Resurrection (the Lion), and His Ascension (the eagle).

All scripture quotes are from the NKJV Bible unless otherwise indicated.