The Questions of the Queen of Sheba to

King Solomon

To King Solomon came Nessa, the queen of

a southern realm, who was . . . descended
from the line of Noah's daughter, Aster. She
came from a place in the south where . . .
women descended from the patriarch Noah
rule. Solomon's reputation for wisdom
attracted her and she tested him with
enigmatic questions:

"What is your God, and who does He

resemble?"

Solomon replied: "My God Is, and is above

all beings. He has no fixed image. Every
being has its opposite. However, my God,
since He is not created, has no opposite."

"How does the celestial globe turn, right to

left, fully or partly?"

"This turning is done in two ways. The

heavenly circumference turns to the right
and to the East, then through the South and
West, and the North, returning to its point of
departure. By the same order, it goes around
in a day and a night with all the fixed stars.
As for the planets, which some call
wandering stars, they move left from West
to East, each according to the low or high
position of its zone, according to the
narrowness or breadth of that zone,
achieving a revolution in 30 years as well as
30 days. For Cronos is Saturn, while Sahra
is the Moon."

"Before there was Being, where was the

creator of all, and after the dissolution of
everything, where will He be?"

"Before the creation of all, was the Lord

Himself and His being was full of its
essence. He enjoyed endless goodness. Since
the creation of the world, it is in Him that
created beings exist. After the dissolution of
the world, He also will continue to exist in
Himself and in the souls of saints, and they
reside in Him. He adds to their glory and He
will be further glorified by them."

"Why is it that an Indian woman who eats

pomegranate ceases to conceive?"

"The nature of the pomegranate is cold and

wet and the country of India is hot and dry.
The Indian woman is cool and moist.
Consequently, when elements of the
pomegranate and the woman merge,
contrary to the nature of the country, then
women no longer can become pregnant."

"Why does an Indian man become sterile

after drinking wine?"

"The nature of the wine is dry and hot, and it

induces sleep. The same may be said for the
nature of mankind. Thus when a man drinks
often, he become impotent."

"Is wisdom general or specific? Does it

come from nature, from study, or as a
blessing?"

"Wisdom is general in genre, partial in type,

natural as regards animate beings, trees, and
plants. The situation with humankind is
mixed. It may be attained through study, as
one labors to understand something; or it
may be a blessing of grace from God. This
latter type is not given to all but only to
those selected as worthy of it."

Question: "What was the plant which was

crowned not by nature but surrounded by a
halo of rays and nurtured by flames which
were woven into garlands for undeserving
sons?"

Answer: "Surely you have heard that God

appeared to Moses as a burning blackberry
bush, and that that visitation stimulated
questions and answers."

Question: "Identify the foreign mother, the

sons born in prostitution, and nourished in
impiety, revealed as thieves, and kings
living in plenty."

Answer: "You insult my fathers and myself.

Tamar was considered a murderer who
nourished my ancestors after they had been
stolen from Judah."

Question: "Name the thing which is

repulsive and nauseating, which is
transformed by the clouds and nourishes
kings."

Answer: "You refer to menstruating women

who nourish kings and paupers when babies,
through the milk of their breasts."

Riddle: "What is the diner who, seeking

different tastes, increases the number of
cooks, yet receives only the same flavor?"

Answer: "If you have an excellent cook, let

us add him to the thousands we have;
however, as you say, there is but one
excellent taste. But should there be one
wicked chef, opposed to Our Lord, then the
bitter taste will remain until Judgement
day."

Riddle: "The bridegroom is invisible, and

the nuptial is unchangeable. The
bedchamber is pure; but the spouse full of
rage brings a great shame to the matter."

Answer: "Do not insult our people which is

forever wedded to God with unspoken
words. Nor do we bear the shame of
prostituting ourselves to foreign gods. It is
fitting that you worship a bird called T'riane,
the phoenix. But now, answer a riddle from
me."

"There is a formidable tower, with lethal

weapons, and a three-sided temple, whose
rocks are joy, whose foundation is love,
whose construction is water, the start of
whose deliverance is caresses, whose
ceilings are dance, whose columns are
enjoyment, whose discovery is strange,
whose residents are not persons. Pursuit of it
is in vain, its turrets spring from within
itself, its windows are isolated, the
instruments are contrary to its construction,
and its guards are invisible."

And the Queen replied: "We heard that you

were wise, but did not believe that you were
prescient. Now we know that your God is
the sole God of the visible and the
invisible". The Queen then praised the
construction of the Temple and its attendants
who were divided into 12 classes to serve
before the Lord each month. Each class had
24,000 people in it, with 6,000 judges and
4,000 harpists, and 4,000 porters, an
arrangement which Solomon's father David
had designated. The dimensions of the
Temple were: 60 cubits long by 20 cubits
wide and 120 cubits high. It had 10 gold
altars and 10 gold towers. Outside, to the
right and left were two columns of 37 cubits
height which were named Boas and Yak'um,
meaning "Strength" and "Righteousness."
The Holy of Holies was 20 cubits wide and
20 cubits high, which greatly astonished the
Queen. And she departed from him greatly
edified.

Solomon subsequently repented for his sins.

Recalling his father's command, he entered a
room and expiated. Solomon died at the age
of 52, having ruled for 40 years.