Lilith

Name: Lilith, Progenitor of Life
Classification: The Second Angel
Appears in Episode: 15

Lilith is the Second Angel, and is discovered inside a subterranean cavity called the Geo Front (also referred to as the Black Moon or Lilith's Egg) located under Japan.

Although Lilith is considered to be an Angel and is classified as such, she is actually one of two Progenitors of Life (the other is Adam). While the Angels are believed to have been spawned of Adam, humanity (the Lilim) are believed to have been spawned of Lilith.

For much of the series Lilith is held inside Terminal Dogma, crucified to a giant red cross and impaled through her chest by the Lance of Longinus. This wound prevents her from regenerating the lower part of her body, and as a result her flowing blood forms a small lake at the base of the cross.

Lilith's blood (the mysterious orange liquid also referred to as L.C.L.), is then collected and used inside Entry Plugs to facilitate the neural-link connections between the pilots and the Evangelion Units. This is why on several occasions Shinji Ikari, the Third Child and pilot of Evangelion Unit-01, comments that the Entry Plugs smell of blood.

While Lilith herself is crucified inside Terminal Dogma until her awakening in The End of Evangelion, her Soul is displaced by NERV Commander Gendo Ikari and implanted into Rei Ayanami, the First Child and pilot of Evangelion Unit-00. He does this as part of his efforts to control his own version of the Human Instrumentality Project.

Rebuild of Evangelion

In the 2008 feature film Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone, Lilith is revealed much earlier in the plot, and is identified to Shinji Ikari by Misato Katsuragi. In the film Lilith's mask resembles the face of Sachiel (now the fourth Angel), and there is a diagonal scar across her chest, the edges of which are marked by crucifix-shaped nails. In addition, she is shown already impaled by the Lance of Longinus.

At the end of the film another Lilith-like object with a mask resembling the original version (SEELE's purple crest—or the seven eyes of God) is shown being excavated on the Moon by NERV-07 (Temporary Excavation Base).

Analysis

• Mythology of Lilith
  
  Although Lilith is briefly mentioned in the Christian Bible, the origin of Lilith traces back to Judaic mythology. She is the first woman created by God as wife to Adam (see Adam and Lilith Mythology for details).

• Adam born of Lilith?
  
  A translation mistake in the Evangelion feature films led many fans to believe that Adam was actually born of Lilith. This was a mistake, and the relationship between Adam and Lilith was always intended to be that of two equal sources of life; one spawned the Angels, the other spawned the Lilim (see Adam and Lilith Duality for details).

• Lilith as the 0th Angel?
  
  At one point fans believed Lilith to be the 0th Angel, claiming that she was discovered prior to Adam. Evangelion Unit-01 was then considered to be the Second Angel. Naturally this caused a lot of confusion. Official sources have since clarified the issue and confirmed Lilith to be the Second Angel. This essentially means that Lilith was found after Adam, however it does not address if Lilith predates Adam as some believe (although the mythology of Adam and Lilith would suggest otherwise).