Consider the
following: What was the original timeline God intended for Mankind? In other
words, had Adam and Chava not acted incorrectly with regard to the Tree of
Knowledge of Good and Evil-“ עֵץ הַדַּעַת
טוֹב וָרָע”, what was supposed to happen next? Note
that this question holds whether one understands this section to be partly or
wholly allegorical. For example, Adam can be read as either a historical person,
or as the archetype of Mankind (which is at least somewhat supported by Adam
being called “the Adam” throughout).
First, let us
consider the possible meaning of the ancient-Hebrew phrase. It could be better
translated (including an attempt to reorder constructs into their equivalent
English forms) as Knowledge-Tree that is Good and Bad. It is important
to note that “רָע” can mean negative
utility as opposed to literal evil. Similarly, “טוֹב” can mean the non-moral-spectrum good. Additionally, the
conjunctive “ו” is often used for or as well as and
in the Torah. One could also read this, using brackets to indicate
application of adjectives, as the Tree of [Knowledge that is (Good or Bad)].
Note that “דַּעַת” means specifically experiential
knowledge.
Question: What is this? What experiential knowledge
is gained by eating the fruit of this tree?
Second, let us
consider the first command given from God to Adam:
1.
2:16-17
a.
טז וַיְצַו
יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים, עַל-הָאָדָם לֵאמֹר:
מִכֹּל עֵץ-הַגָּן, אָכֹל תֹּאכֵל.
יז וּמֵעֵץ, הַדַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע--לֹא תֹאכַל, מִמֶּנּוּ: כִּי, בְּיוֹם אֲכָלְךָ מִמֶּנּוּ--מוֹת תָּמוּת.
b.
16: God [duplex name, mercy &
judgment together] commanded, upon-Adam saying: “From all the
trees-of-the-garden, you MUST eat. 17: “And from the Tree of Knowledge that is
Good and/or Bad: do not eat, from it; as on that day of your eating from it;
you WILL die.
A brief digression to ensure we are all on the same page: The notes
according to which the Torah is chanted when it is read in public serve a
practical purpose: punctuation. Various notes are either disjunctive or conjunctive
to varying strengths (for example, consider the difference between a comma,
apostrophe, and parentheses Very often, much information can be unpacked by paying close
attention to oddly placed punctuation that might not be apparent from standard
translations.
The Ri haKadosh, in the Shem Shel Shmuel, claims that based on this
punctuation of these verses, which I have attempted to preserve in my above
translation, the prohibition of eating from the Tree of Knowledge only applied
on exactly that day.
Additionally, the word ‘וַיְצַו’
is understood to be used to indicate a command of God that is applicable for
all generations[1].
Question: Why would it only apply to that day? Why is there an
implication that this commandment is directed at all of humanity, for all time?
Thirdly, immediately following the above:
יח וַיֹּאמֶר
יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים, לֹא-טוֹב הֱיוֹת הָאָדָם לְבַדּוֹ; אֶעֱשֶׂה-לּוֹ עֵזֶר,
כְּנֶגְדּוֹ. יט וַיִּצֶר יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים
מִן-הָאֲדָמָה, כָּל-חַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה וְאֵת כָּל-עוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם, וַיָּבֵא
אֶל-הָאָדָם, לִרְאוֹת מַה-יִּקְרָא-לוֹ; וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר יִקְרָא-לוֹ הָאָדָם נֶפֶשׁ
חַיָּה, הוּא שְׁמוֹ. כ וַיִּקְרָא
הָאָדָם שֵׁמוֹת, לְכָל-הַבְּהֵמָה וּלְעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם, וּלְכֹל, חַיַּת
הַשָּׂדֶה; וּלְאָדָם, לֹא-מָצָא עֵזֶר כְּנֶגְדּוֹ. .
18: Said God[name of mercy-name of judgment]: It is not good for
the Adam to be by/for himself; I will make for him a compatriot-in-task, as his
counterpart. 19: Formed God[name of mercy-name of judgment] from the earth/soil:
all the wild animals of the field and all the birds of the skies; and He
brought them to-the-Adam, to see what he would call them; and
all-that-was-called-to [by] the Adam; living beings – that was its name. [line
break] 20: Named the-Man names, to-all-the-animals and the birds of the skies,
and-to-all, the wild animals of the field; but [lit. and] the Man did
not find a compatriot-in-task, as his counterpart.
Question: What is
the purpose of the naming of the animals? Why does it interrupt the narrative
of Chava’s creation?
Perhaps, the
original – and ongoing – mission of Mankind is encapsulated by this naming –exploring
the Universe, seeing its beauty and wonder, and naming its structures and all
the creatures that dwell within them. Why? God created us in his image –
“בְּצַלְמוֹ”. The Rambam states in his Guide for the Perplexed that צלם means the essence of
the being, the essential properties that make the being what it is. According
to the Rambam, God created us to ourselves be creators – our mission is to join
Him in creating Creation. Consider: God names exactly five things – Day, Night,
Heavens, Land, and Sea. Everything else was left for the Adam, and his
descendants, to name – and God tells us: “everything the Adam named – that was
its name” God approved[2].
But, the Adam,
aware of the immensity of the task, despairs – how can he, but one man, in one
small lifetime, name all things, see all sights, explore an entire Universe?
This is why he now searches for a partner, a mate – he realizes that this is
not a task he can accomplish alone.
Finally, I
conjecture that the other trees of the Garden of Eden, which Adam was commanded
in the strongest terms to eat of, are trees of various other knowledges – the
Tree of Knowledge [that is] Good & Bad is representative of the knowledge that
Mankind, and each individual, needs maturity to wield without causing great
harm[3]. The
other trees of the Garden represent those things that Mankind can learn without
danger – and those that must be internalized prior to ingesting the knowledge
that could destroy Mankind– or his world.
The entire Garden of Eden is thus not be merely written and passed
to us a tale of an error of our distant ancestors, but as an eternal warning to
their descendants - us - a warning we today
understand all too well. Today, never before has our mission been so firmly
within grasp – and never before have we been so able to destroy it. We can
build the future God desires for His children, so long as we do not drive
ourselves out once again.
May we act with these in mind always, and build eternally amongst
the stars.
