Reflections on the Garden of Eden

[Guest guest]

To all members:

 

Based on my early morning musings, it appears to me that there are

other explanations as to why Eve ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden

of Eden. The traditional interpretation of the story states that the

Snake (the Devil) made Eve eat the fruit. We can vividly see this

account in John Milton's "Paradise Lost".

 

However, based on vedic knowledge, it can be interpreted that the Snake

represents the kundalini, which is pictured as a snake coiled in the

first chakra.

 

Kundalini can be interpreted as the latent power within human beings

that searches for the ultimate truth. On the other hand, kundalini can

also be interpreted as the latent desire that is embedded to being

human. Or is desire inherent to the manifestation of matter in the

universe? If there are devas, can we say that desire is inherent in

their existence in the other lokas or dimension?

 

It appears that desire is not inherently bad by itself. We can argue

that the creation of the universe is the evidence that the Creator has

a desire to manifest his consciousness in all forms of matter and

beings. We can even deduce that the Creator desired to partake in the

activity of the manifested creation. Thus, we have ideas of the Divine

Incarnation in vedic texts, and in the Christian tradition.

 

It is only when desires are misplaced that they become the source of

bondage. Thus, we see the message of the event in the Garden of Eden.

The first humans left (either voluntarily or unknowingly) the bliss of

the Garden to toil in the life subjected to the three gunas.

 

Regards,

 

John R.

[Guest guest]

Hi John,

 

Great post! Lately I’ve been thinking that there are

so many layers to this tale if one can just figure it

out. Thanks for the new perspective.

 

I’ve thought, too, about the fruit itself, the apple

with the “knowledge of good and evil”. Why forbid it?

Is it that we cannot handle trying to differentiate

between good and evil without causing strife? Is it

that the difference is so minute that they are one and

the same and we can’t really grapple with the idea

that two fractions, however distinct, make up one

whole? After all, how often have actions taken with

good intentions ended with evil consequences. They

say, “the path to hell is paved with good intentions”.

 

Either way, it just seems to me that so much of our

daily strife stems from the differentiating of good

from evil, our actions from theirs. I wonder if we

could return to “Eden” if we could realize that we are

all exactly the same and that just because some of us

look or act like the apple skin versus the apple flesh

versus the apple seed, doesn’t mean we aren’t all

“apple”.

 

 

 

--- John <jr_esq wrote:

 

> To all members:

>

> Based on my early morning musings, it appears to me

> that there are

> other explanations as to why Eve ate the forbidden

> fruit in the Garden

> of Eden. The traditional interpretation of the

> story states that the

> Snake (the Devil) made Eve eat the fruit. We can

> vividly see this

> account in John Milton's "Paradise Lost".

>

> However, based on vedic knowledge, it can be

> interpreted that the Snake

> represents the kundalini, which is pictured as a

> snake coiled in the

> first chakra.

>

> Kundalini can be interpreted as the latent power

> within human beings

> that searches for the ultimate truth. On the other

> hand, kundalini can

> also be interpreted as the latent desire that is

> embedded to being

> human. Or is desire inherent to the manifestation

> of matter in the

> universe? If there are devas, can we say that

> desire is inherent in

> their existence in the other lokas or dimension?

>

> It appears that desire is not inherently bad by

> itself. We can argue

> that the creation of the universe is the evidence

> that the Creator has

> a desire to manifest his consciousness in all forms

> of matter and

> beings. We can even deduce that the Creator desired

> to partake in the

> activity of the manifested creation. Thus, we have

> ideas of the Divine

> Incarnation in vedic texts, and in the Christian

> tradition.

>

> It is only when desires are misplaced that they

> become the source of

> bondage. Thus, we see the message of the event in

> the Garden of Eden.

> The first humans left (either voluntarily or

> unknowingly) the bliss of

> the Garden to toil in the life subjected to the

> three gunas.

>

> Regards,

>

> John R.

>

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