forbidden fruit

one of the pillars of xian theology comes from a misunderstanding: a misread of the meaning of the forbidden fruit.

the standard interpretation says humans inherit "original sin" because our ancestors "fell" by disobeying god. those elements are present in the story but are not its main point.

a clue to the error lies in the fact that the fruit is usually said to come from the "tree of knowledge." that, of course, is only part of the name, and genesis never uses that abbreviated form.

the name of the fruit is the key to the true meaning of the story. what is the fruit of the "tree of knowledge of good and bad" (or "...good and evil" in some translations)? it's been thought to be an apple. many think it represents sex. a search of literature reveals that scholars and sages have put together a fairly long list of possible fruits—including wheat, odd as it may seem. it is none of them.

proper interpretation requires a kind of literalness. look at names of fruits. the fruit of the orange tree is an orange. the fruit of the peach tree is a peach. several exceptions exist, like oaks and redwoods, but most fruit and nut trees got named after their fruit or nuts.

if it follows the general rule, the fruit of a knowledge of good and bad tree must be knowledge of good and bad.

and what happened when man and woman ate it? it became inner knowledge of good and bad—the definition of conscience.

the true intent of the story is to explain how humans acquired conscience. that is confirmed by adam and eve's new ability to feel shame, which humans feel when we know we've done something dishonorable, improper, or ridiculous. conscience causes shame.

notice that eating the fruit also separates humans from the state of nature—the garden—making us less like other animals and more fully human. conscience makes us more fully human.

of course, we don't really acquire conscience by eating. it's a myth—a story that deals with some aspect of a people's world view.

the origin of myths is unknown. some may have begun as stories parents told children to answer hard questions, like kipling's "how the elephant got it's trunk," in which a crocodile grabs the elephant's nose and holds on so it stretches as the elephant tries to pull free.

stories that got widely retold and embellished became folk tales—part of an oral tradition. some eventually got written down. those that religious leaders thought important enough got included in scriptures.

each of us most likely grows a conscience in a manner that parallels the metaphors of the bible story. perhaps getting punished for wrongdoing contributes to that growth, or maybe it happens independent of punishment by others.

my personal "original sin" came when i was 4—too young to expect consequences. i did something i knew was wrong, but i never got caught. my sense of guilt grew and affected my behavior. a lot of years passed before i assimilated the fruits of my actions, recalled what i'd done as a child, saw how it all linked together, and grasped how i'd been unknowingly judging and punishing myself all that time.

ancient ancestors didn't cause it, i did when i was very young and irresponsible.

water didn't cleanse my soul, knowledge and understanding did.