Analysis of the Garden of Eden

The Garden of Eden. Anyone who has ever been to Sunday school or read a Bible knows the name. The Bible says that the world began here. Just like the Holy Grail, it too is considered a biblical treasure and is sought after by many. It is also the subject of great controversy. First, there is the on going debate of where the garden is located. Genesis 2:8 makes very clear that God “planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there he put the man he has formed”. According to this tale, there were four rivers that ran from this garden. They were the Pishon, Gihon, Tigris and Euphrates. Now I’m sure everyone can remember the Tigris and Euphrates from junior high geography class right? These two are obviously still in existence. Some scholars speculate that its in Iraq or Bahrain or even Jerusalem. If the garden truly existed, it may not have been meant to be found. Who knows if it will ever be found. It is but one of many stories of the creation myth. Actually, the biblical story of creation is very similar to an ancient Sumerian creation myth. Let me just interject here and say that when I use the term “mythology” I don’t mean to imply that I don’t believe, because I do. Legendary comparative mythologist Joseph Campbell put it best. He once said that mythology is simply other people’s religions. So know that if I say mythology that it’s a generic term. Anyway, in the Sumerian seals from 3500 B.C. we see something very similar to our Garden. The proverbial tree, the ever present serpent, the fall and of course the creation of man from clay. The Sumerian/Babylonian mythology does refer to a goddess as the deity instead of a male god. This is actually an abbreviated version of this story. I invite you to read The Masks of God “Oriental Mythology” by Joseph Campbell for a more detailed version and analysis of the story. There are two trees in the Garden. One is known as the tree of the Fall. This tree represents passage from the eternal into the realm of time. The second is the tree of the Return. This tree represents the return from the realm of time to the spiritual. Think about this. When Adam and Eve ate the “forbidden” fruit, they discovered duality for themselves for the first time. They know now the struggle of good versus evil and then what it is like to be exiled from the Garden by Yahweh. Duality and exile are the two major themes prevalent throughout the Bible. If you really read the Bible, you will see underline tones of both. Then there is the serpent. The serpent is another theme that runs rampant throughout the bible. In this case, it represents to some Lucifer aka the Devil. He is never named as the serpent until the book of Revelation. He sweet talked ole Eve into eating the fruit and plunged mankind into perpetual sin. Scholars believe that when this happened man became the devils pawn only to be redeemed by the crucifixion of God’s son. Then again, some scholars also believe that the story of the Garden of Eden is mythological. A metaphor that concerns that which cannot be told any other way and is misunderstood as historical fact. You are in the Garden and the Tree is your only way out. Thinking in terms of opposites- good versus evil and man and woman. It may not be meant to be regarded as historical fact but more a case of what does it mean? The very idea of what happened in the Garden is a tale of seduction. Every religion sets up its own rules that are dictated by ecclesiastical authority. The line of division is drawn in the sand and left for the true believer to decide for oneself.