The Tree Of Knowledge And Judaism

[Honza]

What role does the Tree Of Knowledge play in Judaism? Is humanity considered to be under the effect of a bite from an apple from The Tree? What effect did the bite have on us?

Great thread and the answer is well and truly open to interpretation.
What I draw from the act of negation of divine law and the immersion into knowledge is simply a banishment from spirit to a mind based exsistance.
Knowledge in this sense is not a valueable comodity but a state of seeking through the mind. Where we find ourselves since is a slow reclaiming of our birthright.

The full name is 'The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil' (Etz HaDaat Tov v'Rah). The word for Knowledge in Hebrew is 'Da'at', which is interpreted as 'the synthesis of information from Thesis (Wisdom/Intuition/Chokhmah) and Antithesis (Understanding/Logic/Binah)'. Da'at thus has a broader definition as 'Sythesis'. Thus the tree can be called 'The tree that synthesises Good and Evil'.

Indeed, the Kabalists say that before the fall of Adam, Good and Evil were black and white. Humans were infused with pure Good and Evil was only found outside of them. When Adam and Chava ate from The Tree of Knowledge, Good and Evil were mixed together and became a spectrum of grey areas where the possibility of Doubt could exist. This change was especially drastic in humans where they began to understand Evil and the necessity to build fences against temptation (like Clothes to maintain modesty so that people could concentrate on things other than lust).

Since the fall of Adam and Chava we see that Evil has consistently been growing while Good has consistently been shrinking, starting with Cain killing Abel. The two great purges (the Flood and the plagues in Egypt) acted as countermeasures when things got bad enough, but it still wasn't enough.

The thing is though, that Adam and Chava were always meant to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. But they were first supposed to eat from the Tree of Life (Etz Chaim). The Tree of Life would have taught them Patience, Humility and other virtues, which are necessary for a proper synthesis of Good and Evil. Nowadays we need to live our lives and learn these virtues through worldly experiences so that after we die and return to the Garden of Eden we will have learned what the Tree of Life would have taught us and be ready to receive whatever it is we are meant to receive.

The Hebrew word 'Da'at' originally means also 'mind'. It isn't being used in this connotation nowadays, though it is retained in some expressions, like; "Latet et ha'da'at" or "ten datkha" (put your mind into, or pay attention to).

The usual connotation of the word 'da'at' is knowledge. "Marb'e da'at marb'e makh'ov" (the more knowledge, the more pain).

[7luminaries]

Originally Posted by Yamah

The full name is 'The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil' (Etz HaDaat Tov v'Rah). The word for Knowledge in Hebrew is 'Da'at', which is interpreted as 'the synthesis of information from Thesis (Wisdom/Intuition/Chokhmah) and Antithesis (Understanding/Logic/Binah)'. Da'at thus has a broader definition as 'Sythesis'. Thus the tree can be called 'The tree that synthesises Good and Evil'.

Indeed, the Kabalists say that before the fall of Adam, Good and Evil were black and white. Humans were infused with pure Good and Evil was only found outside of them. When Adam and Chava ate from The Tree of Knowledge, Good and Evil were mixed together and became a spectrum of grey areas where the possibility of Doubt could exist. This change was especially drastic in humans where they began to understand Evil and the necessity to build fences against temptation (like Clothes to maintain modesty so that people could concentrate on things other than lust).

Since the fall of Adam and Chava we see that Evil has consistently been growing while Good has consistently been shrinking, starting with Cain killing Abel. The two great purges (the Flood and the plagues in Egypt) acted as countermeasures when things got bad enough, but it still wasn't enough.

The thing is though, that Adam and Chava were always meant to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. But they were first supposed to eat from the Tree of Life (Etz Chaim). The Tree of Life would have taught them Patience, Humility and other virtues, which are necessary for a proper synthesis of Good and Evil. Nowadays we need to live our lives and learn these virtues through worldly experiences so that after we die and return to the Garden of Eden we will have learned what the Tree of Life would have taught us and be ready to receive whatever it is we are meant to receive.

Beautiful words. Well said Yamah.
Peace & blessings,
7L

Originally Posted by Honza

What role does the Tree Of Knowledge play in Judaism? Is humanity considered to be under the effect of a bite from an apple from The Tree? What effect did the bite have on us?

Duality as it presented itself with opposites that we can learn from and eventually integrate or synthesize as Yamah elegantly states.

http://www.oracleofthephoenix.com/fo...opposites.html

The Tree of Knowledge is symbolic of the impending return to the garden of Eden --- the healing of the broken and dead Tree of Life.

The bite symbolically represents was Satan's entrance into the Earth, which started with diminishing years of life. Humans used to live longer and have become incapable of living longer than 120 years. The beginning of the Age of Aquarius and the end of Pisces is symbolic of the return of the "messiah" and heaven on Earth, alluded to in Revelation.