The Tree in the Middle of the Garden

A couple of symbolic interpretations of the Garden of Eden come to mind. The first one is sexual in nature, the snake is Adam's penis and Eve's forbidden fruit is her vagina, and both taboo objects can be found in the middle of the garden. The second interpretation of our fall is about the intellect. Thou shall not eat from the Tree of Knowledge, the bible says.

Now what exactly do we do with these warnings? Does it mean not to have sex outside of the intention to create new life? Does it mean not to think and create mentally? I actually think there is an overlap of both interpretations. Mental activity can lead you astray from the here and now and tends to be highly addictive. As far as sex is concerned, I have recently written about the surprising difference between the real sex act and the many mental fantasies. While the former is bliss, the latter turns destructive before you know it:  http://zeitgeistinma.blogspot.com/2010/07/sexual-fantasies-sex-and-spirituality.html

As far as our mind is concerned, the human evolution is mainly a mental one. We have literally squeezed out as much brain-power as the birth-canal of an upright walking woman could handle before the cesarean age, and our enormous brain size is also the reason why babies are still born prematurely even after nine months of pregnancy. As with sex before, the intellect may better not stand in the way of enlightenment otherwise few lights will walk the earth in future eons.

Sex and brainpower do not separate you from God, your mental constructs do. The feeling of not having everything here and now, but to search mentally for the things that supposedly make you better off. You are searching for bliss away from what you have and like a carrot dangling in front of the donkey, the bliss is always out there in the future never to be reached. Anyone who has suffered from an addiction knows the feeling. You run after your drug as you feel connected when the blood is rushing through your system, but every climax is followed by a lower low. Oneness can only be found internally and never externally. Beware the snake that wants to lead you astray from the here and now. Stop the mental acrobatics and enjoy life!