All About Eve

What if Humanity’s Grandmother was “Innocent”?

So here’s the thing: if you’ve grown up anywhere even close to the orbit of the three semitic monotheisms of the Middle East – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – you have likely been told, or have assumed, that we are doomed to suffer and toil as men and women on earth all thanks to the wicked ways of Grandma Eve, the first woman (by most accounts). If only she could have done what she was told!

Without getting into any of the historical or other reasons as to why this has been the widespread belief, I wanted to share what an examination of the holy book of one faith tradition – the one I was born into – yields on the subject.

The Qur’an describes God’s creation of the human being and its infusion with His Spirit multiple times. Additionally, in 25 other verses the first male, Adam, is referred to by name. Reference is also made to Adam’s mate and spouse though her name, Eve (Hawwa’ in Arabic, as in Hebrew), is not mentioned. This is no doubt a reflection of prevailing customs – neither Sarah nor Hagar are mentioned by name in relation to Abraham either, for example, and so on.

Importantly, the Qur’an does not single out Eve for blame in the matter of the original couple disobeying God by eating from the forbidden tree and thus being exiled from the Garden for a time. If anything, the Qur’an actually singles out Adam – unsurprising given that he is the representative of humanity with whom God had made His covenant – though the overall message is firm in that both Adam and Eve did wrong of their own free will and were therefore accountable. Thus, there is no premise for women to be considered “guilty by association”.

There are three groups of verses in the Qur’an that show, in an almost identical way, the free will and accountability of both Adam and Eve. They are fifteen verses in total, which underscores the number of times the Qur’an could have singled out Eve for special blame for the Fall from the Garden, but did not. The Arabic original explicitly addresses both Adam and Eve by using the dual-plural form, which does not always come across in English translations since “you” in English applies to the singular, the dual-plural, and the communal-plural. This grammatical detail is also important for another reason, because at times God also addresses three beings at the same time in these verses: Adam, Eve and Satan. Here is a sampling of these verses to demonstrate these points:

Oh Adam, dwell with your spouse in the Garden and eat from whatever you both like but do not approach this tree, either of you, for then you would become wrong-doers.

Then Satan whispered to them both so as to make them aware of their private parts, of which they had not been conscious. And he said: Your Lord has only forbidden you both this tree so you cannot become angels, nor join the immortals.

And he swore to them both: I am your sincere adviser!

Thus he lured them both with delusion. And when they tasted of the tree they became conscious of their private parts, and they went about covering themselves with leaves from the Garden. And their Lord called out to them: Did I not forbid you both this tree, and tell you both that Satan is a clear enemy?

They both said: Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. And if You don’t forgive us and have mercy on us, we shall surely be lost.

He said: Descend, all of you. You [pl. that denotes three or more] will be enemies to one another. And you shall have a dwelling-place on earth, and enjoyment for a while.

        ~ (Qur’an 7:19-24)

And the following is where Adam is singled out for blame, to some extent:

And We had made a pact with Adam in the past, but he forgot, and We did not find him to be of firm resolve.

Then Satan whispered to him saying: Oh Adam, shall I show you the tree of immortality and infinite power?

So they both ate from it and thus their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to cover themselves with leaves from the Garden. Adam disobeyed his Lord, and so he lost his way.

Then his Lord chose him, and relented toward him, and guided him.

He said: Descend from it, both of you – all of you. You [pl. that denotes three or more] will be enemies to one another. But you will surely receive guidance from Me, and then whoever follows My guidance will not lose their way, nor suffer.

~ (Qur’an 20:115, 120-123)

So in a nutshell, the Qur’an blames Adam and Eve equally for the Fall from the Garden, on one occasion reproaching Adam specifically, no doubt as the symbol of humankind, which is often actually referred to as the Children of Adam. Eve is never singled out for particular blame nor depicted as the temptress who lured Adam to sin. In the Qur’anic account, rather, Satan whispers to both Adam and Eve and leads both astray, and both are equally accountable.

So during this Women’s History Month, let’s share this narrative about our primordial Grandmother – Jeddah in Arabic, for whom the city in today’s Saudi Arabia is named (the Tomb of Eve is believed to be there) – and help set the record straight as to what the Qur’an, at least, has to say about her.

Lisa Marie Rankin The Culturist Melissa Meggan Watterson Salwa

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~ Special Seasonal Announcement ~

Friends, if you haven’t already, do yourself a favour and grab a copy of renowned scholar of religion and spirituality Andrew Harvey’s latest book, The Magdalene Revolution: The Return of the Sacred Feminine and the Birth of Radical Equality, which came out last month. At a time when we are collectively reckoning with the unspeakable excesses of a skewed masculine-feminine dynamic that has endured for millennia, this book takes on the real “original sin”, as it were, albeit on the earthly plane, of one of the world’s great religions. Other authors have addressed this topic also, of course, and we owe them much. This book does however contain radically new, transfigurative wisdom whose time, it would seem, has finally come for all who would avail themselves of it, especially during this dark chapter of humanity’s history that has embroiled us all. The world owes Andrew Harvey a great debt of gratitude for being the eloquent vehicle for one of the most important messages of our time.

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Many wisdom traditions, histories and philosophies offer us much that reassures and offers hope. Together, we can build on them constructively, for the greater good. I aim to inspire and surprise by publishing at least 2 columns/posts a month, nipping back and forth between historically fascinating examples and more personal, experiential ones: more and more of us are living spiritual lives that were once the domain of hermits, recluses and religious orders alone, and we need to share what we learn and support one another at this juncture in humanity’s journey through our world..

P.S. For more of my writing, also check out my best-selling book No Truth Without Beauty: God, the Qur’an, and Women’s Rights. Thank you!