What is "Eden"?

1. Christian myth

According to the Old Testament Genesis, God created human ancestors in his own image, named men Adam and women Eve, and placed the first couple in the Garden of Eden. The Garden of Eden contains the meaning of heaven in the original Bible. The Bible records that the Garden of Eden is in the east, and four rivers flow out of the Garden of Eden, nourishing it. These four rivers are the Euphrates River. , al-Frat), Tigris River (,Dijla), Jihong River and Pihong River. Only the first two articles exist.

Where is the Garden of Eden?

Genesis in the Bible says, "A river flows from the Garden of Eden, which moistens the garden and divides into four channels." These four tributaries are Euphrates River, Tigris River, Jixun River and Bixun River, which are rich in gold, pearls and red agate. Based on these clues, some scholars began to explore the Garden of Eden. However, the first problem that scholars encounter is that there are only two of the four rivers mentioned in the Bible. Where the Bixun River and the Jixun River are, people have long been uncertain.

After a long-term study, Professor Zalins of the University of Missouri in the United States believes that the Jixun River is the Cullen River, which now originates in Iran and finally flows into the Persian Gulf. Located in Saudi Arabia, the Bixun River has become a dry river bed in the vast desert due to the changes of geography and climate. According to this, Zalins concluded that the Garden of Eden was located at the intersection of four rivers in the Persian Gulf. About 7000 years ago, after the last ice age, the Garden of Eden sank to the bottom of the Persian Gulf due to melting glaciers and rising sea levels.

There are many speculations about the Garden of Eden. Some people say that the Garden of Eden is in Israel, some say it is in Egypt, some say it is in Turkey, and some say it is in Africa, South America, the Indian Ocean and even China and Tibet. The author thinks that if there is a so-called Garden of Eden, then Zalins' theory should be the most logical and closest to the description of the geographical environment of the Garden of Eden in the Bible. The two river basins were called "Mesopotamia" by the ancient Greeks and were the birthplace of early human civilization. In ancient times, the Euphrates River and Tigris River were mighty, winding from northwest to southeast, watering fertile fields along the way and sowing harvest and hope. It was the earliest place suitable for human habitation.

Archaeologists also found that Sumerian myth (an ancient resident of Iraq today) is closely related to the story of the Bible, which is equivalent to the history book of ancient Jews. All their creationists say that human beings are made of clay. There are also words similar to "Eden" and "Adam" in cuneiform, the former means "uncultivated land" and the latter means "residents of Yuan Ye". There is also a bright and pure land in Sumerian mythology. In this paradise without disease and death, Enqi, the water god, fell in love with Ninghulsag, the mother and daughter god, and lived a happy life. Later, Mother Earth created eight kinds of precious plants, but Enqi stole them. Ninggesger parted ways with her husband in a rage. Enqi fell ill in all eight parts of her body. Ninghulsag could not bear to destroy herself, so she created eight healing goddesses to heal her husband, including a rib goddess named Ningdi, also known as the goddess of life. As we all know, Eve in the Bible was created by God from a rib on Adam. Eve is also the mother of human beings, similar to the "goddess of life".

Perhaps the Garden of Eden evokes instinctive memories of the beginning of civilization and the historical source. Looking for the Garden of Eden is a curious exploration of the origin of human beings, reflecting the sense of identity and affinity for ancestors. In fact, about the origin of human beings, until 1809, when French scholar Mara published Animal Philosophy, the mainstream views were Genesis and similar legends. Mara first put forward the conclusion that "human beings originated from apes", which was really a rock-breaking event at that time. Fifty years later, Darwin wrote two books, The Origin of Species and Human Origin and Sexual Selection, which explained the origin of human beings more systematically.

It should be said that in today's advocating science, "creationism" has long given way to biological evolution. However, the topics about Eden, Adam and Eve are still frequently mentioned. Among them, some people are talking about it after dinner, and some people want to prove its existence through exploration. Is it because the Garden of Eden has passed away forever that human beings think it is precious? Or is it because of the noise and intrigue in today's society that people miss and look forward to the tranquility and peace of Eden? From birth to today, human beings have been changing, carrying too many long-cherished wishes and nightmares, carrying endless suffering and sadness, and all people are eager to return to innocence, peace and happiness. Many people look back on their ancestors' poetic paradise from time to time and are eager to find out, which just reflects this yearning and hope.

In my opinion, it doesn't matter whether the Garden of Eden exists or not. Importantly, the Garden of Eden has become synonymous with human spiritual habitat and spiritual totem, and the extension of its cultural concept is much broader. To be sure, the pursuit of Eden will continue, and the topic about Eden will be closely related to human beings for a long time, and the humanistic light derived from it will be endless and dazzling.

The legend of Eden

Making man is God's last and most sacred task. At first, there was no rain in the sky, and there was fog and transpiration on the ground, which gave birth to plants and nourished the earth. God made man out of clay, breathed the breath of life with the nose of clay, and created a living soul. God named him Adam. But Adam was lonely at that time, and God was determined to make a spouse for him, so when he slept, he took off one of his ribs and put the meat together. God made a woman out of this rib and named her Eve.

God brought Eve to Adam, and Adam immediately realized the connection between this woman and his life. His heart was full of comfort and satisfaction, and he blurted out, "This is the bone of my bones and the flesh of my flesh! You can call her a woman because she was taken out of a man. " Men and women are originally one, so when they grow up, both men and women should leave their parents and combine with each other to become one.

Adam means "human" and Eve means "mother of life". They are the beginning of human life in Middle East and Western legends, the primitive father and mother of human beings, and the ancestors of human beings.

God built a paradise for Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in the East. There, the ground is covered with gold, pearls and agates, and all kinds of trees grow out of the ground, full of all kinds of exotic flowers and grasses, which are very beautiful; The fruit on the tree can also be used as food. There are also trees of life and good and evil in the garden. There are also rivers flowing in the garden, nourishing the earth. This river is divided into four roads around Eden: the first river is called Bison River, which surrounds the whole land of Hapengra; The second river is called the Jixun River, which surrounds the whole territory of Ethiopia. The third river, called Hidekiel, flows through Assyria. The fourth river is the Bora River. As a gift from God, if it doesn't rain, the grain will be plentiful.

God let Adam and Eve live in the Garden of Eden and let them repair and protect this paradise. God told them, "You can eat anything from all the trees in the garden. But you must not eat the fruit of the tree of the distinction between good and evil, because you will die the day you eat it. 」

Adam and Eve were naked and beautiful, tasting the sweet fruit. They either take a leisurely walk or lie down and casually name all kinds of animals and plants: animals on the ground, birds in the sky, beautiful trees in the garden; Flowers in the field.

In this way, they lived happily in the Garden of Eden and completed the work assigned by God.