The Forbidden Fruit — Which Fruit Did Adam and Chavah Eat?

Which Fruit Did Adam and Chavah Eat?

The Mishnah says concerning the tree from which the first man ate: “Rabbi Meir says that it was a grapevine, for nothing causes a person to suffer as wine does, as it is written: “Having drunk wine, he became drunk…” (Genesis 9:21) Rabbi Nechemiah said: “It was a fig tree, for that which caused the sin helped rectify the sin, as it is written: "...they sewed together fig leaves...” (Genesis 3:7) Rabbi Yehudah said: “It was wheat, for a child begins to speak his first words (“daddy,” “mommy”) only after tasting bread” (Babylonian Talmud, Berakhot 40a) Maharal (may his merit protect us) explains that the opinions of the Talmudic Sages regarding the species of the Tree of Knowledge do not contradict one another—the answer depends on which part of the soul proved susceptible to temptation. When Chavah tasted from the Tree of Knowledge, she noticed: “that the fruit of the tree was good for eating, desirable to the eyes, and promised understanding” (Genesis 3:6) The Tree of Knowledge attracted Chavah in these three different ways, each of which is connected to one of the levels of the soul. The desire to taste from the Tree of Knowledge because its fruit was “good for eating” corresponds to the lowest level of the soul—nefesh—which is connected to a person’s basic physical needs. Figs “revitalize” the soul and awaken the appetite. They are one of the foods that one never tires of eating. On a physical level, the “nefesh” is connected to the liver, since the liver purifies food of toxins and aids digestion. Grapes, whose fruit is described as “desirable to the eyes”, correspond to a higher level of the soul, called “ruach”, and affect our emotions. The words “promised understanding” represent the intellectual powers of the soul, associated with the level of neshamah and, accordingly, with wheat, whose taste influences the development of our intellectual abilities. A person can exist harmoniously in this world only when his thoughts, feelings, and actions—the three aspects of his soul—are in balance. As it is stated in Pirkei Avot 4:21: “Envy, lust, and the pursuit of honor remove a person from the world.” Envy takes root in the heart when feelings get out of control. When a person reaches for physical goods and pleasures, he is overcome by lust. Under the influence of the pursuit of honor, a person craves recognition. (Maharal, “Derech HaChaim” on Pirkei Avot 4:21)  (From the book The Seven Species of the Land of Israel by H. B. Sigelbaum)