nor Sophia who actually is responsible in the making of man. On the contrary, the
task is undertaken by the archons, the demonic powers who, because of their
"weakness," entrap man in a material body and thus cut him off from his blessed
origin. They place him in paradise and enjoin him against eating of the tree of
knowledge. The prohibition, however, is viewed by the author of the text not as a
holy command but as a malignant effort on the part of the inferior spirits to prevent
Adam from having true communion with the High God, from gaining authentic
gnosis. (26)
According to this bowdlerization, Adam is consistently contacted by the High God in
hopes of reinitiating man's quest for gnosis (26). The archons intervene and create
Eve to distract Adam from the pursuit of gnosis (26-27). However, this Gnostic Eve is
actually a "sort of 'undercover' agent for the High God, who is charged with divulging
to Adam the truth that has been withheld from him" (27). The archons manage to
sabotage this covert operation by facilitating sexual intercourse between Adam and
Eve, an act that Gnostics contend was designed to defile the "woman's spiritual
nature" (27). At this juncture, the Hypostasis reintroduces a familiar antagonist from
the original Genesis account:
But now the principle of feminine wisdom reappears in the form of the serpent, called
the "Instructor," who tells the mortal pair to defy the prohibition of the archons and
eat of the tree of knowledge. (27)
The serpent successfully entices Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit, but the
"bodily defilement" of the woman prevents man from understanding the true motive
underpinning the act (27). Thus, humanity is fettered by the archons' "curse",
suggesting that the "orthodox theological view of the violation of the command as
'sin' must be regarded anew as the mindless failure to commit the act rightly in the
first place" (27). In this revisionist context, the serpent is no longer Satan, but is an
" incognito savior" instead (27). Meanwhile, God's role as benevolent Heavenly Father
is vilified:
The God of Genesis , who comes to reprimand Adam and Eve after their transgression,
is rudely caricatured in this tale as the "Arrogant archon" who opposes the will of the
authentic heavenly father. (27)
Of course, within this Gnostic narrative, God incarnate is equally belittled. Jesus
Christ, the Word made flesh, is reduced to little more than a forerunner of the
coming Gnostic adept. According to the Gnostic mythology, Jesus was but a mere
"type" of this perfect man (27). He came as a "teacher and an exemplar, to show
others the path to illumination" (27-28). The true messiah has yet to come. Equally,
the serpent is only a precursor to this messiah. He only initiates man's journey
towards gnosis. The developmental voyage must be further facilitated by the serpent's