The Tree of Life
Genesis 2:9 claims, “And the Lord God made all kinds of trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” Not much is known about the tree of life in the bible and it is debated whether or not the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil are two separate trees or they are the same tree. In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is an enormous ash tree that connects different worlds together. Formed from the words, “ygg” and “drasil,” the tree’s name means terrible steed. This description is accurate since it is said that Odin “rode the gallows” in order to acquire knowledge.
Also extremely popular is the Celtic tree of life. A tribe would clear away forest for their settlements but would always leave on tree in the middle of their community. This would be their Tree of Life where chieftains were inaugurated and to cut it down deserved the worse punishment. The tree was also said to be key to accessing the Celtic Otherworld.
The most common symbol representing the Celtic Tree of Life is interesting because it also involves interlacement. It is representative that the tree gives life and death and that we are in a never ending cycle.
In Estoire de Saint Graal, the tree of life grew from a branch of the tree of knowledge of good and evil that Eve carried out of the Garden of Eden when she was cast out. This tree represented a multitude of emotions throughout its existence being called the tree of death, the tree of life, and the tree of help and comfort. It turned different colors according to humanity’s actions including white for purity when Adam and Eve were first cast out, green for fruit when Abel was conceived, and red for bloodshed when Cain killed Abel. The tree is tied to humanity and used by Solomon in the creation of his ship.