Although I haven't seen the DVD, Maynard definitely seems to be attacking his mother's faith and making a lot of biblical references throughout the song. For example:
He did this {GOD}
Took all you had and
Left you this way
Still you pray, you never stray
Never taste of the fruit
Never taste of the fruit is a reference to Jesus's words in John 15:5 - "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."
Not like you killed someone
It's Not like you drove a spiteful spear into his side
This is a reference to Jesus's crucifixion. John 19:34 says - "But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out."
Clearly Maynard knew his bible very well and uses it to express his anger with God. The irony is that while his mother's faith allowed her to be at peace with her tragedy, obviously he is tormented by it. So her faith still won in the end.
Actually, he never referenced John 15:5. He's naming things she did right and sins she tried to avoid:
Pray to your Christ, to your god
Never taste of the fruit
Never stray, never break
Never choke on a lie
Actually, he never referenced John 15:5. He's naming things she did right and sins she tried to avoid:
Pray to your Christ, to your god
Never taste of the fruit
Never stray, never break
Never choke on a lie
So in this context he's refering to something bad when he says she 'never taste of the fruit'. It's quite simple, actually. The first sin a committed by a human being was eating from the fruit that was clearly forbidden. eating from this fruit was in direct violation with pretty much the only rule or law they received. Therefore, this was the best way of showing they would either obey and respect their God, or instead oppose him. Eve chose the latter in the hopes of gaining that which was promised to her by Satan; eternal life. This lie still exists today, because the false believe of an indestructible 'soul' is still a widespread dogma for many religions, even though the Bible clearly states the opposite. Adam then had to make a decision: either choose her side and share the punishment of (a delayed) death, or choose the side of the person who made him and gave him the chance to live forever in happiness. For what is probably a wild variety of potential reasons, which we don't know for sure, he chose the side of his wife.
It's an interesting topic, because this is the first lie ever recorded in human history and it's still probably the most popular lie in today's world, thousands of years later.
But another popular lie told by many religions is the dogma of a so-called destiny or fate, guided by God. As if every single thing that happens in the world and in our personal lives is because God made it so. As if we don't have a free will. As if someone will be punished for doing bad things, or rewarded for doing good things, even though God is the one who made it all happen and forced us to do those things. This is of course a ridiculous lie, but many people firmly believe this nonsensical doctrine, nonetheless.
It's also one of the reasons why Maynard James Keenan is/was so conflicted about bad things happening to good people. He's one of the people who draw the conclusion that God has to be really cruel for doing all of these horrible things, without a clear reason why. He probably believed lies like these, because his mother brought him up teaching him these false truths for many years.
Either way, there are more people who feel this way, simply because they've never actually read the Bible with a clear and unbiased mind.
@josegee21 This is pretty much my sentiment on the fruit part, except, I was pretty sure that Eve ate the fruit of The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The thought was likely that they would become all-knowing, like God. With a false promise of being equal to God, they were not only tricked by Satan, but banished from the Garden so they would not have access the The Tree of Eternal Life.
@josegee21 This is pretty much my sentiment on the fruit part, except, I was pretty sure that Eve ate the fruit of The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The thought was likely that they would become all-knowing, like God. With a false promise of being equal to God, they were not only tricked by Satan, but banished from the Garden so they would not have access the The Tree of Eternal Life.
Although I haven't seen the DVD, Maynard definitely seems to be attacking his mother's faith and making a lot of biblical references throughout the song. For example:
Never taste of the fruit is a reference to Jesus's words in John 15:5 - "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."
This is a reference to Jesus's crucifixion. John 19:34 says - "But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out."
Clearly Maynard knew his bible very well and uses it to express his anger with God. The irony is that while his mother's faith allowed her to be at peace with her tragedy, obviously he is tormented by it. So her faith still won in the end.
Actually, he never referenced John 15:5. He's naming things she did right and sins she tried to avoid: Pray to your Christ, to your god Never taste of the fruit Never stray, never break Never choke on a lie
Actually, he never referenced John 15:5. He's naming things she did right and sins she tried to avoid: Pray to your Christ, to your god Never taste of the fruit Never stray, never break Never choke on a lie
So in this context he's refering to something bad when he says she 'never taste of the fruit'. It's quite simple, actually. The first sin a committed by a human being was eating from the fruit that was clearly forbidden. eating from this fruit was in direct violation with pretty much the only rule or law they received. Therefore, this was the best way of showing they would either obey and respect their God, or instead oppose him. Eve chose the latter in the hopes of gaining that which was promised to her by Satan; eternal life. This lie still exists today, because the false believe of an indestructible 'soul' is still a widespread dogma for many religions, even though the Bible clearly states the opposite. Adam then had to make a decision: either choose her side and share the punishment of (a delayed) death, or choose the side of the person who made him and gave him the chance to live forever in happiness. For what is probably a wild variety of potential reasons, which we don't know for sure, he chose the side of his wife.
It's an interesting topic, because this is the first lie ever recorded in human history and it's still probably the most popular lie in today's world, thousands of years later. But another popular lie told by many religions is the dogma of a so-called destiny or fate, guided by God. As if every single thing that happens in the world and in our personal lives is because God made it so. As if we don't have a free will. As if someone will be punished for doing bad things, or rewarded for doing good things, even though God is the one who made it all happen and forced us to do those things. This is of course a ridiculous lie, but many people firmly believe this nonsensical doctrine, nonetheless. It's also one of the reasons why Maynard James Keenan is/was so conflicted about bad things happening to good people. He's one of the people who draw the conclusion that God has to be really cruel for doing all of these horrible things, without a clear reason why. He probably believed lies like these, because his mother brought him up teaching him these false truths for many years.
Either way, there are more people who feel this way, simply because they've never actually read the Bible with a clear and unbiased mind.
@josegee21 This is pretty much my sentiment on the fruit part, except, I was pretty sure that Eve ate the fruit of The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The thought was likely that they would become all-knowing, like God. With a false promise of being equal to God, they were not only tricked by Satan, but banished from the Garden so they would not have access the The Tree of Eternal Life.
@josegee21 This is pretty much my sentiment on the fruit part, except, I was pretty sure that Eve ate the fruit of The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The thought was likely that they would become all-knowing, like God. With a false promise of being equal to God, they were not only tricked by Satan, but banished from the Garden so they would not have access the The Tree of Eternal Life.
@josegee21 darkaquatu, well said. It used to be baffling to me how little Christians know their own book of life.
@josegee21 darkaquatu, well said. It used to be baffling to me how little Christians know their own book of life.
@josegee21 darkaquatu, well said. It used to be baffling to me how little Christians know their own book of life.
@josegee21 darkaquatu, well said. It used to be baffling to me how little Christians know their own book of life.