Page 115 - Foundations

The Serpent Seed Doctrine

In the Gospel of Philip, an early Gnostic writing, and in the Zohar, the main literary source for the
teachings of Kabbalah, there is found a teaching that is commonly referred to as “the serpent seed
doctrine.” This doctrine purports that Eve was impregnated by the serpent/Satan (or sometimes
another being named Samael), when she was tempted in the Garden of Eden. This doctrine treats the
Biblical account of Eve’s temptation as a mystical teaching whose actual meaning is that the serpent
had sexual intercourse with the mother of all living and this resulted in a corrupt race of men.
Following are quotations from the Gospel of Philip and the Zohar.

Adultery occurred first, then murder. And (Cain) was begotten in adultery, for he was the son of the
serpent. Therefore he became a manslayer just like his other father (the serpent), and he killed his
brother (Abel).
[Source: Gospel of Philip, verse 46]

Two beings [Adam and Nachash] had intercourse with Eve, and she conceived from both and bore
two children. Each followed one of the male parents, and their spirits parted, one to this side and one
to the other, and similarly their characters. On the side of Cain are all the haunts of the evil species;
from the side of Abel comes a more merciful class, yet not wholly beneficial - good wine mixed with
bad.
[Source: Zohar Bereshith, 36b]

A single ancient copy of the Gnostic Gospel of Philip written in the Coptic language of Egypt exists.
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It was discovered in a cave at Nag Hammadi, Egypt. It has been dated to the 3 century A.D.. This
book was bound into a single codex (book) along with the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas. The Gnostics
were/are considered a heretical sect of Christianity. They believed that knowledge (Greek “Gnosis”)
was the key to becoming a perfected man. The Gnostics departed from Biblical truth in many of their
teachings. In this same copy of the Gospel of Philip, we find that Mary Magdalene is declared to be
the consort, or wife, of Jesus, and that He loved her more than all of His disciples. Following is an
English translation of one of the passages from this Gnostic writing.