There was reality in what the serpent said to Eve, "On the day you taste of it, you will be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil."
Half a reality is easily a lie, of course.
The sneaky loophole in the proposition was, knowing the difference between good and evil is nowhere near understanding the difference.
And for that lack of understanding mankind goes on committing evil, thinking it's good.
Simply to know two different things exist is no guarantee you'll know which is which.
Especially when your ego is all wrapped up in it.
It's why, as the old saying goes (a saying not as old as the Garden, but the truth of it is) that "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing."
History's greatest atrocities have sprung from the passionate zeal of human beings to attain the "good" their souls were consumed with, no matter the cost (to others, of course). And their "good" was an evil straight from the pit of hell.
The guards of Auschwitz and Dachau didn't spend their days thinking, "I'm so glad I'm doing evil."
It is enormously safe, comforting and ego-boosting, if self-deceiving, to think, "I would never have done those evil things they did."
Better to think, "The good I'm driven to do right now--is it really?"
The words are not enough, nor are the feelings, even passion.
What is vital is an understanding. An understanding that transcends the inescapable foolishness of ego.
