The village children sat round Peduru Seeya’s easy chair once again to listen to another story. He saw the distant hills and the trees swaying in the breeze. And then he began to narrate how God created people.
“As you know, God created a beautiful world and the vast universe. But he realised that his creation was incomplete without human beings.” He said, “The human beings I am going to create will have minds to think and they will love me. They are going to be in charge of the new world I have created. I expect them to keep it in order.”
The children showed signs of impatience to hear the rest of the story.
Peduru Seeya continued to narrate the story. “God made the first man Adam followed by the creation of Eve who eventually became Adam’s wife. God expected them to live happily in the new world. He allowed them to enjoy everything in the world and to produce children. However, they had to obey God.”
A child wanted to ask a question but he remained silent when Peduru Seeya looked at him. “Don’t be so inquisitive. Let me continue to tell the story,” he said.
“Adam and Eve lived in a beautiful garden full of trees laden with fruit. God asked them to eat the fruit but not to eat the fruit from a particular tree in the garden. He said that was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God warned them that if they ate the fruit from that tree, they would die.”
“Adam and eve were so happy that they began to give names to various animals created by God. Every evening God came to talk to them. They were jubilant until darkness fell to end the day.”
“Tell us more about the forbidden fruit, Seeya,” the children pleaded.
“Sorry, children. You’ll have to wait for another week to hear the rest of the story,” Seeya said.
Next: The tempting fruit