A Buddhist revises the Cain and Abel story

The complete title of the following is:

Cain and Abel: Revised for your Reflection by Steven Searle, the Buddhist

1 And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. [NOTE: Numbered passages such as this one are from Genesis 4, King James Version of the Bible.]

 2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

And Cain had many thoughts as he labored in the fields:

"I labor mightily in the fields, while my brother idly watches his flock of sheep. I, however, bear no enmity toward my brother, for he is decidedly weaker than I and a dreamer. On the other hand, I revel in the exercise of my greater strength, knowing it feeds my father and mother. And also feeds Abel honestly, for the Lord has not granted us permission to eat meat. Neither did the Lord forbid it, but I am still anxious about the matter.

"Abel brings meat aplenty to our family, of which he, Adam and Eve partake. I, however, cannot fathom this slaughter, which the Lord has not directly permissioned. Also, the Lord is silent when I question him on this matter.

"Aye, gladly, then, do I labor in the fields, though the sun burns me hotly and the soil yields grudgingly."

3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.

Cain's thought was not to influence the Lord nor seek His favor. Rather, it was to influence Abel thusly: "If Abel sees me give away a portion of that for which I have worked so hard, maybe he will reconsider his idle ways and what they mean to the lives he takes among his flock. As his older brother, I owe him an example. As I owe to my father and mother to be my brother's keeper."

4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?

 7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

Cain thought unto himself, though he said nothing to the Lord:

"The Lord has asked me three questions, which I am too angry to answer at this time. But I know the answer to anger: Hard work. Whenever I labor in the fields, I become calm. I know I am more fiery than Abel, so it is that Abel shall never know how hard work and purpose can forge our minds. Poor Abel. He thinks to please the Lord at the expense of the life of a living animal."

So it was that Cain walked away from the presence of the Lord, not witnessing what happened next between the Lord and Abel. Though the Lord "had respect" for Abel's offering, that was feigned for two reasons. For the Lord had been taken aback by Cain's offering. Never had He been offered anything before, though He supposed that pride might well up within Cain's breast should He appear to respectfully accept Cain's offering.

Also, He wished to wait until Cain's departure before addressing Abel:

"You expect me to ... eat that!?"

Abel: "I offer you my best."

The Lord: "If you had offered to Me a live firstling for Me to uplift straight unto heaven, that would have been more acceptable. But this? You offer to Me a thing from which you've taken life and you call that your best?"

Abel silently withdrew from the presence of the Lord, crushed by the censure of his Lord. Walking further and further, when sure he was unobserved, Abel found himself a precipice and threw himself from it in despair. Cain, walking by, saw this and ran up to Abel's crushed and dying body:

"Oh, Abel, why did you do this thing, end your own life?"

"Cain, I am saddened beyond relief at my Creator's censure. I can no longer remain here. Without Him, my life has no meaning."

"But we do not know what death will bring."

"Maybe it will be like sleep: mostly blackness, quietude, and visions of better things."

"Or maybe not."

"Or maybe not. Please, my brother, do not tell the Lord of this."

9 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

And Cain thought: "The Lord asks where is Abel as if He doesn't know...and I think: He truly doesn't know. Maybe there are certain things He chooses not to know. Also, He does not answer my question ‘Am I my brother's keeper?'"

10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.

And Cain thought unto himself:

"The Lord God truly does not know. Not if He has to ask, ‘What hast thou done?' I am sure He hears the voice of my brother's blood, but that voice I'm also sure is not to accuse me of misdeed. It is surely only the cry of agony. The Lord God knows my fire and thus suspects I could kill my brother. Yet I shall remain silent as to Abel's demise, since I have promised my brother that I would not reveal his secret."

Many years passed and Cain had reflected frequently upon the nature of the Lord and the meaning of his exile. He thought thusly, but never expressed aloud his thoughts, preferring to keep them unknown to the Lord who (who knows?) might be listening:

"I have kept my promise to my brother Abel, though I wonder: What has become of Abel? Where is he? How is he? Is he somehow with the Lord? If so, has he spoken of my innocence? If the Lord knows my innocence (that is, if Abel has told Him), my continued suffering must then be for reasons known only to the Lord. Aye, I am used to hardship and I do thank the Lord for my continued strength to endure it.

"I also thank the Lord for my good wife, who ‘knew' that I had killed Abel (for I never told her otherwise), yet also sensed me to be a good man. She accepted me and loved me, though I had displeased the Lord. This speaks well of her, and till my dying day I will consider her to be the greatest gift of all from the Lord to me.

"I find it interesting though (in the privacy of my unspoken thoughts) to know that my Lord had chosen to remain ignorant of certain things. Though why should that surprise me. For had He not surprised us all by speaking falsely -- lying -- when saying:

‘17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.'"

And so these came to pass:

The first offering unto the Lord. This was made by Cain, though in Cain's mind, the benefit was intended for Abel and not for the benefit of the Lord.

The self-imposed ignorance of the Lord concerning the affairs of man. God asked, "Where is Abel thy brother?" He asked because He didn't know, and because He had seen the effect of His words upon Abel. Worried about Abel, He looked for him but found Cain instead and so asked him, "Where is Abel thy brother?"

The profound sacrifice of Cain. He kept a promise made to his brother though incurring punishment from the Lord in exchange.

Steven Searle's End Note:

I am aware that the account in Genesis specifically says that Cain slew Abel. However, keep in mind that this account is known as "The First Book of Moses Commonly Called Genesis." This Book might have had more authority had it been known as "The First Book of God..." It is important to keep in mind that it was Moses who wrote this book. Moses was not only "just" a man, he was also a Jewish partisan. Unlike the Ten Commandments which were rendered in God's own handwriting, "Genesis" was in Moses' own writing and, I'm sure, was rendered through the various lenses of his experience.

Divinely inspired? Perhaps, perhaps not.

More to the point: My rendering of the Cain and Abel story claims things God did not know, which I had written as: "Maybe there are certain things He chooses not to know." If that is the case, then how could Moses know something (that Cain slew Abel) that the Lord God Himself did not know? It is on this basis that I chose to revise the Cain and Abel story as I did.

Steven Searle, just another member of the Virtual Samgha of the Lotus

“It’s not good enough to merely read scripture; one has to read between the lines and figure out (for himself) what is true and what is false" - Steven Searle

Contact me at bpa_cinc@yahoo.com