Timshel

Thoughts on modern philosophies

One of the more important books I have read in my life is John Steinbeck’s East of Eden. While much of the story is an allegory for the biblical story of Cain and Abel, set in the sunny California hills, there is one particular passage in the book that has become quite important for many people in their lives. Steinbeck has his characters discuss the Hebrew word Timshel in the Bible (more likely transliterated Timshol or Timshal) and the implications it has for the translation of the passage. While actual biblical and Hebrew scholars have later questioned or debunked his interpretation of this, it is nevertheless the idea that arises out of it that I find profound.