GLN:1:25 The words of the woman were not sweet to the ears of the man, for he was filled with remorse for what had been done. He said, "you are not the maiden of my tender desires, in whom my heart delighted and for whom I gladly undertook the task. What now of her, whose beauty compares with the glory of the sun, whose gentleness caresses as the sunbeam, beside whose brightness you are no more than a gloomy shadow?" Lila replied, "She is indeed as the sun; you may worship from afar, but never touch, lest you be burnt and destroyed."
GLN:1:26 "I am the woman of your body whom your flesh has chosen. What has this other woman done for you? Did she not sharpen the sword on which you cut yourself? If one lights a fire among reeds, knowing a man sleeps there, who is to blame for his burning? The fire, he who lit it or the reeds? It is beneath your manliness to turn on me thus; am I not shamed for your sake? And who among women would invite the wrath of gods and men, as I have done? Be content with the wrong your lust has already wrought. This is an evil deed you have committed, but because we are now united in
the flesh, no harm shall befall you through me."
GLN:1:27 Thenceforth, among the people they went their separate ways, but flesh called to flesh, bringing them furtively together in secret places. Each dwelt with the reproachful whispers of their spirit, and each walked in the shadow of fear because of the code and tradition.
GLN:1:28 Now, the elders were not without shrewdness, and they saw that the man was no longer diligent in the task and had returned to his former ways. Also, he avoided the eyes of Maya and was no longer reserved with women; having sampled forbidden fruit, he now sought other varieties. He was not a man with an end in view, towards which he strove; his bearing was not that of a free man. The glances between the man and the woman, and their uneasiness, were not difficult to interpret.
GLN:1:29 The elders and wise women said among themselves, "Such is the manner of those carrying a burden in their hearts, whose shadowy love is a feeble, furtive thing blooming shamefully in dark and hidden places." Therefore, they set a watch on the pair. The watch came upon them as they lay together in nakedness upon their skins and mocked them with ribaldry, for their passion was profane and a thing for jest. It was a fungus upon the tree of love.
GLN:1:30 They were brought before the high council, which was the council of elders, and the council of wise women, which questioned them, saying, "Wherefore have you done evil unto us?" The man answered. "The woman put my spirit to sleep with an evil brew, and my body became weak because of my manhood." They replied, "Truly, you have little manhood now and are a lesser man because of this woman."
GLN:1:31 The woman stood up before the high council and answered them boldly, "Am I then the stronger of the two? an I lift the biggest stone or run the fastest race? Do not the strong always prevail against the weak, and is not this man the strongest among men? Is this even a matter for your concern? For in what way have we caused harm to any but ourselves? Shall we be punished for that which concerns us two alone and wrongs no other?"
GLN:1:32 The high council replied, "The deeds of any person affecting the lives of others are the concern of others. Though it were done in secret between yourselves, were not the effects displayed in your eyes for all to see? Does the man serve the people better because of this thing, or does he serve them less well? Has something been added to the people, or has something been taken away? Have not the people lost?"
GLN: 1:33 "Therefore, is not that which you did the concern of the people and not of yourselves alone? The deed, of itself, was not wrong, except in the manner of its accomplishment. A woman who places no value on herself steals something from all women, for they are then less valued in the eyes of men. Would men value gold were it gathered by the wayside? Above all this, what of God-given love?" Have you elevated or degraded its means of expression among men and women? Among people who value gold above all else, he who debases or adulterates it commits a wrong against them. Here, where love is valued above all else and woman honoured as its custodian, those who debase it are regarded likewise."
GLN:1:34 "We dwell in a pleasant place, amid peace and plenty, an inheritance from our fathers. The Children of Men have inherited the wastelands. Are our fathers less wise than theirs, that the customs of our fathers should be spurned? What you have done relates to your two selves, and by your two selves shall your punishment be carried out. This is not a punishment for any wrong done to us, for we are old, and it affects us little. We punish, because we have a duty to the young, to the unborn of our race. We have an even greater duty to the hallowed things, which inspire mankind and enthrone man above the beasts."
GLN:1:35 "Your wrongdoing affects no one man or woman; yet, it affects all men and women and, if left unheeded, would not be without effect on children yet unborn. The code and tradition is the pillar of our people, and the pillar may not be struck with impunity. Though it be strong, and one blow will not damage it, many blows will bring down even the stoutest pillar. A blow left unheeded encourages another. A deed disregarded is a deed encouraged'.
GLN:1:36 "A people can be judged by the things it punishes and the things it permits. The swine revels in filth and, therefore, attacks anyone who enters his pen. Were we wholly of the Earth, we need only protect earthly things."
GLN:1:37 "Thus, we banish you for ever from among us, unless in your old age you are permitted, in mercy, to return."
GLN:1:38 In this manner were the man and woman banished from the tilled land to wander the wilderness beyond. They dwelt in a cavern in the wasteland, against the outer border of the tilled land, and they ate weeds and wild creatures. There, they were in a place defended from hostile men and made safe from ambushes. In the first days of their banishment, the man was wrathful against the woman and spoke to her spitefully, saying, "Like a lamp that gives no light, you are a woman without womanly virtue, no longer deserving of the honoured treatment accorded women of our race. You spoke truly when you said that I am strong and you are weak. So be it; henceforth, your weakness shall be my strength; no longer will the weakness of man be the strength of woman and the backbone of a people clinging to things without substance. Henceforth, I am obligated to no one and owe a duty to none but myself. Man is weak only in his desire for woman, but the weakness of woman shall henceforth assure satisfaction of the desire."
GLN:1:39 So the man subdued the woman after the fashion of The Children of Men; she was the wife who ministered unto him, saying, "My Lord, I am but a woman and your handmaiden."
GLN:1:40 The beasts of the wastelands were the keepers of the woman and she was in bondage to the barrenland, for the wilderness was beyond reach of the waters, a place of desolation yielding only weeds and thorns. The man hunted afield for wild creatures, while the woman delved for roots, seeking sustenance among the weeds.
GLN:1:41 Thus, it happened that one day, being overcome with hunger, the woman went among the reeds growing on the edge of the tilled land, for flowering plants grew there, the roots of which could be eaten. While engaged in gathering, she was seen by a husbandman tilling the fields, who, coming upon her stealthily, said, "Woman, I see you; are you not the one who was banished? If so, the custom decrees you will have to die, for it is forbidden to re-enter the fertile land, having been cast out."