Bereshit: The Purpose of Chava’s Curses

Bereishit begins in the most perfect place in the world: Gan Eden. Wined and dined by Hashem’s own melachim, surrounded by pure natural beauty and living in a true paradise free of toil, Adam and Chava experienced a most lofty existence. However, just one Shabbat into the Creation, these two G-dly beings eat from the forbidden Tree of Knowledge – and the makeup of mankind is changed forever. 

Chava, as her name implies, was the eim kol chai, mother of all life and she embodied what would become the nature and struggle of all women. The verse tells us¹: “To the woman He said, I will greatly increase your pangs and your pregnancy, you will bear children in hardship, and your desire will be towards your husband and he will rule over you.” 

What Were the Curses?

In this verse lies the curses Hashem gave Chava following the sin. Avot D’Rabbi Natan² breaks down the different parts of the verse.

The pangs, itzvoneich, refers to the struggle of raising children while heroneich is the pains of pregnancy. The double expression, harbeh arbeh, indicates a scale of difficulty. Avot D’Rabbi Natan says that it is the beginning of pregnancy which is the hardest. The Abarbanel says that  itzvoneich refers to general pains because a woman will go through more physical pain and weakness in her lifetime than a man. Specifically, Rabbeinu Bachya says, through her head and limbs feeling heavy at the time of menstruation. This is all related to the word ‘atzvut’ which means sadness or lowliness, describing the woman’s emotional (and what we describe as hormonal) state at this time. 

B’etzev teldi banim connotes the physical pains of childbirth. Sforno points out that Adam and Chava gave birth to children on the very same day they were created. In the world’s perfect state, bearing children was not difficult and happened virtually effortlessly. One day the world will return to this state. As the Gemara³ tells us, ‘In the future, women will be able to give birth every day.’ For women post-cheit, birth is a difficult process.

V’el isheich teshukateich refers to a woman’s physical desire for her husband. Despite the difficulties of pregnancy and birth, a woman still desires physical closeness.

Yet, vehu yimshal bach, the woman will struggle to articulate it. The Aderet Eliyahu says this corresponds to the way in which Chava gave Adam the fruit. Since she was compelling him to follow her will, a woman is now compelled to follow man’s will. 

A better word for curse is the Hebrew word ‘tikun’ which means ‘to fix.’ The curses were not arbitrary punishments, rather they were Divinely selected to enable the woman to fix up that which was broken and achieve her full potential in this world. Whatever she will struggle with is a sign of what was broken in her neshama. For this reason, Chava’s mission remains incomplete until we are able to elevate these curses and channel them towards their ultimate purpose. 

Haemek Davar (the Netziv) understands the woman’s desire as an emotional one. He brings a Midrash⁴ which lists four cravings which exist in the universe. Kayin and those like him long for the yetzer hara, Hashem longs for the Jewish people, the land longs for rainfall – and a woman pines for her husband. She craves his approval and validation and deeply desires to be wanted.

What Is the Purpose of a Curse?

A better word for curse is the Hebrew word ‘tikun’ which means ‘to fix.’ The curses were not arbitrary punishments, rather they were Divinely selected to enable the woman to fix up that which was broken and achieve her full potential in this world. Whatever she will struggle with is a sign of what was broken in her neshama. For this reason, Chava’s mission remains incomplete until we are able to elevate these curses and channel them towards their ultimate purpose. 

At their core, all of the curses point to one deficiency in Chava: belief that we are in control. The curses all forced Chava to recognize: I am not in control of my body, I am not in control of my emotional fluctuations, I am not in control of my cycle, I am not in control of my birth – I surrender to Hashem. The avoda of surrendering is our life’s work and the core goal of this pain and suffering. 

It is crucial to highlight, therefore, that the curses are not innately bad. On the contrary, they exist in order to help us achieve the greatest good possible: self-perfection and closeness to Hashem. They enable us to refine ourselves and mend the broken parts of our neshama. The Gur Aryeh (Maharal) points out that the curses ultimately lead to something beautiful: a woman becoming a mother and raising her children. There is nothing shameful or evil about the curses, rather, Hashem restructured the world after the sin so that we would acquire the good that He wishes to bestow through pain and struggle- not through bad. 

Why Did Hashem Choose These Curses Specifically?

The Ohr Hachaim writes that Chava had three primary motivations for wanting to eat the fruit as described in the verse ( Bereishit 3:6). 

(a) the delightful taste of the fruit – טוֹב֩ הָעֵ֨ץ לְמַאֲכָ֜ל

(b) the pleasure in appearance- תַֽאֲוָה־ה֣וּא לָעֵינַ֗יִם

and (c) that it would make her perceptive- נֶחְמָ֤ד הָעֵץ֙ לְהַשְׂכִּ֔יל

The Ohr HaChaim links each of these sinful intentions with the curses of woman.

The physical allure of the fruit led to her bearing her children (her “fruit”) in pain. The desire for her eyes is fixed through her constantly pining for her husband’s approval, implying that her eyes are directed towards him. Finally, her aspiration to be perceptive and G-dlike resulted in her having to accept both the authority of her husband and of Hashem. 

The Woman’s Mitzvot

In the same way that we view the curses as a guide for the woman’s quest to self-perfection, we can also present the three primary mitzvot of women in this way.

The Alshich explains that the mitzvot of nidda (family purity), hafrashat challa (separating the dough) and hadlakat neirot (lighting candles) are a tikkun for this sin as well. He writes that since Chava destroyed the challa of the world, she is obligated to separate challa. Since Chava extinguished the light of the world, she is obligated to light candles. Since Chava shed the blood of the world, she is obligated to keep the laws of nidda (family purity). How did Chava do this? She gave Adam the fruit of the forbidden tree, an act which caused death to be brought to the world. 

The Alshich asks why this necessitates three separate tikkunim if each one rectifies the same thing. The Alshich explains that there are 3 aspects to a person that can be affected by sin: their chomer (physicality), their nefesh (soul) and their ruach (spirit). The three mitzvot of women purify a woman from her sin in each of these three areas.

1. Chomer (physicality). The same way a woman kneads a dough of flour and water and separates it, Hashem formed Adam like a challa; a fusion of dust of the earth and mist of the skies. Hashem performed hafrasha to create Adam’s body, thus women are obligated to perform hafrasha to correct the destruction of Adam’s body. 

2. Nefesh – soul. This is the blood of Adam which a woman repairs through observing the halachot of nidda. 

3. Ruach – spirit. A candle symbolises the ruach of Adam, the G-dly flame within every person. Since Chava extinguished this, women nowadays are responsible to light the candles for Shabbat and chagim.

As we navigate both the challenges and the beauty of being a Jewish woman, we can remind ourselves that we too form part of the rectification of Chava’s sin. One day, when all the fragments have been pieced together, we will be zoche to once again live in a world of perfection, ease and clarity. 

¹ Bereishit 3:16

² 1:7

³ Shabbat 30

⁴ Bereishit Rabba 20:7