Babylonian Ishtar for example took the form of the divine fig tree Xikum, the "primeval mother at the central place of the earth", protectress of the saviour Tammuz. Moreover, figs and the fig tree were closely linked with female s*xuality. According to Barbara Walker'sencyclopedia on Goddess symbols, "This may account for the common use of the fig tree as a symbol of man's enlightenment, which was formerly supposed to …
