Did the kundalini serpent lie when revealing that "your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as Gods, knowing good and evil."?

This figure above is taken from a Mesopotamian seal of c. 2200 B.C. and shows "the deity in human form, enthroned, with his caduceus emblem behind and a fire altar before." The symbol of this Serpent Lord was a double helix, similar with the representation of DNA.

Campbell writes about this omnipresent snake symbolism representing sacred scenes: "Throughout the material in the Primitive, Oriental and Occidental volumes of this work, myths and rites of the serpent frequently appear, and in a remarkably consistent symbolic sense. Wherever nature is revered as self-moving, and so inherently divine, the serpent is revered as symbolic of its divine life."

Campbell dwells on two crucial turning points for the cosmic serpent in world mythology. The first occurs "in the context of the patriarchy of the Iron Age Hebrews of the first millennium B.C., [where] the mythology adopted from the earlier neolithic and Bronze Age civilizations ... became inverted, to render an argument just the opposite to that of its origin." In the Judeo-Christian creation story told in the first book of the Bible, one finds elements which are common to so many of the world's creation myths: the serpent, the tree, and the twin beings; but for the first time, the serpent, "who had been revered in the Levant for at least seven thousand years before the composition of the Book of Genesis," plays the part of the villain. Yahweh, who replaces it in the role of the creator, ends up defeating "the serpent of the cosmic sea, Leviathan."

The second turning point for Campbell occurs in Greek mythology, where Zeus was initially represented as a serpent. However, around 500 B.C., the myths are changed, and Zeus becomes a serpent-killer. He secures the rule of the patriarchal gods of Mount Olympus by defeating Typhon, the enormous serpent-monster who is the child of the earth goddess Gaia and the incarnation of the forces of nature.

In the Eastern traditions the serpent represents the power of Kundalini, "an enormous reserve of untapped potential within each of us. It is normally depicted as a coiled or sleeping serpent, located in an area towards the base of the spine.

The Kundalini, in the form of latency, is coiled like a serpent. One who impels this Sakti (energy) to move will attain liberation.

Hathayogapradipika, Chap. 3, v.108

"Kundalini'' literally means coiling, like a snake. In the classical literature of hatha yoga kundalini is described as a coiled serpent at the base of the spine. The image of coiling, like a spring, conveys the sense of untapped potential energy. Perhaps more meaningfully kundalini can be described as a great reservoir of creative energy at the base of the spine. It's not useful to sit with our consciousness fixed in our head and think of kundalini as a foreign force running up and down our spine. Unfortunately the serpent image may serve to accentuate this alien nature of the image. It's more useful to think of kundalini energy as the very foundation of our consciousness so that when kundalini moves through our bodies our consciousness necessarily changes with it.

By gradually and safely awakening this serpent and employing its power, you will benefit greatly from an elevation in consciousness, promotion of physical well-being and an expansion of awareness. You will feel more relaxed and at ease with yourself. Your life will be transformed into one which is happy, healthy & harmonious." (Dolfzine Online Fitness)

The divine power, Kundalini, shines like the stem of a young lotus; like a snake, coiled round upon herself, she holds her tail in her mouth and lies resting half asleep at the base of the body.

Yoga Kundalini Upanishad (1.82)

Given the utmost importance of the revered serpent of the yogis to attain enlightenment and immortality how has this knowledge been suppressed from the gnostics and lost over time?

Elaine Pagels is a preeminent figure in the theological community whose impressive scholarship has earned her international respect.

Pagels is the Harrington Spear Paine Professor of Religion at Princeton University. In three consecutive years, she was awarded the Rockefeller, Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellowships.

As a young researcher at Barnard College, she changed forever the historical landscape of the Christian religion by exploding the myth of the early Christian Church as a unified movement.
Her findings were published in the bestselling book, The Gnostic Gospels, an analysis of 52 early Christian manuscripts that were unearthed in Egypt. Known collectively as the Nag Hammadi Library, the manuscripts show the pluralistic nature of the early church and the role of women in the developing Christian movement. As the early church moved toward becoming an orthodox body with a canon, rites and clergy, the Nag Hammadi manuscripts were suppressed and deemed heretical.