Study Guide

The Da Vinci Code Chapter 56

By Dan Brown

Chapter 56

So. The Holy Grail is a woman. Not a cup.
Take it away professor Langdon:
The original symbol for male was this: ^ . It is a crude phallus-shape, known as the blade, representing aggression and manhood.
The original symbol for female was this: ∨ . It's the opposite of the symbol for male. Known as the chalice, it resembles a cup, and the shape of a woman's womb.
So, according to Langdon and other Grail scholars, the chalice is a metaphor for a woman. Ah ha.
That's why the Priory is so obsessed with sacred femininity and all that. The Holy Grail represents a woman who carried a powerful secret that could destroy the foundations of Christianity.
Meanwhile in the kitchen, Teabing's manservant is watching TV…and he sees a report about the wanted fugitives that he just served tea to. Whoops.