In a sermon to the poor in heart of the Zoramites, Alma discusses nourishing the word, partaking of the fruit of the tree of life, and having the word spring up unto everlasting life (Alma 32:27-41; 33:23). Alma will also use this same imagery of a tree in words of wisdom to his son Corianton concerning the ultimate death and life of man, of our first parents and the tree of life in the garden of Eden, and of resurrection (Alma 42).
According to Allen J. Christenson, sacred trees, representing the power of life to grow from the underworld realm of the dead, are a common motif in the art and literature of the ancient Maya of Mesoamerica. Such trees are similar in concept to the tree of life described in the Book of Mormon, as well as to the mythic traditions of many other contemporary world cultures. Hieroglyphic inscriptions and sixteenth-century highland Maya texts describe a great world tree that was erected at the dawn of the present age to stand as the axis point of the cosmos. In its fruit-laden form, it personified the god of creation who fathered the progenitors of the Maya royal dynasty. . . . [Allen J. Christenson, "The Sacred Tree of the Ancient Maya," in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, 6/1 1997, p. 1]
Alma 33:23 Plant this word in your hearts . . . it will become a tree ([Illustration]): The ceiba is an ideal symbol for this conception of the world tree. It is one of the tallest of trees indigenous to southern Mesoamerica. In areas of dense tropical rain forest, such as the Peten region of northeastern Guatemala, the ceiba soars to the very top of the jungle canopy, attaining heights of 175 feet or more. The trunk is remarkably straight, and its branches extend at nearly right angles high above the ground, reminiscent of the cross-shaped trees seen in the art of Palenque. The ceiba tree is still revered by the modern Maya as a manifestations of the world tree. Many villages have a carefully tended ceiba tree growing in their main plazas. This tree marks their homeland as the center place of the world. [Allen J. Christenson, "The Sacred Tree of the Ancient Maya," in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, 6/1 1997, pp. 11-13]
Alma 33:23 Plant this word in your hearts . . . it will become a tree ([Illustration]): Sarcophagus lid of Lord Hanab-Pakal II, Palenque. [Allen J. Christenson, "The Sacred Tree of the Ancient Maya," in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, 6/1 1997, p. 9]