Other Creation Myths
Other Creation MythsTypes of Creation Myths
•World arises from body of Mother Earth goddess
•World arises from sexual union of father sky and mother earth
•Earth diver
•Cosmic egg
•Creation from chaos
•Creation from nothing
•Trickster
•Emergence
Chinese
Pan Gu separates the earth and sky
Chinese
I. Chinese
Chinese
I. ChineseA. Chaos, then big black eggB. After 18,000 years Pan Gu opened the egg
1. Light matter (Yin)went up- sky2. Dark matter (Yang)went
down- earth3. Pan Gu held them apart for
18,000 years as he grew 90,000 li (36 miles) tall
Chinese
C. After death, Pan Gu’s 1. breath = wind & clouds2. voice = thunder
3. one eye sun, other eye moon
4. body & limbs = five mountains
5. blood = water 6. veins = roads
Chinese
7. muscles = fertile land8. hair = stars9. skin = flowers & trees10. marrow = jade & pearls11. sweat = rain & dew12. fleas & lice = humankind
Chinese
Pan Gu combines elements of•Chaos•Cosmic egg•Creation from body of god
Japanese
II. JapaneseA. Ocean of chaos
1. Reed arises: eternal land ruler, Kunitokotatchi
2. Then goddess, Izanami, and god, Izanagi
Japanese
Izanami and Izanagi
Japanese
C. Stirred ocean with jeweled spear, created first island, Onokoro-shima
Ama-no-Hashidate
The Bridge of Heaven
Japanese
D. Izanami gave birth to the eight islands of Japan and all of the gods, but died in childbirth of fire god
Meoto Iwa- the Wedded Rocks
Japanese
E. Descent to Land of Gloom1. Eating food traps2. Warning not to look
3. Escape alone
Creation Myths
F. Separation between life and death
1. Izanami: 1,ooo dead2. Izanagi: 1,500 born
Creation Myths
G. Amaterasu, sun goddess- Izanagi’s left eyeH. Tsukiyomi, moon god- Izanagi’s right eyeI. Susanowo, storm god- Izanagi’s nose
Norse
Page from the Prose Eddas
Norse
III. ScandinavianA. Emptiness of Ginnungagap
1. South: fiery realm of Muspell2. North: icy realm Niflheim3. Melting middle realm forms evil giant Ymir
Norse
B. Ymir sweats- 1. from armpits male
and female frost giants 2. from leg another male
frost giant
Norse
C. Ice melt formed a cow, Audhumla; milk
fed Ymir1. Cow licked salty
ice, uncovered a man, Buri
Norse
Ymir drinking from Audhumla
Norse
2. Buri had son, Bor, who married Bestla, daughter of a frost giant3. Bor and Bestla had three sons:
Odin, Vili, Ve
Norse
D. Three brothers slew Ymir, whose blood drowned the frost giants
Norse
Odin, Vili, and Ve kill Ymir
Norse
E. Brothers made earth from Ymir1. Flesh = earth2. Bones & teeth = rocks & stones3. Blood = rivers & lakes
4. Skull made into sky held up by dwarfs (Nord, Söder, Oster, Väster) 5. Brain = clouds 6. Fires from Muspell = sun, moon, stars
Norse
NorseF. Earth made in the form of a circle, surrounded by great sea
1. Jotunheim, land of the giants
2. Midgard, protected from giants by Ymir’s eyebrows
3. Asgard above for gods, linked to Midgard by Bifrost, the rainbow bridge
4. Niflheim below, icy realm5. Yggdrasil, ash tree, center of all
realms
Norse
Norse
G. Midgard was home to the first man, Ask, and first woman, Embla
1. Created by brothers from two logs
2. Odin gave them breath and life
3. Vili gave them brains and feelings
4. Ve gave them hearing and sight
Norse
Odin, Vili, and Ve create humans from logs
Cheyenne
IV. Cheyenne (North America)
Cheyenne
IV. Cheyenne (North America) A. Maheo, the All Spirit, lived alone in the void
B. Created a great salty lake1. All life could come from lake2. Created water beings- fish,
snails, crawfish(put sand and mud for bottom
of lake)3. Created water birds4. Created light5. Birds got tired of paddling-
made them fly6. Birds tired of flying, asked for
dry land
Cheyenne
C. Maheo’s Power allowed him to create 4 things (water, light, sky air, peoples of water)- needs help to create more
1. Snow goose & loon & mallard try to swim to bottom of lake to get mud- fail
2. Coot tries- succeeds (now flesh tastes like mud, so no one eats it)
3. Maheo places mud on Grandmother Turtle’s back (home is beneath water, within earth, on the earth)
4. Decorates turtle like beautiful woman- trees & grass for hair, flowers for ornaments
Cheyenne
D. Earth Woman is most beautiful creation- Maheo gives her something of himself
1. Takes right rib, breathes on it2. Lays on bosom of Earth
Woman- first man3. Takes left rib- first woman4. Creates animals to provide for
humans’ needs- deer, porcupines, antelope
5. Last creates buffalo- one animal that can do everything