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