Creation Myths

All human cultures have stories, or mythologies, which explain their origins. Many, if not most, of these creation myths have associated elements which define the origins of the cosmos and, quite often, the relationship between the society in question, the cosmos and the creator. The best known of these creation myths is found in Genesis, the first book of Hebrew scripture. Many creation stories are discussed in religion term papers, custom written from Paper Masters.

Creation Myths and Similarities

Although creation myths have been derived from dozens of different cultures located at various times and in various places, these myths often have very similar characteristics. For example:

• The creation of animals and people are often intertwined and the fate of these groups is often similar.
• Australian Aborigines believed that a Sun Mother and Father of All Spirits placed animals on Earth first and when they fought, humans were created to rule over the animals.
• African Bushmen believed that the Maker of Life, Kaang, allowed animals and people to escape from underground, but once on the surface of the Earth, humans created fire, which scared the animals and drove them apart.
• In Christianity, God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden where the serpent tricked Adam and Eve into eating the Forbidden Fruit, which expelled them out of Eden.

The Greeks and Creation Myths

Another commonality between creation myths is that a father or mother is generally responsible for creating humans as already seen in the myths outlined above. Similarly, the Greeks believed that Zeus sent his sons to Earth to create humans and animals. The Navajo believed that the Insect people came to Earth from another world and created humans from corn. And the Iroquois believed that a pregnant Sky woman fell to Earth and was rescued by a giant turtle that allowed her to live on its back and give birth to humans.