32 lines
1.6 KiB
Plaintext
32 lines
1.6 KiB
Plaintext
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Five Creation Myths
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After reading five myths about the creation of the universe, I can identify
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several similarities and differences that appear in the stories.
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The most obvious similarity in the stories is the presence of a god (or
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goddess) t hat brought the universe to its present state. He or she brought
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light from darkness, produced sea and land to make the Earth, and populated it
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with plant and animal life.
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Differences are easy to spot too. Different landscapes being developed are e
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mphasized by groups of people living in different regions. The Winnebago
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Indians of Wisconsin mention creation of forests, streams, and lakes, while The
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Pelasgian Myth mentions Mount Olympus and the Teutonic myth mentions the
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Northern Sea.
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From the way the stories are written, one can guess at the way that the
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cultures think and live. The Wisconsin Indians seem to think simply, talking
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about tangible things. The Pelasgian myth talks about people and their
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feelings. The Hindu story looks at ideas and reasons behind intangible objects
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like death, day, and God. The Teutonic myth hints that the writers were having
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a war or had had one in the past because a war is mentioned in the story. The
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Christians feel that faith and trust in God are important to live with.
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Looking at the same sort of story written by very different cultures is an
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interesting way to learn about different ways that people can and do think. If
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one knows about different ways of thought, one can break out of the shell of
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regu larity and do something different that is still a reasonable, possible way
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of life.
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