Time                    Any time            Recent past     Immediate    Remote past
                                                                                 Past

Place                    Any place          World of today Nearby        Different realm

Attitude               Secular               Secular/           Secular/         Sacred
                                                        sacred              sacred

Principal              Human                Human             Human           Non-human
Characters
 

DEFINITIONS OF MYTH

Mircea Eliade
Myth narrates a sacred history; it relates an event that took place in primordial time, the fabled time of the beginnings
Myth tells only of that which really happened, which manifested itself completely. The actors in myths are Supernatural Beings. The are known primarily by what they did in the transcendent times of the "beginnings." Myths describe the various and sometimes dramatic breakthroughs of the sacred.
Myths narrate not only the origin of the World, of animals, of plants, and of man, but also all the primordial events in consequence of which man became what he is today - mortal, sexed, organized in society, obligated to work in order to live, and working in accordance with certain rules. If the World exists, if man exists, it is because Supernatural Beings exercised creative powers in the "beginning." But after the cosmogony and the creation of man, other events occurred, and man as he is today is the direct result of those mythical events, he is constituted by those events.
 
Claude Levi-Strauss
Myth always refers to events alleged to have taken place long ago with a timeless pattern that explains the present and the past as well as the future and which has a universal character whose substance lies in the story which it tells
 
William Bascom
Myths are prose narratives which, in the society in which they are told, are considered to be truthful accounts of what happened in the remote past
 
George Honko
Myth is a story of the gods, a religious account of the beginning of the world, the creation, fundamental events, the exemplary deeds of the gods as a result of which the world, nature and culture were created together with all parts thereof and given their order, which still obtains.

John Middleton

A myth is a statement about society and man's place in it and in the surrounding universe....Myths and cosmological notions are concerned with the relationship of a people with other peoples, with nature and with the supernatural.

Lewis Pondy
Things which never happened but always are.

Myth Types

Worlds Above and Below

Death and Rebirth

Cosmic Combat

Quests and Tests

FUNCTIONS OF CREATION MYTH

1. Construct an image of the universe and world as organized rather than chaotic

2. Construct an image or model of the universe that is centered around an independent, transcendent power source that is the source of that order

3. Create a sense of awe in relation to the mystery of the universe and human existence

4. Construct the model of the world in a way that supports and legitimates the current social order and provides a place for individuals within that order. 

Narratives that morally idealize the organization and make it unique

THEMES

1.  Status and conformity to rules

2.  Humanity of leaders

3.  Mobility opportunities

4.  Protection of members

5.  Responding to personal difficulties

6.  Reacting to honest mistakes

7.  Overcoming obstacles
 

COMMON ELEMENTS

1.  Equality

2.  Security

3.  Control
 

CHEROKEE CREATION MYTH

Long ago, before there were any people, the world was young and water covered everything. The earth was a great island floating above the seas, suspended by four rawhide ropes representing the four sacred directions. It hung down from the crystal sky. There were no people, but the animals lived in a home above the rainbow. Needing space, they sent Water Beetle to search for room under the seas. Water Beetle dove deep and brought up mud that spread quickly, turning into land that was flat and too soft and wet for the animals to live on.

Grandfather Buzzard was sent to see if the land had hardened. When he flew over the earth, he found the mud had become solid; he flapped in for a closer look. The wind from his wings created valleys and mountains, and that is why the Cherokee territory has so many mountains today.

As the earth stiffened, the animals came down from the rainbow. It was still dark. They needed light, so they pulled the sun out from behind the rainbow, but it was too bright and hot. A solution was urgently needed. The shamans were told to place the sun higher in the sky. A path was made for it to travel--from east to west--so that all inhabitants could share in the light.

The plants were placed upon the earth. The Creator told the plants and animals to stay awake for seven days and seven nights. Only a few animals managed to do so, including the owls and mountain lions, and they were rewarded with the power to see in the dark. Among the plants, only the cedars, spruces, and pines remained awake. The Creator told these plants that they would keep their hair during the winter, while the other plants would lose theirs.

People were created last. The women were able to have babies every seven days. They reproduced so quickly that the Creator feared the world would soon become too crowded. So after that the women could have only one child per year, and it has been that way ever since.

HINDU CREATION MYTH

Before time began there was no heaven, no earth and no space between. A vast dark ocean washed upon the shores of nothingness and licked the edges of night. A giant cobra floated on the waters. Asleep within its endless coils lay the Lord Vishnu. He was watched over by the mighty serpent. Everything was so peaceful and silent that Vishnu slept undisturbed by dreams or motion.

From the depths a humming sound began to tremble, Om. It grew and spread, filling the emptiness and throbbing with energy. The night had ended. Vishnu awoke. As the dawn began to break, from Vishnu's navel grew a magnificent lotus flower. In the middle of the blossom sat Vishnu's servant, Brahma. He awaited the Lord's command.

Vishnu spoke to his servant: 'It is time to begin.' Brahma bowed. Vishnu commanded: 'Create the world.'

A wind swept up the waters. Vishnu and the serpent vanished. Brahma remained in the lotus flower, floating and tossing on the sea. He lifted up his arms and calmed the wind and the ocean. Then Brahma split the lotus flower into three. He stretched one part into the heavens. He made another part into the earth. With the third part of the flower he created the skies.

The earth was bare. Brahma set to work. He created grass, flowers, trees and plants of all kinds. To these he gave feeling. Next he created the animals and the insects to live on the land. He made birds to fly in the air and many fish to swim in the sea. To all these creatures, he gave the senses of touch and smell. He gave them power to see, hear and move.

The world was soon bristling with life and the air was filled with the sounds of Brahma's creation.

THE CHRISTIAN MYTH OF CREATION AND FALL

CREATION

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep.
And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (Genesis I, 1-2)

First Day  – created light

Second Day  – created the firmament of Heaven, the colossal dome (or sphere) of brass within the midst of the waters of chaos, so that it divided the upper waters from the nether waters  – the waters above the firmament from those below.

Third Day  – created the earth in the very center of the firmament, and divided it from the waters so that the former became the dry land, and the latter the oceans. Created the pit of Hell at the very center of the earth. Created trees, plants, flowers, and grasses to bear fruit for men and beasts, and herbs for the healing of diseases.

Fourth Day  – Created the sun, moon, and stars, and set them within the firmament and around the earth

Fifth Day  – Created all fish and birds

Sixth Day  – Created the beasts of the earth, and Adam, who was formed from the dust and clay of the earth. God made Adam in his own image, and breathed the breath of his own divine life into his nostrils so that man became a living soul. He made Adam the ruler of the earth, the head of nature, commanding all beasts, birds, fish, and plants to be subservient to him.

Seventh Day  – God rested and rejoiced in the knowledge that everything which he had made was good.
 

THE FALL

Adam was perfect, physical yet immortal, and all creatures of the earth obeyed him. He was created with free will so that love between humans and God would be freely given. The animals served him and the plants fed him, and there was no need for him to labor for his livelihood. He was in perfect harmony with his natural surroundings, and constantly aware of the presence of god.

God planted a garden  – Eden  – in the center of the world. In the garden was the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, which created the negative potentiality that Adam might choose his own will rather than God’s.

God created Eve from one of Adam’s ribs. The two were the First Parents of our race  – immortal, free from all conflict and sorrow, innocent, naked, and unashamed.

Lucifer entered the garden in the form of a serpent. He promised Eve that eating from the Tree would make her as a god, knowing good from evil. Eve ate the fruit and gave some to Adam. Their eyes were opened and they knew that they were naked.

When God discovered what had happened, he pronounced a curse on the Serpent to crawl on his belly in the dust and to be in perpetual enmity with the human race. He condemned Eve, and all her female offspring, to bring forth children in pain and sorrow, and to be subject to her husband. God cursed the earth so that it would not bring forth fruit for Adam without sweat and toil. God pronounced the curse of death and of the expulsion from the garden.

From this moment death, suffering, and evil entered the material world and humans were separated from the divine life of God.

This narrative creates the Christian problem. Things are not as they should be, death and pain are imperfections, there is separation from the divine, there is conflict with nature, guilt, anxiety, and impotence of will. The task become to extricate man from the tangle in which Lucifer has involved him, to salvation from Death and Hell.

MYTH: CHANGE AND APPLICATIONS

Because myths contain foundational knowledge and ultimate truths, they are difficult to change
     One way that myths are changed is by producing new translations
     Another way is adding new material or placing material in a new context
     A third way is relying on certain parts of the text

Because myths contain foundational knowledge and ultimate truths, they can be the basis for
invoking principles and creating commitment
     Providing help to others in times of crisis
     Resisting prejudice

Because myths contain foundational knowledge and ultimate truths, they can be the basis for making decisions in a wide range of situations
     Decisions of life and death
     Political policy
     Interpretations of disaster

CIVIL RELIGION

Civil Religion  – a religious orientation that most Americans share that provides a religious dimension to the fabric or American life. It is not sectarian or specifically Christian but it is specific about America and has played a crucial role in the development of American institutions.
 

KEY TENETS

1. The existence of God

2. The United States is God’s chosen nation

3. There is an inherent morality in civil laws (Higher law answerable to God)

4. There is a sacred connotation to secular symbols (flag, inauguration, holidays)

5. There is a divine reward for virtue and punishment for vice

6. Exclusion of religious intolerance
 

BIBLICAL THEMES

1.   Exodus

2.   Chosen People

3.   Promised Land

4.   New Jerusalem

5.   Sacrificial death and rebirth (Civil War)

6.   Prophets (George Washington as Moses)

7.   Martyrs (Abraham Lincoln, John Kennedy)

8.   Sacred events (Washington and Lincoln birthdays, Thanksgiving, Memorial Day)

9.   Sacred Places (War and presidential memorials, Supreme Court)

10. Rituals and Symbols (Inauguration, Constitution and Declaration of Independence, Songs)