Freethought & Rationalism Archive

05-22-2001, 08:42 AM

Almost every culture has a story about how the world and humans came into being. The Genesis creation ex-nihlo is the most well known in the western world.

If you know of a non-Abrahamic creation story, please provide a synopsis here.

05-22-2001, 09:09 AM

Here's one based on the Haida peoples of the Pacific NorthWest.

http://kirov.seanet.com/~eldrbarry/rabb/rvn/first.htm

The Raven, while wandering along the beach, spies a group of creatures wiggling in a clam shell. Motivated by curiosity, the Raven sings to coax the men out of their hiding place. He plays with them for a bit, before going off to find females for them. The girls were hiding in other shells, and the Raven gathered the groups together until they overcame their shyness and went off to do the dirty deed.

Its interesting to see that in this story, man pretty much just 'showed up', and that the intervention of the 'god' was motivated by curiosity, not a desire for creation.

[This message has been edited by MadMordigan (edited May 22, 2001).]

05-22-2001, 09:22 AM

An interesting bit from Carl Sagan's essay "A Sunday Sermon" in his brilliant book, Broca's Brain:

Quote:

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">I think it is wise, when coming face to face with such profound mysteries, to feel a little humility. The idea that scientists or theologians, with our present still puny understanding of this vast and awesome cosmos, can comprehend the origins of the universe is only a little less silly than the idea that Mesopotamian astronomers of 3,000 years ago -- from whom the ancient Hebrews borrowed, during the Babylonian captivity, the cosmological accounts in the first chapter of Genesis -- could have understood the origins of the universe. We simply do not know. The Hindu holy book, the Rig Veda (X:129), has a much more realistic view of the matter:

Who knows for certain? Who shall here declare it?
Whence was it born, whence came creation?
The gods are later than this world's formation;
Who then can know the origin of the world?
None knows whence creation arose;
And whether he has or has not made it;
He who surveys it from the lofty skies,
Only he knows -- or perhaps he knows not.</font>

05-22-2001, 02:10 PM

I really love one I posted a while agao (but will never find, so bear with me)

A goddess was bored, and made people out of clay. She made six men and six women and lined them up and breathed life into them. She was so pleased, she ran off to get the other deities. They all ooooed and ahhhhhed and decided to get drunk to celebrate. While drunk, all the gods started making weird and deformed humans, which they gave to our herione to breathe life into. She did, of course, being drunk and not knowing any better.

When they all sobered up, they were horrified by what they had done. They went to their gods (!) to ask for the mistakes to be reversed, and were told that one she had breathed life into them, it was done, and there was no fixing it.

Which was this group's way of dealing with all the problems humans are born with.

I like the Babylonian creation story--- the one of brackish water and salt water colliding to make sweet water and from that water life started as slime... (but that is the creation of everything, not just of people)

05-22-2001, 08:42 AM	#1
Guest Posts: n/a	Non Abrahamic Creation Stories Almost every culture has a story about how the world and humans came into being. The Genesis creation ex-nihlo is the most well known in the western world. If you know of a non-Abrahamic creation story, please provide a synopsis here.

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05-22-2001, 09:09 AM	#2
Guest Posts: n/a	Here's one based on the Haida peoples of the Pacific NorthWest. http://kirov.seanet.com/~eldrbarry/rabb/rvn/first.htm The Raven, while wandering along the beach, spies a group of creatures wiggling in a clam shell. Motivated by curiosity, the Raven sings to coax the men out of their hiding place. He plays with them for a bit, before going off to find females for them. The girls were hiding in other shells, and the Raven gathered the groups together until they overcame their shyness and went off to do the dirty deed. Its interesting to see that in this story, man pretty much just 'showed up', and that the intervention of the 'god' was motivated by curiosity, not a desire for creation. [This message has been edited by MadMordigan (edited May 22, 2001).]

05-22-2001, 02:10 PM	#4
Guest Posts: n/a	I really love one I posted a while agao (but will never find, so bear with me) A goddess was bored, and made people out of clay. She made six men and six women and lined them up and breathed life into them. She was so pleased, she ran off to get the other deities. They all ooooed and ahhhhhed and decided to get drunk to celebrate. While drunk, all the gods started making weird and deformed humans, which they gave to our herione to breathe life into. She did, of course, being drunk and not knowing any better. When they all sobered up, they were horrified by what they had done. They went to their gods (!) to ask for the mistakes to be reversed, and were told that one she had breathed life into them, it was done, and there was no fixing it. Which was this group's way of dealing with all the problems humans are born with. I like the Babylonian creation story--- the one of brackish water and salt water colliding to make sweet water and from that water life started as slime... (but that is the creation of everything, not just of people)

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