Creation Myths

Many people have asked "where did we come from?"
Myths (from most cultures in our world history) attempt to answer this question.

There are generally five different types of creation myths. They are:
1. Creation ex nihilo (creation from nothing): the world is created by a supreme being who pops the world into existence. Examples include: the Christian Bible creation story and The Big Bang Theory.
2. Earth diver myths: Many cultures suggest that an animal of some kind swims down into the primordial ocean and brings back earth or clay from which to shape the world.
3. Cosmic egg myths: Some cultures believe that the universe was hatched, then was created when the egg was broken open. This usually is combined with the separation of order out of chaos--the white separated from the heavy yolk.
4. Emergence myths: Humans and beings emerge from the very earth. An example might be the myth of Gaia.
5. Order out of chaos: a god or supreme being organizes the world out of chaotic forces. Chaos is often represented as evil or sinful.

Ancient Mythology link (various cultures are represented here: Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Norse, Japanese, Mayan & Mesopotamia). The site explains what these myths generally center around and explains key or important mythological figures.

Storytelling

Want to read some sample stories? Here's a great website for that called: Awesome Stories.

Here's one geared for a younger audience: Tellitagan.

Here's another discussing storytelling: Storytelling.

Here's a few performances and videos of storytellers performing their stories:

Matchbox 20
Aubrey Taylor Storytelling
Global Storytellers
How to Tell Stories: Storytelling Tips
Garrison Keillor: Lake Wobegon Halloween Story and more Garrison Keillor: an exerpt from Prairie Home Companion.

Myths: A Website for the Interested

There's very much to learn about mythology. For those of you who want to learn more and become intelligent, well-learned citizens in the United States, take a look at this website:

Mythology

Visual Image for a Myth