Intro. to Mythology
Which two kinds of gods are usually the first parents?
Mother Earth and Father Sky
Re was the god of what?
Sun
Before the world was created, there was...
an egg
What was Maui’s magic fishhook made out of?
His grandmother’s jaw bone
In the original CHamoru creation myth, the sky and the earth are made from the body of which god?
Puntan
What natural disaster is used to destroy the world in many myths?
Flood
Egyptian kings were associated with which god of the underworld after they died?
Osiris
The islands of Japan were made from
The children of Izanami and Izanagi
How did the darkness of the world end in Polynesian mythology?
Tane used the strength of his body to separate his parents
How were humans created in Guam’s original creation myth?
Fu’una threw her body into the earth and created Fouha Rock (Creation Point) where the first humans emerged from
What is mythology?, according to Merriam-Webster
the myths dealing with the gods, demigods, and legendary heroes of a particular people
What were Geb and Nut each the god/goddess of, and why was this unusual?
Geb was a male god of the earth and Nut was a female sky goddess, usually it’s a male sky god and female earth goddess
The Japanese believe a goddess would have an abnormal child if
The woman spoke first
How do myths reflect or shape a culture's views on nature?
Answers will vary.
In Yoruba mythology, some humans became disfigured because
Obatala became drunk
The inhabitants of the First World in the Navajo creation myth were which kind of animal?
Insects
Identify some similarities amongst the creation myths. How and why do you think there are similarities amongst cultures separated geographically or without forms of communication?
Answers will vary.
Why are myths important?
Symbolize human experience and embody the spiritual values of a culture
The beliefs and worldviews found within myths are crucial to the survival of culture
Explain origins, natural phenomena, death, nature & function of divinities, models of virtuous behavior (heroes and misfortunes of arrogant humans)
Depict humans as an integral part of a larger universe
Feeling of awe for mysterious and marvelous things in life
Who breathed life into humans in Yoruba mythology
Olorun
What happened to someone's soul after the die in Egyptian mythology?
The spirit of the newly dead person would appear before Horus and tell the god all of the good deeds that they had performed in life to show why they deserved resurrection
Osiris would then take their heart (symbolizing conscience) and place it on one side of a great balance scale, with a feather symbolizing law on the opposite side
A person who had led a good life would have a heart lighter than the feather and would be granted new life in Osiris’s kingdom where they would live like they did on earth
If the heart weighed more than a feather, a jackal would eat the person’s heart and mummy and they would remain dead
This number is the most important to the Navajo
Four
The Norse creation myth explores the idea of fate, or a predetermined future/outcome for the gods. The concept of fate is seen in other mythologies as well. Discuss the idea of fate, how it impacts decision making (provide examples mythology or otherwise)
Answers will vary.