Origins of origin
The most common type of origin myth is cosmogonic myths that describe the creation of the whole world as a whole. Myths that are close to them about the origin of man are called anthropogonic .
Another type is myths about the founding of cities and states, laws and social institutions, clans and peoples, as well as natural objects. An example of a foundation myth is the story that Hercules personally pierced the passage between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, called the Hercules Pillars . In anti-science, myths about the foundation are called etiological (from the Greek. Αἰτία “reason”).
Teachings of Mircea Eliade
According to Mircea Eliade , for many traditional cultures, almost every sacred narrative is a myth of origin, because people consider the observance of sacred rituals as an eternal return to the era of the origin of the characteristics of nature and man. Each sacred narrative describes the appearance of a new kind of behavior and, thus, can be considered as a story of origin.
The myth of origin often functions in culture to justify the current state of affairs in society. In traditional cultures, the entities and powers described in the myths of origin are often considered sacred. Thus, ascribing the state of the Universe to the actions of these entities and forces, the myths of origin give the present order a sacred aura. As Mircea Eliade writes [1] :
“Myths show that the world, man and life have a supernatural origin and history, and that this is a significant, precious and exemplary story. In many cultures, people expect mythical gods and heroes to become role models, and more imitate their actions and follow their established customs: for example, when a missionary and ethnologist K. Strelow asked the Australian Arunta why they performed certain ceremonies, the answer was always: “Because the ancestors so ordered.” The native of New Guinea refused to change his way of life and work, and they explained: "It was so that it was done to Him (mythical ancestors), and we are doing the same." Answering a question about a specific part of the ceremony, a Navajo singer replied: “Because the holy people did just that.” We find the exact same excuse in prayer that accompanies the primitive Tibetan ritual: "As it was conveyed from the very beginning of the creation of the Earth, so we must do ... Like our ancestors in ancient times, we do it now."
Notes
- ↑ Eliade, Mircea. Myth and Reality. Trans. Willard Trask. New York: Harper & Row, 1963. P. 6-7.