The different stories about how the world was created between numerous diverse cultures are called origin myths, which are stories that explain how things came to be and are probably the first stories human beings told. There are many similarities and differences between the Cheyenne Myth, “How the World was Made,” and the Hebrew Story, “In the Beginning,” that show how each culture views its’ God and humanity’s relationship to each of these. While both stories have animals being created before the humans, it shows the power of a greater being which is perceived differently for how they each treated the animals or humans and how they created the earth.…
The Iroquois creation story is similar to the biblical story of creation. In the Bible, God is credited for the making of the universe and all the non-living things and living things, including mankind. The Iroquois creation story talks about two worlds, one is full of light and mankind and the other world is full of darkest and monsters. This description is comparable to the idea of heaven and hell. According to the bible, heaven is a place full of light, beauty, and this place is where God and his angel reside. While hell is a place full with darkest, pain and anguish. The sky woman is the creator of the universe, just as God is the creator in the biblical story. The good son (good mind) can be compared to Jesus. While as the bad son (bad…
The world is made up of people from different religions, ethnicities, and cultures; and they all have their own-tailored- creation stories. A story that explains how all things came to be and what gave everything meaning. A story that lies the foundation for all beliefs and expectations for the culture. A story that will be told for all generations. It may never be known which story is the true one. One of the more interesting comparisons in cultures is that of the Native Americans and the Puritans.…
As Genesis 1:1 states, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth,” but according to the Iroquois, the creation of life took place in a much different way. Throughout the book of Genesis in the New Testament, the description of the creation goes by days. In the story “The World on a Turtle’s Back,” the creation of Earth happens in a series of events, all caused by the gods in the Sky World. According to the Hebrews, the sky and Earth were created by the commanding of God, unlike what the Iroquois foretold. Consequently, God was said to have commanded that the Earth create all sorts of animals, including wild and tame ones, but the Iroquois state that the left-handed and right-handed twins created the animals that still roam Earth to this day. Moreover, in the Iroquois myth, the formation of man occurred when the pregnant…
The Iroquois believed that life came before the Earth. That sky gods and animals existed before we did. “ The muskrat got the land...the sky women walked counterclockwise, and the turtle’s shell grew and created the Earth we know today.”( The sky women is regarded as a god. She created the Earth via the animal's help.…
Looking for Guidance: From the Perspective of the Puritans and the Native Americans People have always looked at the vastness of the Earth and the universe and have wondered from where it all came, including where mankind itself originated. Many people of the past have attributed their creation to supernatural powers, such as higher spirits or a god, and have recorded their coming into existence in a story. In the case of the Puritans, their creation myth is found in Genesis, while on the other hand, the Native Americans recount their creation in multiple tales. Two of these Native American stories are “The Earth on Turtle’s Back” coming from the Onondaga tribe and “When Grizzlies Walked Upright” coming from the Modoc. As well as giving an…
The story of creation from the Maori of New Zealand seems to be much more consistent, and aside from being a fabulous creation myth is a wonderful love story as well.…
Throughout history there have always been questions about the origin of the world, creation and divine power. In the creation stories, The Book of Genesis and Shinto Myth from the Nihongi, there are similar beliefs that there is a stronger higher power creating and controlling events throughout the world. Both stories profess that man and woman are created by this higher power to multiply and occupy the earth; however, the stories differ in the beliefs of the origins of the divine powers with Genesis based on monotheism and Nihongi based on polytheism. Throughout both stories, the nature of the divinity, how natural elements are respected and the relationship between man and woman are all aspects of a power struggle that defines how the…
Every civilization has some sort of creation story, usually grounded in a mythology or religion, of how the world originated, for example, Genesis from Christianity, or Pangu from China. These stories show how the world came to be, and usually show values, morals, and the reasons for some traditions. The Iroquois creation story “The World on the Turtle's Back” and the Norse story “Odin and Ymir” both serve as narratives to communicate the beliefs of their people and the values of their culture. Both stories show aspects of family and the involvement of human-like gods; however, the stories differ in the content of their explanations in terms of what is valued and how things are created.…
The creation stories “The World on a Turtle’s Back” of the Iroquois and “The Golden Chain” of the Yoruba help to define what they see as their place in the world and what they value most. Values of the Iroquois include nature, balance, and natural cycles. Key values of the Yoruba are diversity, nature, and productivity. Both the Iroquois and the Yoruba tell tales encompassing the importance of nature and its purpose; however, their views on the roles of people on Earth and on new ways of thinking differ from each other, distinguishing the two…
The Tree of Knowledge is a sacred object found in the Garden of Eden. The Tree of Knowledge is a reminder is a reminder still used in the contemporary world to not be fooled by evil. In Christian mythology, eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil was the initial sin committed by Adam and Eve that became known later as the fall of man, Adam and Eve died spiritually immediately following eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge, their sin separated them from God.…
Considerable attention is given to a specific set of myths: those stories that deal with the creation of the world. Cosmogonic myths try to resolve the problem of man's search for meaning in existence“. Accounts of the beginning of the world are the quintessential form of myth” (Paden, 1994, p. 85). Different stories of creation are evidence of different worldviews. Hopi and Japanese creation myth deals with the origin of human kind. While they both narrate how the world and human being were created, they utilize different metaphors. The Japanese myth imagines chaos at the beginning. Earth and heavens came together to create harmony. Cosmos and order were brought where disorder and infinite operated. Void was filled and many divinities appeared. They were created in order to organize and “preside over the land, sea, mountains, river, trees and herbs” (Japanese Creation Myth). For Hopi, gods…
The similarities show more about the story than the differences do. They both acknowledge deity, meaning they both believe in a supreme being or beings. In“ The World on The Turtles back” there is a great tree and in “Genesis,” there is the tree of knowledge…
Iroquois Creation Story according to David Cusick is a history of the establishment of the Iroquois Confederacy (par. 4); is a story of beginnings and good vs evil. The Book of Genesis within the Holy Bible is believed by many, inspired by God; is a story of beginnings and good vs evil. Throughout the creation stories of both the Iroquois and of the Holy Bible there are many similarities and differences.…
2. Iroquois Creation Story and Pima Creation Stories has their own characters and distinct version of how the world came to be. In the first story, the Sky Woman, mother of the twins, Good Mind (Enigorio), and Bad Mind (Enigonhahetgea) were the major characters. The parent was pregnant, with the twins, without any sexual activity. She sunk into the Dark World and went into labor. One twin turned evil and burst forward under the side of the parent’s arm, killing her. As…