Flood Myths and Comparative Mythology - Essay Example

Flood Myths and Comparative Mythology A flood myth is a symbolic (metaphorical) narrative in which a grand flood is sent by deities to terminate civilization in an operation of divine retribution. The waters in the floods are described as a mean used to clean the humanity, in the preparation process for rebirth. These myths also contain cult heroes whose purpose is to ensure the rebirth. These myths are widespread among cultures. Such myths are used to explain idealized or religious experience, to teach and to establish behavioral models. The flood myths appear in different cultures and appear in many locales, and they have the same themes but the components of the myths vary from culture to culture. Comparative approaches to mythology had great popularity among the 18th-19th century scholars. Majority of the scholars believed that all myths showed signs of having originated from a single mythical theme. Noah’s ark is the vessel in Genesis (chapter 6-9) of the Bible where God saves Noah and his family plus a remnant of all animals in the world from the flood. Noah is given great instructions on how to build an ark by God. He is told to use gopher wood smeared inside and outside with pitch, with 3(three) decks and internal compartments: 300 cubits long, 50 wide and 30 high. The roof will have a ‘finished to a cubit upward’ and the entrance on the side. The myth describes that the ark is afloat throughout the flood before it comes to rest on Mount Ararat. The tale is repeated with variations in the Quran with the ark appearing as Safina Nuh. The Genesis flood myth is similar to many other flood myths from a variety of other different cultures. Noah and the biblical flood story originates from the Mesopotamian version of Epic of Gilgamesh because the Biblical mythology that’s currently found in Christianity, Islam, Mandeanism and Judaism shares overlapping consistency with by far older written stories from Mesopotamia of the great flood. Also, the early Hebrew people were known to have lived in the land of Mesopotamia, particularly at the time of the Babylonian captivity. The narrative from Hebrew differs from the Babylonian story in that the floods come as God’s judgment on wicked humans rather than as a result of the caprice of the gods. In the Gilgamesh epic, Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh a secret tale/story that begins in the old city of Shuruppak on the banks of river Euphrates. The great gods (Anu, Ninurta, Ennugi, Ea and Enil) were sworn to secrecy about a plan to cause a flood. However, god Ea (Enki the Sumerian god) repeats the plan to Uptapishtim by means of a reed wall in a reed house. Uptapishtim is commanded to demolish his house and build a boat in order to keep living things alive. In return, Uptapishtim promises to do what Ea says. After building the boat, he launches two thirds of it in water and loads his silver and gold into the vessel. He also loads ‘all the living things I had,’ his relatives and craftsmen, and ‘all the beasts and animals of the field’ (Pritchard p.g.44) He seals the door when the storm comes. The floods fall leaving the land flattened. After the storm ceased, he sacrificed a sheep and he offered incense at Mount Ziggurat. Ea denies leaking the god’s plans to Atharasis, admitting to only sending him a dream. The flood hero and his family (wife) are granted immortality and are transported far away. The flood is narrated from a Babilonian perspective. This story tells of a fourteen day downpour (as opposed to forty in Noah’s saga) the theme of multiple gods (as oppose to one) and a raven (as opposed to a dove,) and Mount Nisir (as opposed to Mount Ararat in the Bible that is 350 miles away from Mount Nisir.) The metamorphoses states that the earth, heavens and everything was created out of chaos. Mankind degenerated from the gold age to the silver age and finally to the Age of iron. Mankind behaved badly which led to an attempt by the giants to seize the heavens. In response to the corruption, Jove sends a flood to the earth that destroys all the living things except for one pious couple –Deucalion and Pyrrha. The couple repopulates the earth after the floods by obeying the commands set by the gods. They throw rocks behind them. The rocks transform into a new breed of humans. The myths have common themes as they are almost the same stories told by different cultures with views from the varying cultures. The theme of death as ‘inescapable’ to humans is a theme offered in all the stories as humanity is destroyed by the gods. Life is short but as humans die, humanity continues but the gods are the only ones who live forever. Also, the gods re dangerous is another theme in the tales. The gods expect obedience and flattery whenever possible from the humans. They are also stern but loving parents to the people. They also make a promise of heavenly or earthly inheritance to the people if they behave well. There is a theme of fate. The heroes acknowledge that life is like a story that has been written down. People cannot escape their destiny. Fate is a concept that supports and also undermines the power of the gods. Another theme in the myths is he ‘wrath of the gods.’ The heroes learn that incurring the wrath of the gods can have disastrous consequences. The gods in Gilgamesh are easily angered and vengeful. In Noah’s tale, God is angry and finishes human race except Noah‘s. The stories portray a theme of starting over. Humanity race starts over afresh after the corresponding storm which marks the beginning of new life. The stories have a simi8lar ending i.e. the gods are not angry, humanity is not evil and life is as it began. Only one couple of every animal species is left on earth. The themes are similar in the stories, but the components of the stories vary, thus portraying the probability of a common origin. Possibly, there was only one such story but has become distorted over time into diverse stories about gods and heroes. The similarities in the myths suggest that it is likely that the people of these origins probably originated from a common ancestral culture. It is believed that myths from contrasting cultures reveal similar psychological forces applicable in those cultures. The similarities in the flood myths, in different cultures, result from archetypes present in the unconscious levels of every person’s mind (Graves p.g.251). The flood myths share a common structure. They all have floods with only one or a couple of survivors. According to the ‘monomyth’ theory by Campbell, the structure of hero stories from around the world share a common plot structure (Cambell 118.) The fact that the same myths appear in many cultures in different geographic localities of the world is proof that all myths show signs of having evolved from a single mythical theme. The myths get distorted over time into diverse stories. It is also possible that cultures borrowed ideas from their neighbor’s myths of these stories. Among others, diffusion is among the leading factors as to why different cultures myths have similar in style and themes. Over time, people have migrated to different places to suite their lives. These people moved with their traditions with them as they moved. Also, the human brain is similar to every individual and thus, people experience the world in a similar fashion thus the needs for the answers to the questions humans ask themselves. As such, humans’ attempts, to describe the world and their experiences mirror one another. It is human nature to attempt and explain the world around them. Flood myths probably come from people trying to explain the origin of the world events e.g. death, conception and other things. Also, all mythology comes from the collective unconscious which all humans share. A myth usually has a moral or particular meaning attached to it. It is fictional (fantasy) by nature and can have a particular ‘archetype’ which translates into many different cultures. These myths have similar plot in different localities of the world because they deal with the same struggles or issues of everyday living situations or problems. Many cultures have particular myths describing the source (origin) of their customs, identity and rituals. In fact, tradition and ancient societies have usually justified their customs by claiming that their respective gods of mythical heroes established those customs. For instance, according to the Australian Karadjeri myths, the mythical Bagadjimbiri brothers established all Karadjeri customs, including the physical position in which they stand while urinating. Work cited Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. Princeton, N.J. Princeton University Press. 2004, 118. Print. Pritchard, J. B. (ed.), Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament. Princeton, N.J. Princeton University Press, 1955, 1969, 44. Print. Graves Robert. The white goddess. New York: Vintage Books, 1948. 251. Print. Read More