Creation myths - Research Paper Example

The sky is also represented in the Ancient Egyptian conception myth as the female consort of the god Geb, and it is said that before order was brought to the world, the sky, Nut, and the earth, Geb were joined together until Shu, the god of air separated them (“Egyptian Creation Myth”, 2011). The sky in both myths is of immense importance because it represents the place where the gods reside and look upon the earth. The earth is also a significant world in the myths because it is the place where the creations either live or from where they can be seen.

Lake Titicaca, from whence the god Pachacamac arose from in Inca myths, was located on the earth. In this case, it seems that the earth came into existence before the god of creation, as opposed to the Egyptian myths, which state that the earth was the offspring of the gods Shu and Tefnut. Describe the creators Are the creators male or female, and of what significance is gender? Describe what they created, including the steps or cycles of creation also, include descriptions of any destroyers or destruction if applicable While the creator in the Inca myths is considered male, this is not the case in the Egyptian myths, where the creator is seen to be neither male nor female (“Egyptian Creation Myth”, 2011).

Although these differences might seem imposing at first glance, when carefully considered, one will find that they are both cultural interpretations of the same phenomenon; that male and female are equal. Even though the Inca creator is male, we see that he requires a consort with whom to rule over creation. In the Egyptian myth, the creator is neither male nor female, showing that he has both qualities. It is for this reason that one ends up concluding that both cultures had a vast respect for both male and female, and, in fact, they were considered to be equal to each other.

The steps of creation are quite similar in both cases, with creation taking place once the creators realize that they are alone in the world and that they are in need of companionship. In the Inca myths, after the creator arose from the lake, he created the stars, planets and the moon to light the night sky. He fashioned the first human beings from a block of stone, but these turned out to be extremely crude and uncivilized creatures. Pachacamac and his consort, the moon, then produced two children, a son and a daughter, who would together come to rule over the humans and guide them into civilization (“Inca Creation Myth”, 2011).

In the Egyptian myths, Antu fashioned himself, and after being alone for a while, he joined with his shadow to have children, the first being a son, Shu, the god of air, and the second being a daughter, Tefnut, who became the goddess of mist and moisture. It is these two who would eventually come to produce the entire Egyptian pantheon, and it is their actions, which came to bring order from the primordial chaos that had existed before them (“Egyptian Creation Myth”, 2011). Compare the creators, creations, the steps or cycle of creation, and the cosmic elements of the two myths What are the similarities and differences?

There are some significant similarities and differences between the creators in these two myths. In the Inca myth, the creator god is described as being blindingly bright; in addition, from this