Creation Myths of the World

Topics Herein: Mongol Creation Myth India Creation Myths China Creation Myths Assyria Creation Myth African Creation Myths Japan Creation Myth Romania Creation Myth Maori Creation Myth
Japan Creation Myth:
In the beginning the earth was a shapeless mass. Then the god Izanagi and the goddess Izanami were given the job of stirring this mass with a long, jeweled spear. As they stirred, the mixture thickened and dropped off the spear point and hardened into an island. On the island the god and goddess were married and had children. These offspring included the eight islands of Japan, many gods and goddesses, and finally the sun-goddess Amaterasu. From her descended the emperors of Japan.
African Creation Myths
Boshongo:
(The Boshongo are a Bantu tribe of Central Africa.) In the beginning there was only darkness, water, and the great god Bumba. One day Bumba, in pain from a stomach ache, vomited up the sun. The sun dried up some of the water, leaving land. Still in pain, Bumba vomited up the moon, the stars, and then some animals: the leopard, the crocodile, the turtle, and, finally, some men, one of whom, Yoko Lima was white like Bumba.
Dogon:
At the beginning of time, Amma (a supreme god who lived in the celestial regions and was the origin of all creation) created the Earth and immediately joined with it. But the Earth's clitoris opposed the male penis. Amma destroyed it, circumcising his wife, and they had a child, Ogo, and the twins, the Nommo. Ogo had no partner and was barren, so he introduced disorder into the world by committing incest with his mother, Earth. The first menstrual blood came from this union, as well as Yeban and Andumbulu, the spirits of the underworld.
Amma created the stars by throwing pellets of earth into space. He created the sun and moon by modelling two white earthenware bowls, one encircled with red copper, the other with white copper. Black people were born under the sun and white people under the moon. (The latter paragraph is quoted in L.V.Thomas, Les Religions de L'Afrique noire, Paris, 1969)
Efik:
(The Efik are a Nigerian tribe) The creator, Abassi, created two humans and then decided to not allow them to live on earth. His wife, Atai, persuaded him to let them do so. In order to control the humans, Abassi insisted that they eat all their meals with him, thereby keeping them from growing or hunting food. He also forbade them to procreate. Soon, though, the woman began growing food in the earth, and they stopped showing up to eat with Abassi. Then the man joined his wife in the fields, and before long there were children also. Abassi blamed his wife for the way things had turned out, but she told him she would handle it. She sent to earth death and discord to keep the people in their place.
Ekoi:
(The Ekoi are a tribe in southern Nigeria.) In the beginning there were two gods, Obassi Osaw and Obassi Nsi. The two gods created everything together. Then Obassi Osaw decided to live in the sky and Obassi Nsi decided to live on the earth. The god in the sky gives light and moisture, but also brings drought and storms. The god of the earth nurtures, and takes the people back to him when they die. One day long ago Obassi Osaw made a man and a woman, and placed them upon the earth. They knew nothing so Obassi Nsi taught them about planting and hunting to get food.
Ethiopia:
Wak was the creator god who lived in the clouds. He kept the vault of the heavens at a distance from the earth and covered it with stars. He was a benefactor and did not punish. When the earth was flat Wak asked man to make his own coffin, and when man did this Wak shut him up in it and pushed it into the ground. For seven years he made fire rain down and the mountains were formed. Then Wak unearthed the coffin and man sprang forth, alive. Man tired of living alone, so Wak took some of his blood, and after four days, the blood became a woman whom the man married. They had 30 children, but the man was ashamed of having so many so he hid 15 of them. Wak then made those hidden children into animals and demons.
Fans:
(The Fans are a Bantu tribe in Africa.) In the beginning there was nothing but Nzame. This god is really three: Nzame, Mebere, and Nkwa. It was the Nzame part of the god that created the universe and the earth, and brought life to it. Whle the three parts of Nzame were admiring this creation, it was decided to create a ruler for the earth. So was created the elephant, the leopard, and the monkey, but it was decided that something better had to be created. Between the three of them they made a new creature in their image, and called him Fam (power), and told him to rule the earth. Before long, Fam grew arrogant, he mistreated the animals and stopped worshipping Nzame. Nzame, angered, brought forth thunder and lightning and destroyed everything that was, except Fam, who had been promised immortality. Nzame, in his three aspects, decided to renew the earth and try again. He applied a new layer of earth to the planet, and a tree grew upon it. The tree dropped seeds which grew into more trees. Leaves that dropped from them into the water became fish, those that dropped on land became animals. The old parched earth still lies below this new one, and if one digs deep enough it can be found in the form of coal. Nzame made a new man, one who would know death, and called him Sekume. Sekume fashioned a woman, Mbongwe, from a tree. These people were made with both Gnoul (body) and Nissim (soul). Nissim gives life to Gnoul. When Gnoul dies, Nissim lives on. They produced many children and prospered.
Wahungwe:
(A Rhodesian peoples) Maori created the first man, Mwuetsi, who became the moon. Maori gave him a ngona horn filled with ngona oil and told him he would live at the bottom of the waters. Mwuetsi objected and said he wished to live on the land. Maori reluctantly agreed, but said Mwuetsi would give up immortality if he did. After a while Mwuetsi complained of loneliness, so Maori sent him a woman, Massassi (the morning star), to keep him company for two years. Each night they slept on opposite sides of a campfire, until one night Mwuetsi jumped over the flame and touched Massassi with a finger he had moistened with the ngona oil. In the moning Massassi was huge, and soon gave birth to plants and trees until the whole earth was covered by them. At the end of two years Maori took Massassi away. Mwuetsi wept for eight years, at which time Maori sent him another woman, Morongo (the evening star), saying that she could stay for two years. On the first night Mwuetsi touched her with his oiled finger, but she said she was different than Massassi, and that they would have to oil their loins and have intercourse. This they did, this night, and every night thereafter. Every morning Morongo gave birth to the animals of creation. Then she gave birth to human boys and girls, who became full-grown by that very same evening. Maori voiced his disleasure with a fierce storm, and told Mwuetsi he was hastening his death with all this procreation. Morongo, ever the temptress, instructed Mwuetsi to build a door to their habitat so that Maori could not see what they were doing. He did this, and again they slept together. Now in the morning Morongo gave birth to violent animals; snakes, scorpions, lions, etc. One night Morongo told Mwuetsi to have intercourse with his daughters, which he did, thereby fathering the human race.
Yoruba:
Every African tribe had its creator god. He was called Obatala by some and Yansan, Olorun or Ogun by others. Some Yoruba tribes called him Shango. Shango was the god of thunder and the ancestor of the kings of Oyo. He was virile and virulent. He dispensed justice, punishing wicked people such as liars, thieves and criminals. His favorite weapon was the thunderbolt. His emblem was a two-headed axe. Shango had three wives: Oya, Oshun, and Oba (all three are rivers). See Creation/Flood Myth for the creation myth.
Zimbabwe:
Modimo was the creator. He distributed good things, appeared in the east and belonged to the element water. At the same time he was a destroyer, a terrifying creature responsible for drought, hail, cyclones and earthquakes. When these things happened he appeared in the west and was part of the element fire. Modimo was also sky and light, earth and root. He was unique and singular. He had no ancestors, no past or future. He pervaded the whole of creation. His name was taboo and could be spoken only by priests and seers.
Zulu:
The Ancient One, known as Unkulunkulu, is the Zulu creator. He came from the reeds (uthlanga, means source) and from them he brought forth the people and the cattle. He created everything that is: mountains,streams, snakes, etc. He taught the Zulu how to hunt, how to make fire, and how to grow food. He is considered to be the First Man and is in everything that he created.
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China Creation Myths
In the beginning was a huge egg containg chaos and a mixture of yin-yang (female-male, cold-heat, dark-light, wet-dry, etc). Also within this yin-yang was Phan Ku who broke forth from the egg as a giant who separated the yin-yang into many opposites, including earth and sky. With a great chisel and a huge hammer, Phan Ku carved out the mountains, rivers, valleys, and oceans. He also made the sun, moon, and stars. When he died, after 18,000 years, it is said that the fleas in his hair became human beings. In summation, the Chinese say that everything that is is Phan Ku and everything that Phan Ku is is yin-yang.
Pangu Separates the Sky from the Earth:
The sky and the earth were at first one blurred entity like an egg. Pangu was born into it. The separation of the sky and the earth took eighteen thousand years-the yang which was light and pure rose to become the sky, and the yin which was heavy and murky sank to form the earth. Between them was Pangu, who went through nine changes every day, his wisdom greater than that of the sky and his ability greater than that of the earth. Every day the sky rose ten feet higher, the earth became ten feet thicker, and Pangu grew ten feet taller. Another eighteen thousand years passed, and there was an extremely high sky, an extremely thick earth, and an extremely tall Pangu.
Nü Wa Makes Men:
It is said that there were no men when the sky and the earth were separated. It was Nü Wa (Emperor Yandi's youngest daughter) who made men by moulding yellow clay. The work was so taxing that her strength was not equal to it. So she dipped a rope into the mud and then lifted it. The mud that dripped from the rope also became men. Those made by moulding yellow clay were rich and noble, while those made by lifting the rope were poor and low.
Note: From Tai ping yu lan (Taiping Anthologies for the Emperor)
India Creation Myths
The Dhammai Creation
(The Dhammai are from northern India. They are a non-Hindu people.) Before there was anything, there existed Shuzanghu and his wife, Zumaing-Nui. In time she gave birth to a girl (earth) and a boy (sky). Sky and earth mated and gave birth to the mountains. Then they produced two frogs who married and made the first humans. These humans were covered with thick hair, but when they mated they produced people as they are now.
How The World Was Created and Re-Created Again
The earth was shaped like a wheel. In the center of the world was the heaven. It was called Mount Meru; a mountain that was over 250,000 miles high(!) at its peak. The heaven was circled by the River Ganges. The cities of Indra and the other gods were along its banks. The foothills below Mount Meru were home to the Gandharvas (the good or benevolent spirits). The demons lived in the valleys. The hood of the great serpent Shesha supported the whole world. When each great flood covered the universe, Shesha coiled up on the back of a tortoise. The world had many floods. At the end of each deluge, the world was born again.
Once, a golden cosmic egg floated on the waters that buried the world. For a thousand years the lord of the universe brooded over the egg. Finally a lotus flower, as bright as a thousand suns, grew from his navel. The lotus spread and flourished until it contained the whole world. Brahma sprang from the lotus with the powers of the lord of the universe. He created the world from the parts of his body.
But, Brahma made some mistakes, and he had to learn from them. At first he created ignorance, and then discarded it. But ignorance survived and became Night. From Night, the "Beings of Darkness" were born, and they set out to devour their creator.
"How can you eat your own father?" asked Brahma.
Some of the Beings of Darkness relented, but others did not soften in their desire to destroy Brahma. They became the Rakshasas (the enemies of men). Brahma learned from the experience, and he resolved to create immortal and heavenly beings. He brought to life four sages to finish his work. But the sages lost interest in the creation, and Brahma became angry. From his anger, Rudra sprang forth to complete the work.
When another flood covered the world, the world spirit threw a seed called Nara into the waters. The seed grew inside the egg as Brahma. After one year, Brahma made his body into two parts. One half was male, and the other half was female. Viraj, a male, grew inside the female half, and Viraj created Manu. Manu was a sage (a Rishi). Manu lived ten thousand years in the worship of Brahma.
One day Manu was meditating beside a stream. A fish spoke to him from the water.
"Please, protect me from this fish that is chasing me," the fish begged Manu. Manu put the fish into a pond. After some time, the fish grew too big for the pond.
"Please, place me into the River Ganges," requested the fish. Manu did as the fish asked. But time passed, and the fish grew too large for the river.
"Please, take me to the ocean," implored the fish. At last the fish was content. Manu learned that he had rescued none other than Brahma himself. Brahma warned Manu of the coming destruction of the world by a great flood.
"Build an ark and place in it the seven Rishis and the seeds of everything," Brahma instructed. No sooner did Manu do as Brahma asked, when the deluge began. Everything in the world was blanketed by water once more. The ark tossed about upon the surface. Finally, Manu's ark rested upon the highest peak of the Himalayas, where Manu moored it to a tree. The waters receded after many years, and Manu and the ark descended into the valleys. To prepare for the creation of the next age, Manu performed many sacrifices. Manu offered up milk, clarified butter, curds, and whey to Brahma. He repeated the gesture every day. A year passed, and Manu's offering grew into a beautiful woman.
"I am your daughter," said the beautiful woman to Manu. "Together, we will perform other sacrifices to Brahma. As a result you will become rich in children and cattle. You will obtain any blessing you desire." Manu did as his daughter said. They were true in their devotion to Brahma. In return, Manu fathered the human race, and he received many blessings.
Assyria Creation Myth
The Annunaki [sky gods: Anu (sky), Enlil (earth), Shamash (sun), and Ea (water)], created the earth and the heavens. When they were finished, they looked carefully at their creation and concluded that something was missing. They decided that mankind was needed to till the fields and celebrate religious festivals. So it was that the first humans [Ulligarra (abundance) and Zalgarra (plenty)] were created. Aruru, the "lady of the gods", was given sway over their destinies.
Romania Creation Myth:
God made Heaven, and then, after measuring the space underneath with a ball of thread, he began to form the earth. A mole asked to help, and God gave him the thread to hold while he wove the patterns of the earth. Sometimes the mole would let out too much thread, and finally the earth grew too large for the space under heaven. The mole was so upset that he hid under the earth. God sent the bee to look for him; he wanted the mole's advice on what to do about the mistake. The bee found the mole and the mole just laughed at the idea of advising God. The bee, however, hid in a flower and overheard the mole mumbling to himself about what he would do if he were God. 'I would squeeze the earth,' he said. 'That would make mountains and valleys it is true, but it would make the earth smaller at the same time.' When the bee heard this, he went directly to God and told him. God did what the mole had said, and everything fit fine.
Mongol Creation Myth:
Ewenki:
Long ago Father Heaven had two sons, Ulgen Tenger and Erleg Khan, Ulgen became the lord of the upper world and Erleg Khan became the lord of the lower world. At that time the earth was covered with water, there was no land. Ulgen Tenger asked the loon to bring up mud from below the water to create land, he was not able to do so, and he was punished by having his legs broken so he could not walk, and the goldeneye duck was called next to bring up land. The duck created a small piece of land that Ulgen was able to lay on. Erleg Khan seeing that his brother had fallen asleep on the new land, tried to pull the land out from under him, but instead the land stretched out in all directions as he pulled it. Next, Ulgen Tenger created animals and humans out of mud and he spread them out to dry. He created the dog to keep watch over the bodies of the new humans while he was gone. Erleg Khan, unhappy to see that his brother was creating humans, came to see the new bodies. The dog would not let him come close, at that time the dog could talk but had no fur. It was cold, and snowing, so Erleg Khan tempted him, saying that if the dog allowed him to see the humans' bodies he would give him a beautiful fur coat. The dog agreed, and was given a shiny beautiful coat. Erleg Khan then spat on the bodies so that humans would have diseases and not be immortal. When Ulgen returned he saw that the dog had fur and that the humans had been damaged, so he punished the dog by making his coat smelly, taking away his voice, and by making the dog follow humans in order to get its food.
Note: I can't recall/find from which resource I got the foregoing myth and its accreditation as Slavic, so I can't check out the following message that I was E-mailed: "The creation myth of ancient slavs, doesn't linguistically correspond to slavic languages. It more likely reflects the myth of ancient mongols who are not considered to belong either to slavic culture or ethnicity."-Grigoriy Titiyevskiy - Sounds to me as if Mr. Titiyevskiy knows what he is talking about. Any ideas or comments? **Received following message as a result of the foregoing: Comment by Mr. Titievsky is correct. Evenki is a native siberian people, related to Altaic and Mongolian culture. Slavic mythology is entirely different. (signed) I.M. So I have changed the heading from "Slavic Creation Myth" to "Mongol Creation Myth".
Maori Creation Myth: (New Zealand)
At the creation, the Earth goddess, Papa, and her husband Rangi, the sky god, were so much in love that they hugged each other and would not let go. This meant that the earth and the sky were always joined solidly together, and no light could come into the world. Papa gave birth to several children, but they were stuck between their parents and could not escape. Finally the children decided that they had to get out. One of them, Tane, suggested that they force their parents apart. All of the children agreed that this was a good idea. One by one they tried, without success to push their parents apart. Finally Tane had a try. He folded himself up very small and slipped between his parents. With his feet against Rangi and his shoulders against Papa, he pushed. He pushed for hours, he pushed for days, he pushed for weeks, he pushed for years and years. And very, very slowly Tane managed to uncurl his body, straighten himself, and finally push his parents apart. Light came into the world, and for the first time since the world was created, plants started to grow. But Rangi and Papa were so sad to be apart that they cried and cried. Rangi's tears ran into rivers. They became a sea. They even threatened to flood the whole world. Something had to be done. One of the children turned Papa over so that Rangi could not see her face. Now he doesn't cry so much. But you can still see his tears every morning; they are the dewdrops on the grass. And the mists that rise from the ground are Papa's sighs.
Creation Myths on Other Sites (Please Return!)
Egyptian Creation Myth
Ancient Egyptian Creation Myth
The Zulu Creation Story
Maori Creation Myth
In The Beginning - Hawaiian Gods
Creation Myths of the World (Page 2)
created byPJC
Updated last on June 10, 2001
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