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- CREATION MYTHOLOGIES -


Topics Herein: American Indian Creation Myth Greek Creation Myth Mongol Creation Myth India Creation Myth China Creation Myth Assyria Creation Myth African Creation Myths Japan Creation Myth Romania Creation Myth Maori Creation Myth

American Indian Creation Myths
Apache:
In the beginning there was only darkness. Suddenly a small bearded man, the One Who Lives Above, appeared rubbing his eyes as if just awakened. The man, the Creator, rubbed his hands together and there appeared a little girl, Girl-Without-Parents. The creator rubbed his face with his hands and there stood the Sun-God. Again Creator rubbed his sweaty brow and from his hands dropped Small-boy. Now there were four gods.Then he created Tarantula, Big Dipper, Wind, Lightning-Maker and Lightning-Rumbler. All four gods shook hands so that their sweat mixed together. Then Creator rubbed his palms together from which fell a small round, brown ball. They took turns kicking it and with each kick the ball grew larger. Creator told Wind to go inside the ball and blow it up. Then Tarantula spun a black cord which he attached to the ball and went to the east pulling as hard as he could. He repeated this exercise with a blue cord to the south, a yellow cord to the west and a white cord to the north. When he was done the brown ball had become the earth. The Creator again rubbed his hands and there appeared Hummingbird. "Fly all over this earth," said Creator to Hummingbird, "and tell us what you see." When he returned Hummingbird reported that there was water on the west side. But the earth rolled and bounced, so Creator made four giant posts one each black, blue, yellow and white and had Wind place them at the four cardinal points of the earth. The earth was now still. The creation of the people, animals, birds, trees, etc takes place hereafter.
Cherokee:
Long, long ago, a great island floated in a giant ocean. This island hung from four thick ropes from the sky, which was solid rock. There were no peoples and it was always dark. The animals could not see so they got the sun and put it in a path that took it across the island from east to west each day. The animals and plants were told by the Great Spirit to stay awake for seven days and seven nights but most could not and slept. Those plants that did stay awake, such as the pine and cedar and those few others were rewarded by being allowed to remain green all year. All the others were made to lose their leaves each winter. Those animals that did stay awake, such as the owl and the mountain lion and those few others were rewarded with the ability to go about in the dark. Then the people appeared. That is another story.
Chippewa:
In the beginning before there were people, before there were animals a lone woman lived in a cave. She lived on the roots and berries of the plants. One night a magical dog crept into her cave and stretched out on the her bed beside her. As the night grew long the dog began to change. His body became smooth and almost hairless. His limbs grew long and straight. His features changed into those of a handsome warrior. Nine months later the woman birthed a child. He was the first Chippewa male and through him came the Chippewa peoples.
Choctaw:
At the beginning there was a great mound. It was called Nanih Wiya. It was from this mound that the Creator fashioned the first of the people. These people crawled through a long, dark cave into daylight. They became the first Choctaw.
Hopi:
Way back in time all men emerged from a single hole in the earth. There was a mockingbird there at the entrance to the hole. He gave each a name and a language. To one he would say, "You shall be a Hopi and speak that tongue." To another, "You shall be an Apache and speak that language." And so it went for all who came from the hole, including the White People. The earth was still covered in darkness in those days so the peoples came together and decided to change things. They made the sun and the moon and placed them in the sky. With light and warmth things got easier for the people so the chiefs of all the races and tribes got together and decided to break up and go to different places. They decided to go eastward to where the sun rises and that whoever got there first was to cause a shower of stars to fall from the sky, and then everyone would see this and stop where they were. The Whites, always impatient, soon grew tired. Their women rubbed flakes of skin from their bodies and molded them into horses. Thus, mounted on these speedy animals, the Whites were first to arrive in the east. Thereupon a shower of stars fell to the ground and all remained where they were at the time.
Blood:
(Canadian tribe which belongs to the Blackfoot Confederacy.) Napioa (Old Man - the creator) sat on a log floating on the first waters. He sent the fish, the frog, the lizard, and the turtle to get whatever it was beneath the waters. The only one to return was the turtle, which carried some mud in his mouth. Napioa rolled the mud into a ball, which grew to become the earth. After the earth was made, Napioa made humans, then he made the buffalo, and taught the humans how to hunt them.
Inuit:
It is said that Raven made the world. He is a man with a raven's beak. When the waters forced the ground up from the deep Raven stabbed it with his beak and fixed it into place. This first land was just big enough for the house that was on it. There were three people in the house. This was a family with a man, his wife and their little son Raven who had fixed the land. The father had a bladder hanging over his bed. After much pleading by Raven the father allowed the boy to play with it. While playing Raven damaged the bladder and light appeared. The father not wanting to have light always shining took the bladder from the boy before he could damage it further. And that is how day and night started over the land.
Iroquois:
In the Land Above The Sky a strong wind uprooted this tree. Skywoman, walking by, fell through the hole left by the tree. As she fell a flock of geese broke her fall and she landed on a giant turtle that rose from the waters. This giant turtle grew in shape and size to form the land. There Skywoman gave birth to a daughter whose children propagated the human race.
Navajo:
The people traveled through four worlds before climbing a reed growing from the bottom of the Lake of Changing Waters to this present world. First Man and First Woman with their two first children, Changing Twins, were in the forefront. First Man and First Woman produced a mountain. They populated it with plants and animals. On the peak they placed a black bowl with two blackbird eggs in it. They fastened down the peak with a rainbow. One twin took some clay from riverbed and it fashioned itself into a bowl. The other twin found reeds growing and shaped them into a water basket. They picked up stones from the ground which became axes, knives, spear points and hammers in their hands.
Penobscot:
In the beginning there was only Kloskurbeh, the All-Maker. One day from the foam of a wave a young lad was born. He became Helper-to-the-All-Maker. The two of them created animals, plants and all manner of things. Another day a beautiful woman was born of a magical plant and some dew. This woman, First Mother, married the Helper and produced many children. When there became too many people to live off the animals, First Mother asked her husband to kill her and drag her body back and forth across the land, and then bury her in the center of the field. He did as she asked and months later when he and the children returned to the field they found it full with ripe corn and in the center where he had buried her was fragrant tobacco.
Chuckhee:
(An Eskimo tribe) In the beginning was Raven, the self-created and his wife. The wife asked Raven to create an earth as she was bored. Raven said he didn't know how, so his wife said she would create something and went to sleep. As she slept she molted, then grew in size, and then gave birth to featherless twins. Now Raven felt that if his wife could create then so could he. Raven flew high, and as he flew he defecated and urinated, and these droppings became mountains, valleys, oceans, and lakes. Eventually there were many men upon this earth, but no women. A little spider women soon appeared and made women. The men did not understand about women, so Raven, with great pleasure, demonstrated copulation with the women. Later, also with pleasure, the men followed his example.
Plains Indians:
Hidatsa
Charred Body, our leader, led the 13 clans on a magical arrow that flew down from the world above to this land. Here he bested all kinds of monsters and beasts so that his people could begin their lives as human beings.
Kiowa
In the beginning our ancestors ascended from the underworld through a hollow log. All went well until a pregnant woman got stuck in a narrow section of the log. The rest of our people could not follow. That is why there are so few of us.
Pueblo:
Somewhere to the north the first humans climbed out of a hole in the earth into the sunlight. The underground place from which they came is called Sipapu. This is a sacred place. The Great Spirit protected them as they wandered the land. At long last they came upon a place they knew was meant for them. They settled there.
Salish:
The Old One made the people after he dried the land. He took the last mud balls from the earth and fashioned the people. Then he sent Coyote to teach these Indians how to do things. And Coyote traveled the earth teaching the Indians and making life easier and better for them.
Tewa Pueblo:
In the beginning the People lived in the darkness of the underground. One day the Mole came to visit them. The People asked him if there was another world beside the one they lived in. The Mole told them to follow him. The People formed a line behind the Mole as he began to dig his way upward. The People took the soil he loosened and passed it back to the end of the line. That is why the tunnel that was dug was closed behind them and they could never find their way back. He led them to a land with sunlight and blue skies. That is the end of the story.
Another Apache:
(In many Apache ceremonies the following legend is re-enacted. In the coming-of-age rite sometimes the young girls will wear the costume of the White Painted Woman. Before battles some braves would dance the role of Killer of Enemies.) The first peoples to arrive on earth were White Painted Woman and her brother, Killer of Enemies. His role was to hunt for food, but every time he killed an animal the Owl Man Giant would swoop down and steal the bounty. He and his sister grew hungrier and hungrier until one day, Life Giver, a spirit, arrived in the form of a thunderstorm. Nine months later White Painted Woman had a baby who was named Child Born of Water. This child grew to be a strong warrior and slew Owl Man Giant in a ferocious fight. These three together helped create the present world.
Nuu-chal-nuth:
The great spirit Quatz created woman, whom he left alone in the dark forest. The woman lamented day and night, until Quatz took pity and appeared to her in a canoe of copper, in which many handsome young men were rowing. One of the rowers told her it was the great spirit who was supplying her with the companionship she craved. At these words she cried the more, and as the tears trickled down, they fell to the ground. Quatz commanded her to look, and she saw with amazement a tiny child, a boy, entirely formed. Her firstborn son became the ancestor of the taises(?), while from her other sons the common people are descended.
Tiahuanaco:
In the beginning, Lord Con Ticci Viracocha, prince and creator of all things, emerged from the void and created the earth and the heavens. Then he created animals and a race of giants (who lived in eternal darkness as he had neglected to create a source of light). These beings enraged the Lord, and he turned them into stone. Then he flooded the earth till all was under water, and all life extinguished. In a new start, he created the sun, moon, and stars. Now he created new birds and animals. Again he decided to form human beings: these he fashioned from stone. Some he painted with long hair, some with short hair; some women he painted as pregnant, some as caring for the babies fashioned beside them; and on each figure he painted the clothes they would continue to wear. Finally he divided the stone figures into groups, giving each group its own language, its own food to grow, and its own songs to sing. Then he buried all the figures in the earth toawait his command that would bring them to life. Viracocha then summoned his helpers and told them to go forth on the earth in different directions to prepare places for the new humans to occupy. Viracocha then traveled the land, calling each group into life as he passed the land they were to populate, whereupon he taught them how to live on the land selected for them. (There is a continuance of this story that has Viracocha and his companions, when finished with their teachings, walking on the waves of the ocean as they disappear toward the setting sun. Viracocha means "foam of the sea".)
Nahuati:
Five worlds have been created, each wth its own sun, and each following upon the death of the preceding one. Ours is the fifth world. The first world was lit by the sun of earth. The people of this world were disrespectful, so the gods punished them by having jaguars feast upon their flesh. All died, and their sun with them. The second world was lit by the sun of air. Its people acted unwisely, so the gods had hurricane winds destroy them. Their sun died with them. The third world was lit by the sun of the rain of fire. These peoples did not honor the gods, nor sacrifice to them, so they were destroyed by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The fourth world was lit by the sun of water. These humans were greedy, so they were punished by a great flood. The Supreme Being tried to save one couple by ordering them to eat but one ear of corn each per day. This they did till the flood abated and they saw many fish twitching their last upon he dry land. The couple decided to eat of these fish and were then transformed into dogs for their disobedience. The fifth world is lit by a sun combining the elements of the other four suns (earth, air, fire, and water) and the sacrificial death of two of the gods; Nanautzin, an ugly, disfigured, ostracized god, and now honored as a godly hero, and an unremembered god who acted cowardly before sacrificing himself.
Aztec:
Quetzalcoatl, the light one, and Tezcatlipoca, the dark one, looked down from their place in the sky and saw only water below. A gigantic goddess floated upon the waters, eating everything with her many mouths. The two gods saw that whatever they created was eaten by this monster. They knew they must stop her, so they transformed themselves into two huge serpents and descended into the water. One of them grabbed the goddess by the arms while the other grabbed her around the legs, and before she could resist they pulled until she broke apart. Her head and shoulders became the earth and the lower part of her body the sky. The other gods were angry at what the two had done and decided, as compensation for her dismemberment, to allow her to provide the necessities for people to survive; so from her hair they created trees, grass, and flowers; caves, fountains, and wells from her eyes; rivers from her mouth; hills and valleys from her nose; and mountains from her shoulders. Still the goddess was often unhappy and the people could hear her crying in the night. They knew she wept because of her thirst for human blood, and that she would not provide food from the soil until she drank. So the gift of human hearts is given her. She who provides sustenance for human lives demands human lives for her own sustenance. So it has always been; so it will ever be.
Maya:
In the beginning was only Tepeu and Gucumatz (Feathered Serpent). These two sat together and thought, and whatever they thought came into being. They thought earth, and there it was. They thought mountains, and so there were. They thought trees, and sky, and animals etc, and each came into being. But none of these things could praise them, so they formed more advanced beings of clay. But these beings fell apart when they got wet, so they made beings out of wood, but they proved unsatisfactory and caused trouble on the earth. The gods sent a great flood to wipe out these beings, so that they could start over. With the help of Mountain Lion, Coyote, Parrot, and Crow they fashioned four new beings. These four beings performed well and are the ancestors of the Quiché.
Hopi:
In the beginning there were only two: Tawa, the Sun God, and Spider Woman (Kokyanwuhti), the Earth Goddess. All the mysteries and the powers in the Above belonged to Tawa, while Spider Woman controlled the magic of the Below. There was neither man nor woman, bird nor beast, no living thing until these Two willed it to be. In time they decided there should be other gods to share their labors, so Tawa divided himself and there came Muiyinwuh, God of All Life Germs and Spider Woman divided herself and there came Huzruiwuhti, Woman of the Hard Substances (turquoise, silver, coral, shell,etc.). Huzruiwuhti became the wife of Tawa and with him produced Puukonhoya, the Youth, and Palunhoya, the Echo, and later, Hicanavaiya, Man-Eagle, Plumed Serpent and many others. Then did Tawa and Spider Woman have the Great Thought, they would make the Earth to be between the Above and the Below. As Tawa thought the features of the Earth, Spider women formedthem from clay. Then did Tawa think of animals and beasts and plants, all the while Spider Woman formed them from the clay. At last they decided they had enough, then they made great magic and breathed life into their creatures. Now Tawa decided they should make creatures in their image to lord over all the rest. Spider Woman again formed them from clay. Again the Two breathed life into their creations. Spider Woman called all the people so created to follow where she led. Through all the Four Great Caverns of the Underworld she led them, until they finally came to an opening, a sipapu, which led to the earth above.
Tewa/Hopi:
Way back in the distant past, the ancestors of humans were living down below in a world under the earth. They weren't humans yet, they lived in darkness, behaving like bugs. Now there was a Great Spirit watching over everything; some people say he was the sun. He saw how things were down under the earth, so he sent his messenger, Spider Old Woman, to talk to them. She told them that the Sun Spirit wished better for them than what they had, and that she would lead them to another world. When they came out on the surface of the earth, that's when they became humans.
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Greek Creation Myth
Creation Myth From Hesiod's Theogony (loosely interpreted): In the beginning there was only Chaos, an empty void. This huge vacancy gave birth to Gaea (the earth), to Tartarus (the great region beneath the earth), to Eros (the god of love and attraction, to Erebus (the darkness of the underworld), and Night (the darkness over the earth). Then Erebus slept with Night, who gave birth to Ether (the heavenly light), and to Day (the earthly light). Later Night alone produced Doom, Fate, Death, Sleep, Dreams, Nemesis, etc. Meanwhile Gaea alone produced Uranus (the starry sky), the Mountains, and Pontus (the sterile sea). Uranus became mate and equal to Gaea, because he "covered" her on all sides. As a couple (he-sky, her-earth) they procreated the Twelve Titans, the three Cyclopes, and the three Hecatoncheires (with the fifty heads and hundred arms each). Uranus hated these latter children, and they hated him. In anger he pushed them back into Gaea's womb and kept them there. This was very painful for Gaea and she plotted revenge against Uranus. She fashioned a flint sickle and called upon her children to avenge her. All but Cronus, the youngest Titan, refused to help her for fear of Uranus's wrath. That night, when Uranus came to lie with Gaea, Cronus, hiding in ambush, was able to grab his father's genitals and sever them with the flint sickle. As the blood fell to the earth the Furies, the Ash-Tree Nymphs, and the Giants were created. When Cronus heaved the testicles into the sea Aphrodite arose from the foam. We hear no more of Uranus in the myths. Cronus then became leader of the Titans, and confined the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires to Tartarus. He married his sister Rhea and they produced many offspring. But Cronus had been warned by both Uranus and Gaea that a child of his would replace him as leader of the Titans, so when Rhea gave birth to a child and presented it to Cronus he would swallow the baby. This is what happened to Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon shortly after each was born. Rhea finally wised up, and when Zeus was born she presented Cronus a stone wrapped in the swaddling clothes, which he swallowed thinking it was the newest child. Zeus grew to manhood on the island of Crete, attended to by nymphs. He sought and got advice from Metis, another Titaness, who prepared an emetic potion for him. Soon, disguised as a cupbearer, he was able to get Cronus to drink the potion. Cronus immediately vomited up all the children he had swallowed, all safe and sound, and fully grown. They overwhelmed Cronus and bound him as a prisoner in Tartarus. And so the Olympians began their rule. (It took ten more years of strife and wars between Titans, Olympians, Cyclopes, Hecatoncheires, assorted monsters and dragons (like Typhoeus) before the rule of the Olympians was solidified.)
Another Creation Myth:
This story is a much earlier version than that above. Eurynome, the goddess of all creation, arose from Chaos and separated the sea from the sky. Then, dancing naked upon the waves, she created the wind and rubbed it in her hands to create the serpent Ophion, who made love to her. Pregnant, Eurynome laid the World Egg, and Ophion coiled around it and hatched it. This egg brought forth the cosmos and everything in it. Eurynome and Ophion settled on Mount Olympus, and here, soon, Ophion was proclaiming himself creator. Eurynome, angry, banished him to the netherworld. Then she established the seven planets, each with a Titan and Titaness to rule it. When man appeared, he sprang from the soil, and the first man, Pelasgus, taught the others to eat acorns, build huts, and make clothes.
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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.
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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).
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 Myth
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.
An Other Version of it is:
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.
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China Creation of Mankind Myth
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)
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India Creation Myth
(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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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