From the very beginning of humanity’s emergence and the formation of its consciousness, there have been various theories and myths about how the world around us and man came into being. Initially, it was myths that were the first form of expression of the collective consciousness that provided answers to all questions of interest. Over time, unquestioning faith in supernatural forces gave way to a practical search for rational answers to these very questions. Only the form of the answers has changed – the essence of the main questions, as can be seen from many write my essay, remains unchanged for more than a thousand years.
What do the common myths about the creation of the world have in common?
If we carefully examine several of even the most popular versions of the origins of the world around us, we can find a number of common characteristics:
- Originally, there was nothing but all-consuming darkness. Perhaps this is an explanation for why nothing came into existence before, and in general, this explanation does not require a search for alternative answers to the question of what came into existence before.
- The emergence of the world is due to some powerful impulse. In some myths and modern religious movements, it is the intervention of various divine beings. Skeptics and rationalist worshippers explain this impulse as some mighty burst of energy that gave rise to all life.
- Nothing came into being all at once-it took some time. Evolution explains this development by the gradual adaptation of living beings to the conditions of life, which took more than a thousand years. Religious doctrine explains it by saying that God created the whole world in seven days.
The creation story is the same for people all over the globe. This is indeed surprising to scholars since the establishment of social ties and the active exchange of cultural heritage began long after these very myths arose. Nevertheless, the story of the creation of the world differs only in small details, and the essence of the story always remains the same.
Do creation myths have the right to exist in modern society?
In our opinion, yes. It is worth remembering that myths are a unique sample of social consciousness, in which one can trace the history of its development almost to the present day. In addition, myths are always based on some real event or incident that initiated the development of society, modern laws, and so on. Myths as the first form of collective consciousness and folk creativity should remain part of the cultural heritage of mankind, regardless of the features of the plot or region of distribution. In modern conditions of society, myths represent the basis for a yet undiscovered layer of culture, a more detailed study of which is still just waiting for its time and the discoverer.