mythology by eguriase s. m. okaka

Mythology

By Eguriase S. M. Okaka Myths These are ancient stories that our forefathers used to explain their beliefs such as the existence of God, philosophies, sciences, natural and historical phenomena, such origin of a people. Many believe them to be true but they are not true, both Africans and Non-Africans have their own myths but the themes are the same-they all give explanation for something. Originally, myths were transmitted from generation to generation by mere word of mouth (orally) but now many of them have been documented. In African for example, myths are passed on to the younger generations through storytelling, proverbs, chanted poems or songs, and they vary from one community to another. African Myths Examples of African myths: • Why there is day and night. • The Fulani creation story (Poem). • The Fulani myths about milk. • How the sky came to be. • The birth of Osiris, the lord of all things (Egypt). • Where the world began (A Yoruba myths). Non-African myths Examples of Non-African myths: • Aenea’s Journey to the Elysian Field – the beautiful eternal home of those who had lived a good life. (A Roman myth). • The story of the white buffalo calf woman sent to Lakota people to save them from hunger. (A North American myth). • Jason and the Golden Fleece. (A Greek myth). Where the World Began (A Yoruba myth) According to a Yoruba myth, the world was originally a marshy, watery wasteland. In the sky lived many gods including the supreme God called Oladumare or Olorun (the owner of the sky). These gods would sometimes descend from the sky on spiders’ webs to play in the marshy waters and then, there was no land or human beings there. One day, Olorun, who was also known as Orisha-nla the (great god), and told him to create solid land in the marshy waters below. He gave him a hen, a pigeon and the shell of a snail containing some loose earth. Obatala descended upon the waters and threw the loose earth into a small space. He thereafter set the loose the pigeon and hen which began to scratch the earth and move it around. By doing this, they succeeded in creating solid ground from the marshy waters. Obatala later reported back to Olorun, who then sent chameleon to see what had been accomplished. The chameleon found that the earth was wide but not very dry. After a while, Olorun sent the chameleon to inspect again. This time the chameleon discovered a wide dry land, which was called Ife which means wide and Ile which means house. All the other earthly dwelling later evolved from the colonies of Ile-Ife, and it is respected as a sacred spot forever. Ile-Ife remains the home of Oloni the spiritual leader of the Yoruba people. Non-African Myths An Unlucky Escape This is a story of how Hermes, a messenger of the gods tried to protect two beautiful children from their wicked stepmother. Many years ago, in the country called Thessaly, there lived a king with his two beautiful children, Phrixus and Helle. The children’s wicked stepmother did not like them and plotted against them. Their special friend, the messenger of the gods, Hermes, tried to protect them. In that part of the world, they had no rain for a long time. The children’s stepmother makes a plan. She asked the king to send to the oracle at Delphi for advice. He did so, but she intercepted the messengers on the way back and told them what to say. The messengers told the king that in order for the rains to return, an offering must be made to the gods. Phrixus and Helle must be sacrificed. The king was very upset but said that it must be done. The king led his children to the altar but just before they got there, the golden ram which was a gift from Hermes flew to them, and told them to get on his back and fly away with him. He was trying to get them to safety in a land far away. He flew and flew with the children on his back. The children got very tired but the ram encouraged them to hang on. Phrixus held on but his sister was overcome with tiredness and fell asleep, loosening her hands from the wool and falling into the sea at a place which is still called Hellespont today. Legends These are old well-known stories about brave people and their adventures. They are tales of historical events that seem believable but are not completely true. Like myths, they were passed down from generation to generation by the forefathers through oral rendition. Many legends nowadays have been documented. Africans and non-Africans have their own legends. The themes are usually the same as they feature men and women who must have played important roles in their various societies. Characters can also be animals and non-human objects like hills, rocks, streams, and trees. The human figures are regarded as heroes and heroines who as a result of their actions may now be worshipped as gods: Examples of African legends are: • Moremi of Ife • The Osun of Osogbo River • The Drum and the Creator Examples of Non-African legends are: • The story of Odysseus • Jason and the Golden Fleece • Robin Hood • King Author Features of Myths and Legends Myths and legends have the same features. • Magical: This means that myths and legends can be exciting and magical in strange ways. The characters may have special powers that will enable them to do the impossible. • Supernatural: The stories may be impossible to explain as natural causes. The characters may have the powers of the gods or magic. See the story of where the world began, and An Unlucky Escape refers to my previous article on ‘Folktales” in this blog. • Superstitious: Superstitious is a belief that persons, objects or things are lucky or unlucky or that they cause things to happen, due to old beliefs in magic. Myths and legends can be based partly on peoples’ belief in superstition. The Legend of Moremi Ajaasoro of Ile-Ife The kingdom of Ile-Ife was at war with an adjoining tribe who were known to them as the forest people. Scores of Ife citizens were being enslaved by these people. As a result of this, the Yoruba people hated the forest people. Moremi was a very brave and beautiful woman. In order to deal with the problem facing her people, she consulted the spirit of the river Esimirin so that she could discover the strength of her nation’s enemies. She offered everything she had to the spirit. She was taken as a slave by the forest people and due to her beauty, married their ruler and became his anointed queen. After familiarizing herself with the secrets of the forest people’s army, she escaped to Ile-Ife and revealed this to the Yorubas who were able to defeat the forest people in battle. Following the war, she returned to her first husband, King Oranmiyan, who immediately reinstated her as his Princess Consort. In order to fulfill the pledge she made to Esimirin before her mission, her son Olurogbo was given in sacrifice to the spirit because this was what it asked her for when she returned to it shrine. However, the Edi festival was started as a way to celebrate the sacrifice the princess made for the people of Yoruba land. (Source Wikipedia) By Eguriase S. M. Okaka