Read Don’t Know Much About® Mythology Online
Authors: Kenneth C. Davis
Vogler, Christopher.
The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers
(second edition). Studio City, Calif.: Michael Wiese Productions, 1998. A fascinating text-book that draws heavily on the work of Carl G. Jung and Joseph Campbell in utilizing myth for modern storytellers.
Voytilla, Stuart.
Myth and the Movies: Discovering the Mythic Structure of 50 Unforgettable Films
. Studio City, Calif.: Michael Wiese Productions, 1999. An interesting critical assessment of such classic films as
The Godfather
,
Jaws
,
The African Queen
, and
Citizen Kane
from a mythical perspective. Draws heavily on the themes laid out by Christopher Vogler (see above).
Wade, Nicholas.
The New York Times Book of Archeology
. Guilford, Conn.: Lyons Press, 2001. Collected articles from the newspaper’s Science Times section record some of the major recent discoveries in archaeology.
Warner, Marina.
Alone of All Her Sex: The Myth and the Cult of the Virgin Mary
New York: Vintage, 1983. A scholarly but accessible account of the changing historical perspectives given to the mother of Jesus, including the influence of ancient mythical characters on the image of Mary, especially in the early Christian period.
Sometimes it is difficult to comprehend that this Don’t Know Much About series started nearly twenty years ago with the simple idea about writing a book about something I loved—American history. It has grown into a series of books for adults and children that has exceeded my wildest imaginings. That could only have happened with the hard work, support, and determination of a large supporting cast. A great many people have been part of the long journey I have been on, and I wish to thank and recognize some of them for their unique contributions to making my work possible.
I start with a teacher somewhere out there who once read Homer’s
Odyssey
to a group of fifth-graders in Mount Vernon, New York. To her, and the all the other teachers who inspire young minds every day in schools around America, I say thank you for doing what you do. It is the most important job in America, but is not usually seen that way. America owes an enormous debt of gratitude to the teachers who are so dedicated to the work of challenging young minds in difficult times.
For the past few years, it has been my great pleasure to work with an excellent group of committed, dedicated colleagues at HarperCollins, starting with Jane Friedman, who has been so supportive of my work. I would also like to especially thank Carrie Kania, Christine Boyd, Shaina Gopen, David Koral, Suzie Sisoler, Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich, Will Staehle, Susan Weinberg, Diane Burrowes, Patti Kelly, Leslie Cohen, my copyeditor, Olga Galvin Gardner, and my tireless publicist, Elly Weisenberg.
Most of all, I am deeply indebted to the pushing, prodding, and vision of my editor, Gail Winston. Her assistant, Katherine Hill, was also instrumental in making this book possible.
I have been fortunate to work with some of the nicest people in the book business at my longtime literary agency, the David Black Agency. I am not only lucky to have such hardworking, dedicated people on my team, I feel fortunate to consider all of them my friends: Jessica Candlin, Leigh Ann Eliseo, Linda Loewenthal, Gary Morris, Susan Raihofer, Jason Sacher, Joy Tutela, and the maestro, David Black.
Over the years, a great many other people have provided moral support, laughs, and the encouragement that make the work of writing bearable, and I am indebted to all of them for their friendship: Star Gibbs, Ellen Giusto, Jim and Esther Gray, Joyce Waldon, and Linda Louise Watson. I also thank the wonderful people at one of America’s great independent bookstores, the Northshire, in Manchester Center, Vermont.
I would like to add a special note of gratitude to April Prince, who has been a friend and a great help in making these books, especially this one, in recent years.
My deepest and greatest gratitude must always go to my family. First, my mother, Evelyn Davis, who made those trips to the local public library such a significant part of my young life. Without anybody knowing it or predicting it, those regular visits to the temple-like Mount Vernon Public Library set me on the road to becoming a writer.
My children, Colin and Jenny, are my joy and inspiration, and they have had to put up with a father who was often distracted or preoccupied.
And, finally, I thank the young woman who once told a bookstore owner who was interviewing me for a job, “Hire the kid.” That same woman later told me I should be writing books, not selling them. She was so smart, I married her. Thank you, Joann. More than I can ever say.
—D
ORSET
, V
ERMONT
May 2005
Note: Entries in this index, carried over verbatim from the print edition of this title, are unlikely to correspond to the pagination of any given e-book reader. However, entries in this index, and other terms, may be easily located by using the search feature of your e-book reader.
Aborigines, 394–95, 504–6
Abraham (Judeo-Christian), 123, 163–64
Abzu (Mesopotamian), 138, 145, 146
Achilles (Greek), 4, 244, 245, 342
Actaeon (Greek), 204
Adam (Judeo-Christian), 168
Adonis (Greek), 146, 206
Aeneas, 256–57
Aeneid
,
The
, 171, 255–57
Aeschylus, 186, 199, 208, 226, 245
Aesir (Norse), 300
Aesop, 31–32, 130
African myths, 397–430
common characteristics of, 408–12
creation myths, 11, 415–18
gods, 418–27
milestones, 400–403
new world myths and, 393–96
sub-Saharan Africa and, 404–7, 413–15
Voodoo, Santeria, and, 427–30
afterlife.
See also
death
African beliefs, 408
Celtic beliefs, 278
Chinese beliefs, 366–67
Egyptian myths and, 90–93
Indian beliefs, 327
Agamemnon (Greek), 244, 246–47
Agni (Indian), 334
agora (Greek), 186, 187–88
agriculture
Mayan, 457–59
Mesopotamian, 123, 130–31
Aha (Egyptian), 100
Ah Puch (Mayan), 462
Ahura Mazda (Persian), 169–70
Aido-Hwedo or Aida-Wedo (African), 417, 421, 428
Airsekui (North American), 449
Akhenaten, 13, 107–11
Alexander the Great, 111, 251
allegories, myths and, 25–26, 34–37, 156–57
All Saints’ Day, 291, 469–70
alphabet, Phoenician, 165, 183, 185
Amarna Revolution, 107–8
Amaterasu (Japanese), 9, 384–85, 387–89, 390–91
Amaunet (Egyptian), 77
Amenhotep IV, 107–11
American myths, 431–501
Aztec myths, 464–74
characteristics of, 448–53
of, 440–45
myths, 475–81
Mayan myths, 453–63
milestones, 435–39
world myths and, 393–96 (
see also
African myths; North Amercan myths; Pacific Island myths)
suppression of, by European conquerors, 445–48
Amma (African), 418–19, 426
Ammut (Egyptian), 92, 93
Amun (Egyptian), 77, 84
Analects of Confucius, The
, 379, 381
Anansi (African), 410, 423–24
Anat (Mesopotamian), 166–67
ancestor worship, 410, 505
Andromeda (Greek), 221
animals.
See also
bulls; dragons; snakes
African myths, 422–27
American myths, 450, 490–91
Br’er Rabbit stories, 5, 410–11, 426
Egyptian myths, 97–98
fables, 31–32
of, 16, 45, 367, 430
animism, 41
ankh symbol, 107, 113
An or Anu (Mesopotamian), 138, 144–45, 155
Anubis (Egyptian), 82, 85–86, 93–94
Ao (Chinese), 375
Apep (Egyptian), 73, 81
Aphrodite (Greek), 148, 182, 196, 200–201, 206, 211, 246
Apis bull (Egyptian), 97
Apollo (Greek and Roman), 88, 189, 202–3, 244
Apollodorus, 199, 251
Apollonius of Rhodes, 226
Apophis (Egyptian), 73, 81
apples, Halloween and, 291
apples of the Hesperides, 225
Apsu (Mesopotamian), 138, 145, 146
Arachne (Greek), 204–5
Arcadian stag, 223
archaeology
Celtic myths and, 273–74
Indian myths and, 324–25
Kennewick man, 440, 500
and, 35–37
female forms, 141
Schliemann’s discovery of Troy, 37–38, 184, 247–48
archaic triad (Roman), 252
archetypes, myths and, 16, 31, 48–49
Ares (Greek), 203, 212
Argonauts (Greek), 35, 226–30
Argus (Greek), 2–3
Ariadne (Greek), 235
Aristotle, 233, 236
Arjuna (Indian), 323, 346–47
armpit creation story, 299–300
art
African, 406
Greek, 181, 186, 208
Mesopotamian, 134
world myths and, 396
Artemis (Greek), 203–4
Arthur, legend of King, 28–29, 235, 293–95
Aryans, 252, 318–19
Asclepius (Greek), 221, 228–30
Asgard (Norse), 299–300
Asherah (Mesopotamian), 166
Ashoka, 351
Ashurbanipal, 134, 137, 145, 156
Asian myths, 309–11.
See also
Chinese myths; Indian myths; Japanese myths
Assyrian Empire, 134, 156, 161
Astarte (Mesopotamian), 148
Atahensic (North American), 488
Atahualpa, 477
Aten (Egyptian), 107–8
Atharva-Veda, 321
atheistic religions, 45
Athena (Greek), 179, 182, 204–5, 221
Athens, 181, 186
Atlantis (Greek), 25–26, 231–34
Atlas (Greek), 197
Atrahasis (Mesopotamian), 158
Atum (Egyptian), 76, 77–78
Augean stables, 224
Australian myths, 393–96, 501–3, 504–6
avatars (Indian), 333, 344–45
Ayars (Incan), 478–79
Aztec myths, 464–74.
See also
American myths
Day of the Dead holiday, 469–70
gods, 470–74
sacrifice and, 465–67
Mexico and, 7, 464
Spanish conquerors as gods, 467–69
Baal (Mesopotamian), 31, 129, 148, 165–67.
See also
Marduk (Mesopotamian)
Babylon, 125, 128–29, 135–36, 152, 160–63.
See also
Mesopotamian myths
Babylonian Empire, 135–36, 160–63
Bacchanalia holiday, 206, 257–61
Bacchus (Roman), 206–9, 259
Badbh (Celtic), 284
Balder (Norse), 300–301
ball game, Mayan, 459–62
baptism, 45
basket themes, 254
Bast or Bastet (Egyptian), 94
Beelzebub, 167
beer
Egyptian, 65
Incan, 475, 478
Indian soma, 334–35
Mesopotamian, 133
Bel (Mesopotamian), 31, 129, 148, 165–67.
See also
Marduk (Mesopotamian)
Belenus (Celtic), 280–81
belief, myths and, 17, 43–45
Beltane festival, 280–81, 291–92
benben stone, 78, 101–102
Benten (Japanese), 388
Berserkers (Norse), 305
Bes (Egyptian), 94
bhakti yoga, 340
Bhagavad-Gita, 46, 313, 317, 345–47
Bible.
See also
Judeo-Christian religion
Abraham in, 163–64
Babylon in, 31, 116, 124, 129, 146, 152, 162–63
Canaan in, 165–67
Egyptian influence, 112
Greek version, 251
Genesis creation myth, 11, 46, 74–75, 122, 137–38, 156, 163, 168
Leviathan in, 149–50
Lilith in, 168
challenges to, 38–42, 137
Noah flood story, 38–40, 157–60
Palestine and Philistines, 165
Paul in, 257–58
of, 45
stories of, 46
Samson and Heracles, 223
Shem and semite term, 135
rivalries, 81–82
Song of Solomon (Song of Songs), 146
Tower of Babel, 160–63
Bingham, Hiram, 475, 478
birds, Stymphalian, 224
boar, Erymanthian, 223
Bobbi-bobbi (Pacific Islands), 506
bodhi or bo tree, 349
Book of Changes, 353, 365, 367–68, 375, 381
Book of Invasions, 275
Book of the Dead.
See
Egyptian Book of the Dead, The
Bragi (Norse), 301
Brahma, the Creator (Indian), 331–33, 337–39
Brahman (Indian), 45, 323, 325, 327, 337
Brahmanas, 322
Brahmins, 322, 327, 328, 348
Br’er Rabbit stories, 5, 410–11, 426
Brigid (Celtic), 30, 282–83
Brynhild or Brunhilde (Norse), 307–8
Buddha (Indian), 345, 348–51
Buddhism, 9, 319, 348–51, 363, 386, 388
bulls
Celtic, 287
Egyptian, 97
Greek Heracles and Cretan, 224
Greek Theseus and Minotaur, 234–37
Mesopotamian, 155
Minoan, 183–84
Mithraism and, 170
Bumba (African), 415, 419
burial literature, Egyptian, 71–74
Byzantine Empire, 261
caduceus symbol, 228
Caesar, Julius, 36, 112, 269, 271–73, 277
Cagn (African), 419
calendar, 6, 64
Calypso (Greek), 249, 250
Canaan, 165–68.
See also
Mesopotamian myths
cannibalism, 210, 220, 429
Capitoline triad (Roman), 253
Cassandra (Greek), 246
caste system, Indian, 328–30, 346–47
castration, Greek myths and, 194–98
Catal Huyuk, 130
Caterpillar (North American), 490
cattle of Geryon, 225
Cattle Raid of Cooley, The
, 263, 275–76, 285–88
causal myths.
See
creation myths; explanatory myths
celebrations.
See
holidays
Celtic myths, 263–95.
See also
Norse myths
The Cattle Raid of Cooley
, 285–88
Druids and, 269–80
Fenian Cycle and Finn MacCool, 288–92
gods, 280–84
evidence, 272–76
sacrifice, 276–79
of King Arthur, 28–29
Mabinogion
and Wales, 292–95
milestones, 266–68
Salmon of Knowledge, 288–90
Samhain festival and Halloween, 290–92
shamans, 412
Stonehenge, 279–80
centaurs (Greek), 226
Centeotl (Aztec), 470
Centzon Totchtin (Aztec), 450
Cerberus (Greek), 209, 225–26
Ceres (Roman), 205–6, 253
Cernunnos (Celtic), 281
Ceryneian deer, 223
Chac (Mayan), 462
Chalchiuhtlicue (Aztec), 472–74
Chaldean Empire, 161
Chang E (Chinese), 379
Changing Woman (North American), 489
Chango (African), 410, 427–30
Chaos (Greek), 194
Charon (Greek), 209
Cheops, 99–102
chicha beer, 475, 478
chi life force (Chinese), 364, 378
Chinawezi (African), 417
Chinese myths, 353–84
Chinese history and, 309–11, 361–64
Confucius and Confucianism, 379–82
myths, 369–73
and, 365–69
gods, 374–79
Japanese myths and, 386 (
see also
Japanese myths)
Laozi and Taoism, 382–84